Laugenstange

It's football weekend! Going to the Jets game on Sunday, and I have been assigned food duty. It's getting to be real autumn weather here, so of course there is only one thing to make! Laugenstange! This is a German way of destroying your kitchen, hence the many vowels. Lauge means caustic, stange means loaf ==> yep, we are making pretzels! The old recipes have you making a 3% sodium hydroxide solution and boiling it to dunk the pretzels prior to baking, so that you fix the surface and get a chewier, less bready texture. It's almost like making bagels, only more dangerous. It really makes a difference. German folklore says the the shape of the pretzels comes from a representation of a child praying. The three loops represent the holy Trinity, and little kids who memorized their prayers would get a pretzel as a reward. There might be something to this tale: when Maike was a little infant in Germany she would often get a Laugenstange to gnaw on at the grocery store, as we prayed that she wouldn't start screaming while shopping. Worked every time!
So let me get my mixer, baking sheet, goggles and rubber gloves! Mmmm!
Here's the recipe. Good luck, and wear a lab coat.

• 1 c warm water (110 degrees)


• 1 package (or 2 1/4 tsp) dry active yeast


• 1 tbsp brown sugar


• 3 c flour


• 2 tbsp melted butter


• 1/2 tsp salt


• Soda Bath: 6 c water3 tbsp baking soda


• Topping: 1 egg, beaten with 1 tbsp water


• 2 tbs coarse sea salt
  1. Dissolve the yeast in the warm water and let stand for 10 minutes to bloom. Add the water/yeast along with the melted butter, brown sugar, salt and 2 3/4 cups of the flour to your heavy-duty mixer and knead dough for about 8 minutes, adding the last 1/4 cup of flour if necessary. You can also do this by hand. The dough should be soft and slightly sticky, but very uniform and smooth. Place dough in a large oiled bowl, and let rise for 1 hour, until doubled.
  2. Punch down, and divide the dough into 12 equal shapes and form them into small balls. Cover with plastic wrap and let them rest for 15 minutes. Roll them into 20″ lengths and form them into pretzel shapes. If you notice them getting hard to roll (springing back), cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest for 5 minutes and then continue rolling out. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow the pretzels to rise for 1/2 hour. Preheat oven to 475 degrees.
  3. In a large pot, bring the baking soda and water to a boil. Add the pretzels one at a time to the boiling water for 1 minute. Press down into the boiling water with a spatula. Remove and place on a cooling rack. When cooled, transfer to a parchment lined sheet pan. Brush with egg wash, sprinkle generously with coarse sea salt and bake for 12-15 minutes, until dark brown.
  Note: To ensure the dough is thoroughly kneaded, take a small piece and roll it into a ball. With your thumbs, stretch the dough until either it tears or becomes transparent in the center, also known as a window. If you cannot stretch the dough to form a window, knead a little longer.
  Note #2: If you have a kitchen scale, use that to weigh out the 12 balls of dough. They should be right around 2 oz each.
  Makes 12 Pretzels