Football Pretzel Bites

• active time: 45 minutes
• total time: 2 hours

Ingredients

Dough:

7 g active-dry yeast

150g WHOLE milk room temp

25 g brown sugar

75 g sourdough discard

250 g bread flour

4 g fine sea salt

14 g soften butter

Water Bath:

2 cups water

21/4 tsp baking soda

Pretzel Topping:

Course salt/sea salt

4 Tbsp melted

Directions

• Whisk yeast into milk and sugar with paddle attachment.

• Cover with plastic wrap and let yeast bubble up and activate for about 10-15 minutes. It will look foamy and bubbly.

• Add discard and gently mix with yeast mixture.

• Switch out the paddle for the dough hook. Add the dry ingredients and mix until there is no flour showing.

• With mixer still going on medium-low, add the softened butter. It will take a little bit for the butter to be completely absorbed.

• Let the mixer knead the dough for about 8 minutes. Dough should be smooth.

• Pull the dough into a tight ball and divide into 5 equal portions. Roll those 5 pieces into tight balls and place on tray and cover with plastic wrap.

• Let the dough rest for about 15-30 minutes.

• Preheat oven to 425° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

• Roll each ball into a rope about 18 inches long. Using a pizza cutter or bench scraper, cut the rope into 11/2 inch pieces.

• Place all the cut pieces on the baking sheet and put into the freezer for 15 minutes.

• While the dough is in the freezer, start a pot of boiling water for the baking soda bath. Once the water has come to a boil, drop a handful of dough balls into the boiling water. Once they float, use a slotted spoon to remove the balls and place on baking sheet with parchment paper. Make sure they are not touching.

• Sprinkle with salt and bake for about 12-15 minutes.

• While bites are baking, melt butter in a bowl. Add cooked bites to melted butter and toss to coat evenly.