Do you know how the pretzel originated?
I didn't either until one Sunday at church a few weeks ago.
During the children's sermon, the pastor told the story to the kids.
Many years ago, an Italian monk made a bread in order to remind his brother monks that Lent was a time of prayer. He rolled bread dough into strips and shaped them in the form of arms crossed over the heart in a prayerful gesture These breads were called bracelle, the Latin word for "little arms". From this word came the German word, bretzel and our word, pretzel.
The kids were each given a recipe card for Lenten Pretzels.
B and I made Lenten Pretzels yesterday. (Mel helped too.)
Pour warm water into a bowl.
Gently stir in yeast, salt, and sugar to dissolve...
Fold dough into pretzel shapes...
Like I said, we made ours a bit thick so they don't look perfect but they taste delicious nonetheless.
Lenten Pretzels
1/2 tsp. salt
4 1/2 to 5 cups flour
1 beaten egg
Kosher salt
1 1/2 c. warm water
1 pkg. or 2 1/4 tsp. active dry yeast
1/2 tsp sugar
Pour water into bowl.
Gently stir in yeast, salt, and sugar to dissolve.
Mix in flour and form a ball.
Knead dough, then let rest for one hour.
Roll pieces of dough into strips about 1/2" thick and 6" long.
Fold strips into pretzel shapes and place on a lightly greased cookie sheet.
Brush lightly with egg and sprinkle with salt.
Bake at 425 degrees for 12-15 minutes.
Enjoy!
What a neat story and memory. Might steal it for an Easter tradition!
ReplyDeleteNice to see your girls doing this. Happy Easter!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great story! My husband's family is Swiss-German and I've heard him talk about the 'bretzeli' (sp?) that his grandmother used to make. I'll have to see if I can find her recipe and see if it's similar. These look yummy!
ReplyDeleteLove it! Now I am hungry, too! Glad you found my blog!
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