Vegan Beer Pretzels

A Pretzel with a Soft and Chewy Interior and a Salty and Savory Exterior

Ingredients

2 cups German Beer**

1 ½ tablespoons light brown sugar

1 packet active yeast

½ teaspoons sea salt

¼ cup melted vegan butter (Earth Balance)

6 cups all-purpose flour

Toppings

Pretzel salt or Coarse sea salt

Everything mix (1 tbsp poppy seeds, 1 tsp chopped garlic, 1 tbsp sesame seeds, ¼ tsp salt)

Cinnamon Sugar (¼ cup sugar, 1tsp cinnamon)

Notes

**For the beer you can use water instead if you desire. I used Schneider Weisse German Hefe-Weizen Ale

Procedures

Mix flour, brown sugar, yeast, and salt together in a large mixing bowl. Add the butter and slowly pour in the beer. Mix the dough until a shaggy ball forms then knead for 10 minutes until the dough is smooth and elastic. The dough should be slightly sticky and tacky. If it is too wet, add a little extra flour one tablespoon at a time. Once the dough has come together, form it into a ball.

Grease the dough and a bowl and place the dough into the bowl. Cover with a damp rag and let the dough rise for one hour or until doubled in size. After that time has elapsed, punch the air out of the dough and then portion it off into 15 even pieces. Then, let the dough balls rest for another 10 minutes covered with a damp rag.

After the time has elapsed and the dough has rested, roll the dough balls into long pieces, about one foot long. Knot the long pieces into a pretzel shape and place onto a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Cover the pretzels with a damp cloth and proof the pretzels for 15 minutes before placing them into the fridge to proof for another hour or up to 8 hours.

When the pretzels are almost done proofing, add 8 cups of water and 6 tablespoons of baking soda into a large pot. Bring the water to a gentle simmer. Remove the pretzels from the fridge and poach the pretzels individually in the baking soda water for 30 to 60 seconds. Place the pretzels back on the parchment paper lined baking sheet after they have been poached.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Brush the pretzels with the excess hot baking soda water. Then top them with salt, everything seasoning, or leave them plain to toss in cinnamon and sugar after baking.

Bake the pretzels in the oven at 450 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes or until dark brown. Remove the pretzels from the oven when they are finished baking. Brush the pretzels with melted vegan butter. For the cinnamon sugar topping, toss the pretzels in the cinnamon and sugar. Serve the pretzels warm and enjoy!