Oops, I did it again

Have you made these yet? Do you see how glorious they look? Did you know that they taste even better? My sister Lianna sent out a recipe yesterday that she said was perfect if you feel like mooning the Atkins diet. These are in the same category and worth every delicious carb.

I have eaten more than one. I intend to eat more today. Please, no comments if my backside is looking more ample the next time you see me.

Pretzels

I am awaiting pictures from my marvelous girl's weekend before I do a post on that. My camera is not great and I relied on others to take the pictures this year. That post will be coming soon.

Onto the pretzels. Yesterday I made a recipe from my friend Megan Maney (hi Megan!) called Lasagna Rolls. As I was getting it ready I remembered her saying the last time I was at her house that she had some recipes she wanted to try. I think she is nesting (due in a few weeks) and I wish at 8 months pregnant I was inspired to do new things. But I digress. One of the new things she wanted to make was pretzels and I thought, hmm, good idea Megan. I think I'll try it.

I found a recipe by Alton Brown (Good Eats on the Food Network) and gave it a shot. It was amazing. Seriously. And don't be intimidated. They were quite easy and delicious. Make them. Megan, if you haven't already done it just go for it. They are good for at least an extra 3 pregnancy pounds, guaranteed.

Homemade Soft Pretzels

Ingredients

1 1/2 cup warm water (110-115 degrees F)
1 T sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt (my salt wasn't blessed by a rabbi and still fine)
1 package active dry yeast (or 2 1/2 tsp.)
22 ounces all purpose flour, about 4 1/2 cups
2 ounces butter, melted
Oil, for pan
10 cups water
2/3 cup baking soda
1 large egg yolk beaten with 1 T water
Pretzel salt

Directions

Combine the water, sugar, and kosher salt into the bowl of a stand mixer and sprinkle the yeast on top. Allow to sit for 5 minutes or until the mixture begins to foam. Add the flour and butter and using the dough hook attachment, mix on low speed until well combined. Change to medium speed and kneed until the dough is smooth and pulls away from the side of the bowl, about 4-5 minutes. Remove the dough from the bowl, clean the bowl and then oil it well with vegetable oil. Return the dough to the bowl, cover with plastic wrap and sit in a warm place for about 50-55 minutes or until the dough has doubled in size.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Line 2 half pan sheets with parchment paper and lightly brush with oil. Set aside. (I didn't do this, I just oiled some cookie sheets.)

Bring the 10 cups of water and the baking soda to a rolling boil in an 8-quart saucepan or roasting pan.

In the meantime, turn the dough out onto a slightly oiled work surface and divide into 8 equal pieces. Roll out each piece of dough into a 24 inch rope. Make a U-shape with the rope, holding the ends of the rope, cross them over each other and press onto the bottom of the U in order to form the shape of a pretzel. Place onto the parchment-lined half sheet pan.

Place the pretzels into the boiling water, 1 by 1, for 30 seconds. Remove them from the water using a large flap spatula. Return to the baking sheet, brush the top of each pretzel with the beaten egg yolk and water mixture and sprinkle with the pretzel salt. Bake until dark golden brown in color, about 12-14 minutes. Transfer to a cooling rack for at least 5 minutes before serving.

YUMMY!

p.s. Do you know how to make a nice warm environment for making dough rise? My sis taught me this trick and it works great. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees. As soon as it's preheated turn the oven back off. Wait until it has cooled off but still warm and allow your dough to rise there. Maybe you know this. In that case you are awesome.

Dancing and photos and food, oh my!

This could have been an epic, philosophical post but I had to watch the finale of "So You Think You Can Dance." It didn't disappoint. If you don't watch then you are crazy. It's always been a summer show but this year they are starting it again in the fall. September 2 for you crazies out there is the day to get on board.

I still don't have a camera. It might be a sin to have small children and no working camera. Do children actually grow if it's not documented on film (or digital memory)? I've decided that I'd like a fancy SLR. I'm diving in. Someone recommended a Canon Rebel as a place to start. Anyone else have an opinion? I have been wanting to learn about photography and I'm just going to force myself into it. Now I'm stuck in indecision land. What do I get? If I'm only going to get one extra lens, what should it be? What the heck is an F stop? How do I get that cool blurry background on photos? I think I want a photo editing program. What one should I get? Will I ever have time to learn how to use all these things? While I ponder all these questions I resort to doing nothing. FYI, doing nothing is rather unproductive.


I am concluding with a recipe that will change your life. Melissa, I got the recipe from your Christmas cookie exchange last year. Readers, make these tomorrow for health and happiness.

Soft Almond Cookies

1 cup sugar
1/2 cup softened butter
3/4 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
1 egg (the recipe says 1 LAND O LAKES All Natural Farm Fresh Egg. If you use their product your cookie will not only be delicious but calorie free.)
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 1/4 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1-2 tablespoons milk

Heat oven to 350. Combine sugar and butter in a large bowl; beat at medium speed until creamy. Add ricotta cheese, egg, and 1 tsp. almond extract, continue beating until well mixed. Reduce speed to low; gradually add flour, baking powder, and salt, beating well after each addition. Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls, 2 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 10-12 minutes (my oven takes about 14) or until lightly browned . Cool on cookie sheet 2 minutes (LONGER!); remove to cooling rack.

Combine powdered sugar, 1/4 teaspoon almond extract and enough milk for desired glazing consistency in small bowl; mix well. Spoon onto completely cooled cookie. Decorate with sprinkles if desired.

Send testimonies of these cookie's life changing properties to my comments section.