Preparation Time: 1 Hour
Serves 8
Submitted by: Anna Abatzoglou
Suggested Olive Oil: Gaea Organic

Pretzels made with olive oil, coated in sesame with ouzo mustard. This snack is Greek inspired and an ode to one of my favorite snacks – pretzels!

Ingredients

1/4 Cup Gaea Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil
yeast
flour
water
salt
sugar
mustard
ouzo
sesame seeds

Preparation

For the ouzo mustard, stir ouzo into mustard until combined, refrigerate until pretzels are ready.

For pretzels:

Combine the water, sugar and kosher salt in the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast of top. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until the mixture begins to foam. Add the flour and butter and, using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and knead until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, approximately 4 to 5 minutes Remove the dough from the bowl, clean the bowl, and then oil it well with olive oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and sit in a warm place for approximately 50 to 55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Line 2 half-sheet pans with parchment paper and lightly brush with oil. Set aside.

Bring the 10 cups of water and baking soda to a rolling boil in an 8 quart saucepan or roasting pan.

In the meantime, turn the dough onto a slightly oil work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each 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 other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place onto the parchment-lined half sheet.

Place the pretzels into the boiling water, 1 by 1, for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula. Return to the half sheet pan, brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture and sprinkle with salt.

Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.