Soft Pretzels Buns

These pretzel "buns" are perfect for sandwiches and burgers. Once the buns have cooled off, split the bun in half and fill it with your favorite choice of cheese and meat and bake it once more until the the cheese is melted and the bun is slightly browned. Serve it with your favorite dipping sauce or coleslaw and you've got yourself a mouthwatering heck of a meal.

To satisfy your sweet tooth, you can simply roll the dough into a rope and cut it into bite size pieces. Boil the dough pieces in your water and baking soda solution and bake them until golden brown. Finally coat the pretzel bites in melted butter (just enough to coat them) and sprinkle it with a sugar and cinnamon mixture.

Makes 8 pretzels

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 3 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 1/2 cups all purpose flour, sifted twice
• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 4 teaspoons vegetable oil
• 10 cups water
• 2/3 cup baking soda
• 1 large egg yolk, beaten
• 1 tablespoon water
• sea salt for topping

Directions

• Combine the water, sugar, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer. Stir until granules are completely dissolved. Sprinkle the  yeast on top and allow to sit for 5 minutes or until mixture is foamy. 
• Add flour and butter to the mixing bowl. Attach dough hook to mixer and mix on low speed until all ingredients are combined.
• Increase the mixer speed to medium and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away form the side of the bowl, about 4-5 minutes.
• Grease a large bowl with 2 teaspoons of vegetable oil and place the dough inside. Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough sit in a warm spot for 1 hour.
• Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and brush with the remaining vegetable oil (use more if needed). 
• Turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out eahch piece of dough into a 24-inch rope. Make a U-shape with the rope holding the ends of the rope, cross them over each othe rand press onto the bottom of the U to form the shape of a pretzel. Place pretzel onto parchment-lined baking sheet. Let dough sit for another half hour.
• Preheat the oven to 450°F.
• Make egg wash by whisking egg yolk with water. Set aside.
• In the meantime, combine the water and baking soda in a large, wide pot. Bring mixture to a rolling boil.
• Place the pretzels into the boiling water 2 at a time for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water with a large, flat spatula. Place the boiled pretzels back on the baking sheet, brush the top of each pretzel with the egg wash made earlier and sprinkle with sea salt.
• Bake pretzels until they become golden brown about 12 minutes. Once done, transfer pretzels to a cooling rack and let sit for 5 minutes before serving.