Weekend Bake…pretzels, cocktails, and pandesal

Fall leaves are piling up on the walkways and lawns all around our apartment complex. Changing times, changing lives, changing neighborhood. Every weekend it seems friends and neighbors move out, driven away by rising rents. I know change is supposed to be good…but frankly I’m devastated. I cherish this community we’ve formed–bonds forged through our mutual love of dogs…and wine…and good food.

For me it all started a couple of years ago when I adopted Violet. I didn’t really know any of my neighbors before I brought my sweet little Chug home. But on that day, taking Violet on her very first walk around the complex, we met Ian and his schnauzer Sparkplug, who then introduced me to Theresa, her husband Roger and their yorkie Twizzler. Always looking to find new playmates for Twizz, Theresa offered to watch Violet for me while I was at work. And so began a wonderful friendship, full of wine, food, and doggies…lots of doggies. You see Theresa knew practically every dog and owner in the complex. Soon Violet and I were inducted into what has been affectionately dubbed “The Timberleaf Pooch Crew.” When Theresa and Roger retired and set off on their RV adventure, the Crew threw them a going away party–a joyously raucous affair fueled by lots of food, libations, and a dozen barking dogs.

In the year and a half since, many of the Crew have moved away. New neighbors and dogs move in. Possessing an innate sense of who’s friendly or not, Violet sniffs them out on our walks through the complex. She may be a shameless flirt, but a discriminating one. Only a selected few get her seal of approval and affection. Like her momma, Violet is an all or nothing kind of gal–which makes leaving all the more painful for both of us.

I choose, of course, to deal with our impending departure by baking and sharing food (and cocktails) with the friends I love. For my beloved upstairs neighbors Adriana and Hailey, who are also moving out, it’s Pretzel Bites–chewy, salty, “everything” sprinkled, garlic butter-drenched finger food to fuel our bourbon-centric cocktail hour (or evening). It’s a thoroughly adaptable dough that works for most things pretzel, from slider buns to bites. A word of warning, since this recipe is one I used in a commercial capacity, the amounts are mostly in metric…in other words scaled out for accuracy.

Pretzel Dough (adapted from King Arthur Flour)

Yields about 2 dozen knots & bites

397g warm water
1 T. honey
28g. unsalted butter, room temperature
539g bread flour
6g Kosher salt
35g nonfat dry milk powder
7g instant yeast

Whisk together water and honey. In a processor, pulse to combine the dry ingredients and butter. Drizzle in the liquid through the feeding tube with the processor running. Pulse at 5 second intervals until dough is smooth and pliable. Transfer the dough into a large greased bowl, then cover with plastic and allow it to double in size in a warm, draft-free space.

Deflate the dough and divide into 1″ strips. Roll the dough into 1/2″ wide ropes. For bites, just cut rope into 1 1/2″ pieces. For knots cut into 2″ pieces, then roll out into thinner 3 1/2″ ropes and tie into knots. Place the bites and/or knots onto a parchment-lined sheet pans, lightly coated with non-stick spray, the drape with plastic wrap and proof for about 20 mns.

In a large pot, bring to a boil 1814g (or 4 qts) water wth 14g Kosher salt and 57g baking soda. Working in batches, drop the dough into the boiling water and cook for about 30 seconds on each side. Remove pieces with a slotted spoon and drain on a sheet pan lined with paper towels, then transfer the pieces back onto the greased parchment-line sheet pans. Sprinkle the tops with “everything” seasoning (*see Trader Joe’s) or brush with garlic infused melted butter and sprinkle with coarse sea salt. Bake at 400ˆF for 12-15 mins. or until golden brown.

For our dear friend Rosie, it was her favorite breakfast food Pandesal–a classic soft Filipino roll crusted with breadcrumbs. It took a few attempts with different recipes to come up with one that yielded the desired degree of fluffiness. Oddly, many of the recipes I found didn’t allow enough time for a full second proof, which is essential to achieving a light airy texture. Unless it’s 100 degrees or you’re using a proof box cranked up on high, the formed dough is NOT going to double in size in less that 20 mins. Also, baking powder is not necessary.

Pandesal

Yields: 24 rolls

2 1/4 t. dry active yeast
1 1/4 c. whole milk, warmed to 105°F
2 1/3 c. bread flour
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 t. Kosher or sea salt
1/3 c. sugar
2 T. butter, room temperature
1 T. oil
2 eggs
1/2 c. breadcrumbs

Sprinkle yeast over warmed milk, then whisk in about 2 T. of the sugar to combine. Set aside for 10 mins. or until mixture begins to get a little bubbly.

In a processor, pulse to combine the flours, salt, and remaining sugar. Whisk the eggs and oil into the yeast mixture, then pour through the feeding tube with processor running. Stop when dough begins to form. Add in the butter and continue pulsing at 5 second intervals until the dough is smooth and pliable. *If the dough seems a little dry and stiff, drizzle in a little water and continue pulsing.

Transfer the dough into a greased bowl large enough to allow dough to double in size. Cover with plastic wrap and proof until doubled in a warm, draft-free space (about 1 to 1 1/2 hours). Deflate the dough and portion it out into 24 equal pieces (roughly 1.8 oz. ea). Roll into smooth round balls, dip the surface in breadcrumbs, and place onto a lined baking sheet (4 rows x 6 rows).