Jan272012

Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Hot Spinach and Artichoke Dip

Last Sunday the family and I vegged out in front of the TV to a couple football games. We are not a football family by any means, and truth be told we rarely watch it, but this time my husband’s favorite team was in the playoffs, and I wanted to make a big deal out of it (because I can). Read More

Nov142011

Muddy Buddies

image: bettycrocker.com

One of our Thanksgiving traditions is to snack throughout the day while the turkey is cooking. The theory is that this will save some room (and effort) for the big meal, though this is debatable when kids are involved. Case in point is one of their favorite snacks — Muddy Buddies.

While the largest component of this snack is indeed a “healthy” cereal, it also involves chocolate and powdered sugar, which, I’m not going to kid myself, is the main reason these are such a hit. Read More

Mar22010

Homemade Soft Pretzels

It’s a good thing that making soft pretzels is a bit on the labor-intensive side of things because otherwise I’d be making them all the time and that would not be good for the upcoming swimsuit season.

Homemade soft pretzels are a great weekend treat to make for the family. Serve them with some yellow mustard or melted cheese, or sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar instead of salt before baking, and voila, you’re an instant rock star.

Homemade Soft Pretzels

1 cup warm water (about 98 degrees)
1 package active dry yeast
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, sifted
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sugar

4 cups water
5 teaspoons baking soda
4 tablespoons butter, melted
Kosher salt

In a large mixing bowl, combine warm water and yeast. When the yeast dissolves, add half of the flour, the butter, salt, and sugar and mix for about 3 minutes. Stir in the remaining flour. Turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead until the dough is no longer sticky.

Let the dough rise in a greased, covered bowl until it doubles in size, about 45 to 50 minutes. Punch down the dough and divide into 12 pieces. Roll each piece of dough into 18-inch long ropes. On a greased cookie sheet, shape each rope into a pretzel shape. Let rise again until almost doubled, about 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

In a large non-aluminum Dutch oven over high heat, bring the four cups of water and baking soda to a boil. Using a large spoon, gently lower pretzels into water a few at a time and boil for about 1 minute, or until they float. Return the pretzels to the cookie sheet and brush with melted butter then sprinkle with kosher salt. Bake until browned, about 12 minutes.

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