The Amish Cook's Old-Fashioned Super Soft Homemade Pretzels

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This article is a part of "The Amish Cook Column", a weekly series featuring a story & recipe from Gloria Yoder, Amish wife & mother of six from Flatrock, Illinois. We are re-running this column and recipe to celebrate National Pretzel Day!

Jump to:

• 🗒️Editor's Notes About The Recipe
• 🥨Pretzel Instructions
• 📋Pretzel Instructions
• 🥨More Amish Pretzel Recipes
• 🖨️Full Recipe Super Soft Pretzels

The sun is shining, ah how wonderful. Yes, it’s cold and breezy, but the sun is shining. After months of minimal sunshine, each cheery day in the great outdoors is quite welcome. The children love curling up inside the south kitchen windows as the gentle rays kiss their cheeks, giving them a sense of quietness and rest. (Editor's Note: Keeping read for the recipe for Old-Fashioned Super Soft Homemade Pretzels!)

As I write, so much is churning all around us. There is confusion, hopelessness, and despair, trying to seep in throughout the world. What can we do? We can talk and talk, debate till midnight, and even have the right answers, but in the end, what can we do? Really what can we do? Disaster strikes, you wonder whether the peace and safety in the nation will hold together another week or even for a day. So what can we do? I’m just an ordinary little housewife and mother. I cannot change the world, no matter how hard I try.

My mind keeps going back to my little ones basking in the sun, soaking up the gentle rays. Then I ponder, “What happens when I rest in the rays of the Father’s love that is streaming down, through his Son?” Or am I perhaps too knotted up to even think of basking in His love for me during these traumatic times? I know there have been too many times when I couldn’t soak up his love beams in my heart, simply because I was too occupied with trying to work things out on my own. It’s those times I end up in despair, wondering how I could ever come out on top again, and life looks chilling cold, hardly even worth the fight to live. As I muster the courage to simply call out, “Jesus!” his rays of love gently warm my troubled being. Now like Hosanna inside the window, soaking in all the sun she can get, I find myself turning toward the Son (of God) to comfort my heart with  His warmth I never imagined possible.   

Now, as I think of sunshine in my life, it gives me the urge to be a ray of sunshine in others’ lives. Something that adds sunshine to my children’s day is to help mom make something special for Daddy. Honestly, I enjoy it having them all in the kitchen with me. Yet, since it takes so much more time when coordinating a bigger project with five or six little helpers, I tend to do at least some of my cooking and baking when several children are at play or napping. 

Introducing Old-Fashioned Super Soft Homemade Pretzels

Today will be different. I will need all of their help to help me with the recipe Hosanna requested a week ago that I shared with you. Our project will consist of making Old-Fashioned Super Soft Homemade Pretzels. Austin says he’s going to make one in the shape of a house. Hosanna will undoubtedly want an “H” for Hosanna, as she is really getting into letter names. Yesterday two-year-old Elijah made an “E” all by himself for the first time, so he’ll go for that, I’m sure.

Jump to:

• 🗒️Editor's Notes About The Recipe
• 🥨Pretzel Instructions
• 📋Pretzel Instructions
• 🥨More Amish Pretzel Recipes
• 🖨️Full Recipe Super Soft Pretzels

🗒️Editor's Notes About The Recipe

We are always looking for something to entertain the kids during this pandemic and they were excited about the prospect of making these Old-Fashioned Super Soft Homemade Pretzels. Rachel guided the kids through the process and by the end they were shaping and twisting their way to deliciousness. They made some "sweet pretzels" (dipped in butter and rolled in cinnamon sugar and then dunked in an easy homemade glaze of milk, powdered sugar, and vanilla when out of the oven.) The savory pretzels got an egg wash and then baked and I can tell you I really, really liked these pretzels. Thegirls enjoyed shaping the dough. They did some letters (I got to eat my letter "K" pretzel) and I made a peace sign. This is definitely a good recipe! Here are some photos:

Pretzel ingredients are very basic, making them appealing for Amish bakers.

There some doughy hands that needed to be cleaned off when this was all over!

The girls made many shapes, twists, and even a pretzel face!

You can dip the savory pretzels in mustard, ranch, BBQ sauce, or my personal favorite: pizza sauce. Enjoy the twists and turns on your pretzel journey!

🥨Pretzel Instructions

• 4 cups flour
• ½ cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon yeast
• 1 ¼ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup milk
• ½ cup warm water
• 2 teaspoons butter
• 3 eggs

📋Pretzel Instructions

1. Mix 2 cups flour, sugar, yeast, and salt.
2. Heat milk; add water and butter.
3. Mix in flour mixture.
4. Beat eggs.
5. Reserve ¼ cup for glaze.
6. Add rest of eggs and enough flour to form a soft dough.
7. Let rise one hour.
8. Punch down and shape into a short rope and make a pretzel (or whatever shapes you like).
9. Place pretzels a few inches apart on a greased cookie sheet.
10. Allow to rise another 30 minutes, then brush lightly with beaten egg, then sprinkle with pretzel salt. Save excess salt in the bottom of pretzel bags to sprinkle on top.
11. Bake at 375 for 10 to 15 minutes. Remove from oven, dip into melted butter. Serve hot, with cheese sauce. Yummy!

Yield: approximately 24 soft pretzels

🥨More Amish Pretzel Recipes

Pretzels are popular among the Amish of Pennsylvania (the "Pretzel Belt" ) where the German influence is still strong. You won't find that homemade pretzels are very common when you start going to visit Amish settlements west of Pennsylvania. But here are some great pretzel recipes.

Baked Seasoned Pretzels

You can just buy bagged hard pretzels and make the seasoning!

Caramel-Wrapped Chocolate-Dipped Pretzels

These are delicious!

Amish Soft Pretzels

This is just another homemade pretzel version.

Amish Pretzel Pudding

A great recipe and some good memories in this post!

🖨️Full Recipe Super Soft Pretzels