Beer Pretzel Rolls

I have no idea how frequently I'll be posting here on Pyroclastic Eats, but here we are on Day 2 and I already have the urge to share another recipe so I figured I'd go with it.  This one is a big hit with my friends and co-workers and takes us into the realm of bread making.

I started poking around with making bread only about two years ago and it has quickly become one of my favorite things to do.  Even when I don't need bread for myself, I sometimes find myself getting a bread making itch that just needs to be scratched and I find myself putting together something to give away to my neighbors, friends, or family.

For some reason bread recipes scare some people.  They think bread making is inaccessible except to those with special training or tools.  I'm going to tell you right now that that line of thinking is completely incorrect.  You can make bread easily and at a ridiculously fraction of the cost of what you'll pay at the supermarket.  It does take some time, but most of that time is spent waiting while the ingredients do their thing.  The actual time spent working is usually very minimal.

But today's recipe isn't traditional bread.  We're actually going to make rolls.  Not just ordinary rolls, but pretzel rolls.  And not just regular pretzel rolls, but Beer Pretzel Rolls.

I know with certainty that I will come back to how to make "regular" bread and "regular" rolls later on, but I wanted to start our discussion of bread making with something a little more out in left field to illustrate that even with a recipe like this, bread making isn't something you should fear.  It also doesn't hurt that Beer Pretzel Rolls taste amazing and are sexy as hell.

So let's do this thing, shall we?

Beer Pretzel Rolls Recipe:

Preparation Time: 20 minutes work; 2 hours total

Cooking Time: 15-18 minutes

Yield: 12

Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 cups lager or pale ale (room temperature)
• 3 Tbsp packed brown sugar
• 2 Tbsp milk
• 2 Tbsp butter (melted)
• 1 package (2 1/4 Tbsp) of rapid-rise active dry yeast
• 3-4 cups bread flour
• 2 tsp salt
• 4 quarts water
• 1/2 cup baking soda
• 2 tsp coarse salt

Directions:

1. Combine lager, brown sugar, milk, butter, and yeast in large bowl of stand mixer.^T1  Add 1 cup of flour and 2 teaspoons salt; beat at low speed with paddle attachment 2 minutes.
2. Replace paddle attachment with dough hook.  Add enough remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, to make stiff dough that cleans side of bowl.  I personally have found that only 2 additional cups is necessary.  Knead at low speed about 5 minutes or until dough is smooth and elastic.
3. Shape dough into a ball.  Place dough in greased bowl; turn to grease top.  Cover and let rise in warm place 1 hour or until doubled in size.
4. Turn out dough onto lightly floured surface; knead several times.^T2  Divide dough into 12 pieces; shape each piece into a smooth ball by gently pulling tip surface to underside and pinching bottom to seal.  Place on ungreased baking sheet.  Cover and let rise in warm place 30 minutes or until doubled in size.
5. Position oven rack in center of oven.  Preheat over to 425°F.  Line second baking sheet with parchment paper.
6. Bring water and baking soda to a boil in large saucepan over medium-high heat.  Add rolls to solution, a few at a time; cook until puffed, turning once.  Drain rolls on clean kitchen towel; place 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheet.  Cut 1 1/2 inch "X" in top of each roll with kitchen scissors.  Sprinkle with coarse salt.
7. Bake 15 to 18 minutes or until crisp and golden brown.  Remove to wire rack to cool completely.
8. Enjoy!

Print friendly version

Original recipe via Bread by Publications International, Ltd.

Techniques:
^T1 As written, this recipe assumes you have a standing mixer.  I do not recommend you buy one unless you either plan on making a lot of baked goods and/or bread or have the disposable income to pick one up without much care as they are expensive.  This does not mean that you cannot make this recipe without a standing mixer however.  In fact, my first year of making bread was done entirely without one.  It just takes more effort and time:

• Beating:  Usually this can be done either with a whisk or an electronic hand mixer.  Especially if using a whisk, disregard the timing provided as your manual hand beating will take more time to develop the mixture you are seeking.  Instead, beat until the mixture feels "right".  The goal here usually is to mix things to the point that there is consistency in the separation of the ingredients.
• Kneading:  This is best done by hand.  Watch this video if you are unfamiliar with how to do so.  As this recipe requires you to add flour while kneading, it is best that you knead for a bit, add a bit of flour (probably half of what the recipe calls for) and then knead some more before adding more.  Continue until the full amount of additional flour is added and then knead one last time before moving on. 

^T2 Even if you are using a standing mixer, this recipe will require you to knead the dough a bit by hand.  It's honestly not that difficult and you may even find it fun!

These Beer Pretzel Rolls can be enjoyed as a snack just as they are, but some people like to cut them in half and add butter or mustard.  As a fair bit of warning, I will tell you that they are best consumed shortly after baking as that's when they are at their crispest on the outside and tender on the inside.  Letting them sit too long will make the crust soften and the inside harden.  Which is still quite tasty, but not optimal for the full experience.  So plan ahead and set aside a little time to make these a couple hours before you plan to share them if at all possible.

If that's not possible and you need to make these the night before an event, I can tell you from experience that people still love them.

Be well, enjoy, have fun, and let me know how it all goes down.

Egg Volcanos

Welcome to the inaugural post of Pyroclastic Eats!

When I was growing up, my family didn't eat out much because of the cost.  However, neither of my parents were very great at cooking so we tended to eat the same cycle of basic meals each and every week.  As an adult, I've become fond of exploring new restaurants and types of food completely unknown to me.  But moreso than that, I developed a passion for trying my hand at crafting food at home and trying new recipes.  My internet browser's bookmarks folder is filled with hundreds of recipes that I've made (as well as plenty that I plan to some day).  I love sharing this food with family and friends and giving them the recipes so that they can make these creations themselves.

Which leads us to Pyroclastic Eats.  This blog's primary purpose is to store all the recipes I love in one location, provide my own bit of commentary, and share these with the people I know.  It's basically my own 21st century cookbook filled with the recipes I've found, tried, and loved.  If others discover it along the way and find it helpful, well that's awesome too.  If that's you, please post in the comments your thoughts, questions, and photos of your own creations.

I'm by no means a master chef.  Hell, I'm hardly an adequate cook.  So first of all, most of these recipes are easy enough that pretty much anyone could put them together provided they follow the instructions.  Secondly, the majority of these recipes are ones I found somewhere and were not invented by me (though I may put my own spin on them).  I'll be sure to always provide the source of where I found the recipes whenever possible.

With that lengthy introduction out of the way, let's get to our first recipe.  Given this is the beginning, I figured we'd start with something breakfast-y.  And given this blog's name (not to mention my own handle), I can't think of no better recipe than Egg Volcanos.

Egg Volcanos are a simple and cheap way to add a little variety to your breakfast.  They are also endlessly customizable so you can easily change them up to suit anyone's tastes.  To top it all, with absolutely zero effort, they are beautiful to the eye.  I'm not going to focus too much on this blog about presentation - I appreciate aesthetics, but when I'm cooking for myself I'm more concerned with utilitarianism - but I have to point it out here because these things look amazing even when you aren't trying.

Egg Volcanos Recipe:

Preparation Time: 5 minutes

Cooking Time: 10-12 minutes

Yield: 1

Ingredients:

• 1 egg
• 1 slice of bread*
• Detail (optional)**
• Toppings (optional)***
• Seasonings (optional)****
• Grated cheese (optional)*****

* The bread serves as the base for your egg volcano.  Any type of bread will work, but you can also experiment with other bases provided they are sturdy enough to be held in the palm of your hand while also holding up the egg.  Half of a sliced bagel or English muffin, for example, would work in place of the bread.

** Typically, your detail is a deli-sliced cold cut.  Ham, turkey, bacon, etc.  Lox can also be used.  Obviously, if you're going with bacon, you're going to need to cook that up beforehand, but most others can be added as they are.  Of course, you can skip this entirely if you prefer.

*** Similarly to the detail, your toppings add variety to the overall meal but are entirely optional.  This could be a few chunks of ham steak, bacon bits, or diced veggies.  You do you.

**** The seasonings can be whatever you want.  The basic recipe uses a bit of salt and pepper, but you can add anything that will taste good to you.  Like a bit more spice?  Add some cayenne.  Maybe you'd like cinnamon?  Or cumin?  Or Italian seasoning?  Or nothing at all?  Do whatever.

***** Any type of cheese is acceptable.  As well as cheese substitutes.  Or no cheese if that's your bag, although it hurts the overall presentation.  I do recommend grated cheese (or non-cheese) as it will melt the way you want.  I haven't tried this with crumbled cheese, but that might work as well.

Directions:

1. Pre-heat oven at 350°F.
2. Separate the egg yolk from the white.^T1
   Note: If making multiple egg volcanos, you can combine the whites, but you must separate each yolk into its own container.
3. Whisk the white until it is fluffy and "cloud-like".  Using an electric mixer is recommended, but not required.  The white should stick to your bowl when you tip it upside down when completely whisked.
   
4. Using a spoon, scoop the white "cloud" onto the top of your bread (or other base).  If you would like, you can cut off the crust of your bread to shape a circle for extra nice presentation.
   Note: If you do cut off parts of the bread, do not throw these pieces out.  See step 10.
5. Using a spoon, either press down or carve out an indentation on top of the "cloud" large enough for a yolk to comfortably sit in.
6. Pour the intact yolk into the indentation.
7. Add any toppings you may want to include on top of the yolk (feel free to spill over onto some of the white "cloud" surrounding the yolk).
8. Season the top of the egg volcano to your liking.
9. Top the egg volcano with cheese (or non-cheese).
10. Bake for 10-12 minutes or until the the cheese melts and the egg firms.
    Note: If you cut off pieces of bread earlier, bake them at the same time.  You can then use these pieces to dip into the runny yolk.
11. Enjoy!

Print friendly version

Original recipe via The One Pot Chef Show

Techniques:
^T1 Separating yolks from eggs can be done several ways:

• Use an egg separator.  Fairly easy, but requires a specialty utensil.  All you have to do is crack the egg over the utensil and let it do its thing.  At most, you'll need to shake the egg separator a bit to allow the residual egg white to drip.  Then pour the yolk into a second container.
• Use the shell.  No tools necessary, but requires a bit of skill.  Crack the egg and split into two halves over one container without letting the yolk break or fall.  Juggle the yolk between the two halves while letting all the white drip into the container.  Then pour the yolk into a second container.
• Use a bottle.  Easy to do and requires nothing other than an empty bottle.  My personal favorite way to go.  Crack and deposit the egg into a container.  Place the mouth of the bottle over the yolk and compress the bottle a bit.  Let go and let the bottle's suction pull up the yolk into it.  Place the mouth of the bottle over the second container and press again to spit out the yolk.

Well, there you have it.  Egg volcanos taste yummy, are easy to make, can be made with pretty much whatever you already have in the house, are ridiculously customizable, and will delight anyone you may be serving breakfast to.  I highly recommend it for impressing that fella or lady that just spent their first night over at your place.  Or even better, let's say you just spent the first night over at their place.  How awesome would it be if you got up in the morning, took a quick look at what's available in the fridge and said, "You know what?  I've got breakfast.  Rest a bit longer and I'm going to make you something that you'll absolutely love."

That's just to show that it's not just recipes you'll get here on Pyroclastic Eats...

Be well, enjoy, have fun, and let me know how it all goes down.