Pumpkin Pie Pretzels

These are a bit of a project, but if you have a kid who loves to help bake, you'll have fun making these. I sacrificed a bit of dough for Abby to "shape" as her own pretzel and it kept her entertained while I did the rest! These are lovely and yummy and soft - a great snack.

Pumpkin Pie Pretzels

1 tsp rapid rise (or instant) yeast
3 cups bread flour
1/2 cup canned pumpkin
3/4 cup warm (about 110 degrees) milk
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
pinch cloves
2 Tbsp honey
2 Tbsp maple syrup
1 tsp salt

Using a dough hook, mix all of the ingredients together in a stand mixer for about 5 minutes, until a smooth dough forms. Add extra flour, a tablespoonful at a time, if the dough is too sticky. Turn the dough into a bowl coated with oil (I sprayed mine with Pam) and cover with plastic wrap. Set it to rise in a warm room for 1 1/2 hours, until nearly doubled in size. Punch the dough down to deflate, recover it, and let it rise for another 30 minutes, until nearly doubled again.

Make up a baking soda bath: in a large pot, combine water and baking soda (1 tsp baking soda to 2 quarts water) and bring to a boil. Preheat the oven to 450F.

Divide the dough into eight equal chunks. Roll each portion into a long rope, about 15 inches long, 3/4 inch in diameter. Twist it into pretzel shape; repeat with the other portions. Carefully slip each pretzel into the boiling baking soda bath; boil for 30 seconds, flip, and boil another 30 seconds. Remove pretzels with a slotted spoon to drain on paper towels.

Transfer the boiled pretzels to a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and sprayed with non-stick spray. They won't get much bigger in the oven, so they can be fairly close together. Bake for 12-15 minutes.

I wondered how much it would matter if I skipped the baking soda bath, so I did some pretzels in the bath and some I just baked after shaping. The bathed ones (like the pretzel on the right, below) had a crispy, shiny exterior, like you expect from a pretzel. The baked ones (pretzel on the left) were just kind of like dinner rolls. So, I say, give your pretzels a bath!