Pretzel mom amour

18 January 2021

Tai Chi Chuan changed my life.
I am a Tai Chi player and I first got in touch with this martial art about 20 years now. I am so grateful to my first wonderful teacher Laura, who will always remain The Teacher.

In 2004 all our training team was in Hannover for the first Tai Chi European meeting. It was an experience that definitely changed my life. Seven days, 8 hours of practice and workshops throughout the day, hundreds of true Tai Chi lovers, with the most brilliant, talented masters from all over the world.

Use the mind to direct the chi and the chi to mobilise the body.
Cheng Man Ching

Wow, if I think about it now, I am still aware of such great luck I had to be there. And I’ll never forget how joyful and self-confident I felt coming back from that trip.
Quite an epiphany, a journey towards enlightenment I would dare to say. My great journey.
Wish you all could experience something similar once in a lifetime.
Coming back from there I had the enthusiasm to make some very important choices that definitely changed the course of my life.

It was in Hannover that I tasted the best ever original German pretzel. I had a walk with some friends through the city and we stopped by a nice little bakery shop…. I didn’t know I was going to meet these treats!

These ones are homemade using dried yeast, just to delight our Sunday family brunch. They are salty, delicious, and delightfully crispy. Boiling them in water and baking soda before baking them in the oven gives them their traditional skin and flavor.

Quite a long process and work of patience, but it will pay you back at the first bite, I promise. Here at home, everybody appreciated them so much!

Here is what you need for the levain:

55 ml warm water
100 gr all purpose flour
12 gr sugar
4 gr dry yeast

For the pretzels

400 gr all purpose flour
215 ml warm water
50 gr butter
12 gr salt
30 gr baking soda

How to do the levain

In a bowl mix water, yeast, sugar, and flour until combined. Let rest in a warm place for about an hour till it gets double.

How to do the dough

Mix water, salt and flour, add butter and mix thoroughly until a dough forms.
Cover bowl with plastic wrap, and leave in a warm place for a couple of hours till it gets double.
Cut dough into 8 pieces and roll them out into thin ropes, twisting the two ends to form a pretzel shape.
Let them rest for about 30 minutes and after that one hour in the refrigerator.
Preheat the oven to 220C.
Add baking soda to a large pot of water, and bring to a rolling boil.
Boil each pretzel for about 30/40 seconds.
Transfer pretzels to a baking sheet, sprinkle with salt and bake for 20 minutes at 220 degrees, until golden brown.