I love pretzels (see here for proof). So what’s better than turning them into a roll that you can combine with other things?? I actually made these back in the summer, and used a couple as hamburger buns. I froze the rest and have slowly been defrosting them to use as sides to all the hearty soups we’ve been having. Amazing.

Recipe adapted from here.

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups warm water
2 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 package active dry yeast
5 tablespoons butter, melted
2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
4 cups flour
1 teaspoon canola oil
3 quarts/12 cups water
3/4 cup baking soda
Coarse sea salt or kosher salt

1. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper or liners and spray with cooking spray.

2. Mix warm water, sugar, yeast, and butter in the bowl of your electric mixer fitted with the dough hook. Let sit for 5 minutes.

3. Add the salt and flour and mix on low speed until everything is incorporated. Increase speed and mix for a few more minutes until the dough pulls away from sides of the bowl. If the dough seems too wet, you can add additional flour, 1 tablespoon at a time. Once the dough is smooth, take it out and place it on a floured surface and knead into a ball. Place it in an oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm place until the dough has doubled, about an hour.

4. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Bring the 3 quarts of water to boil in a large pot on the stove. Add the baking soda. Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a floured surface. Divide the dough into 8 pieces and roll each into a ball. Place each piece on the baking sheets you prepared earlier.

5. Place the balls of dough into the boiling water, a few at a time, and cook for 30 seconds. Make sure to move them around while they’re in the pot so that all sides are covered by water. Once done, place them back on the baking sheets. Once they are all done, sprinkle them with additional salt on top and then use scissors to cut an x in the top. Bake them for 13-17 minutes, checking regularly to make sure they don’t get too brown.

6. As I said, you can freeze these and defrost and toast later. And they work great as hamburger buns!