soft pretzel rolls

I made these this weekend. Actually, I make these all the time. I think they're partially responsible for my marathon weight gain. I suppose they're vaguely German in origin, but I like mine far better than anything I had in Germany, even first thing in the morning from the bakery across the street. They're best while still a little warm with some gouda tucked in the middle, but they keep fairly well and can be revived by a few minutes in the toaster oven. (Toaster Oven is also the name of Steve and my hypothetical, as of yet unconceived offspring, but that deserves more explanation than I feel like providing at this juncture.) So all ye with time to kill and calories to consume, I offer this as a recommendation. I think I found this recipe on the internet on the blog of someone who modified it from Alton Brown or some such thing. It doesn't really matter, but still, credit where ambiguous, largely indifferent credit's due. Try them. They're wonderful.

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 cups warm water
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 1/4 teaspoons (1 package) instant yeast
• 22 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 4 1/2 cups
• 2 ounces unsalted butter, melted
• 5 cups water
• 1/3 cup baking soda
• 1 large egg yolk beaten with 1 tablespoon water
• Pretzel salt (optional)

Directions

1. Proof yeast with water and sugar in a large bowl. (c. 5 minutes)
2. Add salt,and butter.
3. Stir in flour 1/2 cup at a time until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl. (You might not need all the flour.)
4. Transfer the dough to a buttered bowl, cover and let rise for 1 hour or until the dough has doubled in size.
5. Preheat the oven to 450ºF. Prep a cookie sheet with cooking spray or parchment paper.
6. Bring the 5 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in a large stock pot.
7. In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 10 equal pieces. Form each piece into a small, oval loaf.
8. Place the loaves into the boiling water, topside down, one at a time, for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flat spatula to the cookie sheet.
9. Brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture and sprinkle with the pretzel salt. Slash with a sharp bread knife once or twice. Bake until dark golden brown in color, approximately 14 minutes.