When served in a restaurant, the soft pretzel is displayed in all its salty glory on a board or plate with cheese dip or mustard. Although breaching perfection as it is lowered down to the dining table, there is the opportunity to consider the possibilities. What if there was no need for a dipping sauce? What if the cheese or sauce came already stuffed inside?
Possibility has turned into reality! Inside-out soft pretzels are packed with cheese, which delightfully oozes out during their short bake in the oven. Toss out the Hot Pockets and prepare your pallet for the salt, the savory, the splendor of the perfect crust concealing melted goodness within its walls.
The filling options are endless. The plethora of cheeses the fromager has to offer the pretzel world has already filled us with excitement for the surprise bursts of flavor locked in the pretzel bite. Until that first exposure is made through a tentative nibble, it would be challenging to guess the type of cheesy filling. Could it be feta and herbs? How about Gruyere, white cheddar, and Parmesan for a light three cheese? There is also the classic cheddar, bacon and dried onion stuffing which is sure to be a crowd-pleaser. If the hard stuffed pretzel snack Combos has taught us anything, it is that the cheese stuffing inside makes all the difference in this salty snack. Also in the savory world, turn the pretzel bite into a jalapeno popper, with a better exterior. Honey mustard and finely diced chicken could make these a satisfying meal. Go Italian with a touch of tomato sauce on fine Italian sausage crumbles and spinach.
Breaking away and expanding beyond cheese will lure the senses past convention. Chocolate and peanut butter would fit right in, then the other smooth nut butters can certainly join or replace. Likewise, a hazelnut spread would be similar enough to work. It would be simple and fun to turn your favorite chocolate (filled) candies into pretzel bite filling. Sweet and salty were meant to reign supreme.
How do you stuff your pretzels?
Bonus recipe opportunity: Hot dog pretzel buns! Comment below if you are interested in inspirational hot dog buns made of pretzel.
Take-Home Tips: It is important not to over prove the dough, however it can be made ahead of time and stored in the fridge to prove for up to 24 hours. The flavor will develop, but once the dough is formed, take care with proving thereon. Bread flour, or flour with 12-14% protein, is necessary to give this dough the structure it needs. When you do not have access to bread flour, substitute part of your low-protein flour (all-purpose) and create a high protein blend. To do this there are 2 simple steps that involve some math(s).
Calculating Protein Flour Blend Ratios
Step 1: Determine the % protein in the flours.
From the nutrition label, take the (protein in grams per serving x 100) / total grams in a serving.
- For example: Walmart brand all-purpose flour has 3g protein per 30g overall serving size.
- (3g x 100) / 30 = 10% protein content
Step 2: Calculate the ratio of each type of flour.
It may look complicated, but take a moment to read through and it should become clear. The goal for this recipe is a 14% protein blend. We need to determine how much of each type of flour to use. Take the higher % protein flour (calculated in Step 1) and add the % to the top left of the tictactoe board. The other (lower) % goes in the bottom left. The goal goes in the middle (14%). Find the difference diagonally, in this case 35-14=21 and 10-14=21. Take the total of those parts, the total grams of flour needed, and the parts per flour type (in this case all purpose and soy) to proportionally find the missing part. Below the total flour (480g x 4 soy flour parts) / 25g total parts = 77g of soy flour needed. Perform the same calculation but replacing for the AP flour to get 403g. We will round 80/400g for simplicity. The ratio is then 1:5, 1 part soy for 5 parts flour.
Scoring: 8 of 10. Immediately the alkaline baking soda flavor attacks the tongue, but is equally as suddenly forgotten when the filling rushes to replace that strong taste. The opportunities abound with filling ideas. They are great warm, room temp, for snacks, or a bunch for lunch.
Food of the Month 