Secret Recipe Club Reveal: Gourmet Garlic-Thyme Pretzel Bites

It's the most, wonderful tiiimeee....of the month....nope...not Christmas (come on...did ya sing the song?)  It's Secret Recipe Club time...and I'm so excited to show you what I made. But first, introductions are in order! Click the link above to see what the SRC is all about!


This month I was assigned Renee's blog, Kudo's Kitchen by Renee. Her blog is filled with good things. She loves to cook and bake, but she also paints, and does it wonderfully. She has tabs for her painted glassware and painted tiles. Go check them out. I had about 6 recipes marked in my Pinterest "secret" board to possibly try. I still plan to make her Tirimisu Parfaits because my oldest loves Tirimisu and I thought this would be fun...it'll have to wait for payday though. Instead I made her Garlic Thyme Pretzel Bites. I added the "Gourmet" to the Title because they tasted that good!!! I can't believe I've never made pretzels before. Thank you Renee for having these on your blog! I'm in love!

So, these have a wonderful flavor of garlic, thyme and parmesan cheese. Oh my goodness...I could have eaten the entire batch...but think I only ate 4, dipped in mustard of course. 

I cannot believe how easy they were and that I've never made them before...I know, I said that already, but REALLY....they were awesome. I don't even know that I'd mess with trying to make a pretzel shape because these were perfect!

So, without further ado here is the recipe, but please don't forget to go show Renee some love. 

Garlic Thyme Pretzel Bites
by Kudo's Kitchen by Renee

4 tsp. active dry yeast
1 tsp. granulated sugar
1 1/2 c. warm water (110 degrees or warm to touch)
5 c. flour
1/3 c. white sugar
1 1/2 tsp. kosher salt (plus more for sprinkling)
1/2 tsp. black pepper
1 Tbs. fresh thyme leaves chopped (I used dried)
3 tsp. garlic powder
2 Tbs. shredded parmesan cheese
1 Tbs. olive oil
4 c. boiling water
1/2 c. baking soda
additional shredded parmesan cheese and kosher salt
1 egg mixed with 1 tsp. water

1. Combine yeast, 1 tsp. sugar and warm water. Let sit till bubbly, about 10 minutes.

2. In a separate bowl, combine all remaining ingredients, except oil. Add in Yeast mixture and oil. I used my stand mixer to mix and knead the dough..you could do it by hand and then knead by hand till dough is smooth and elastic. You may need to add a bit of water or flour depending on the weather or altitude..I added just a skooch more of water.

3. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and place in a warm spot to rise until doubled in size. My favorite place is in a warm oven (heat oven to 200, then turn off, placing dough inside oven to rise). 

4. When dough is doubled, punch it down and preheat your oven to 425. 

5. Break off golf ball size pieces of dough and roll them in your hands to make a rough ball.

6. Boil water and baking soda. Drop the balls in to boiling water until the dough rises to the surface. This doesn't take long. Be careful not to overcrowd them in the pan. 

7. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on a parchment paper covered cookie sheet. Be careful not to let them touch. 

8. Brush with egg and water mixture, then sprinkle with salt and parmesan cheese. Bake for 18-20 minutes, rotating baking sheets halfway through. I halved this recipe so I only needed one sheet. Remove from oven and devour!!!!

Renee also tells you how to cook them on the grill. I may have to try that sometime. 

I can guarantee you that I'll be making these over and over again, even experimenting with flavors!!!

Enjoy and thank you Renee!

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With Joy UNquenchable,