At a glance

Cut the risen dough into 32 bites, simmer each batch for about 20 seconds in a baking soda bath, then salt and bake at 425°F (218°C) until deep brown. Serve four bites with an individual cup of maple-Dijon yogurt dip.

Twisted 420 Soft Pretzel Bites

Active prep 25 min · Bake 12–16 min · Total About 1 hr 40 min · Yield 8 servings

Ingredients & directions

Soft pretzel bites with scallion-sesame maple-Dijon dip

Ingredients

Pretzel dough

Baking soda bath and topping

Maple-Dijon yogurt dip

Bread flour, yeast, butter, salt, baking soda, Greek yogurt, Dijon, maple syrup, scallions and sesame seeds for pretzel bites and dip

Use a kitchen scale, a mixing bowl, a bench scraper or sharp knife, a wide pot that holds at least 4 L, a spider or slotted spoon, a rimmed half-sheet pan, a wire rack and eight small dip cups. Line the pan with parchment rated for 425°F (218°C). Use two smaller lined pans if you need more room between the bites.

Directions

  1. Hands kneading pale pretzel dough on a clean counter beside a mixing bowl

    Mix and knead the dough

    Stir the flour, yeast, sugar and fine sea salt together. Add the warm water and melted butter and mix until no dry flour remains. Knead on a clean counter for 6 to 8 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic. Return it to the bowl, cover and let it rise until puffy and nearly doubled, about 45 to 60 minutes in a warm room.

  2. A bench scraper cuts ropes of pretzel dough into short, even bites

    Cut 32 bites

    When the dough is almost ready, heat the oven to 425°F (218°C) and bring 2 L water to a gentle simmer in the wide pot. Divide the risen dough into four equal pieces. Roll each piece into a rope about 10 inches long and cut each rope into eight pieces. Aim for the same size so the bites finish baking together.

  3. A wire spider lifts pale pretzel bites from a wide baking soda bath beside a parchment-lined sheet pan

    Dip, salt and bake

    Add the baking soda gradually to the simmering water. It will foam briefly. Lower about eight bites into the bath at a time for 20 seconds. Lift them out with a spider or slotted spoon, let the water drain, then set them on the parchment with space between them. Scatter the ½ teaspoon coarse salt over all 32 bites. Bake for 12 to 16 minutes, until deep brown and set. If using two pans, swap their rack positions halfway through. Cool briefly on a wire rack.

  4. Deep brown salted pretzel bites, one split to show the soft crumb, beside cups of maple-Dijon dip with scallions and sesame

    Mix the dip and portion the bites

    While the bites bake, stir the yogurt, Dijon, maple syrup, scallions and toasted sesame together. Divide the dip evenly into eight cups. Serve four plain pretzel bites with each cup. If a consenting adult requests an infused serving, measure the labeled oil and stir it into that adult’s dip cup only. Label the infused cup before serving and keep it apart from the plain cups.

Storage Cool the plain bites completely before storing them airtight. They are best on the day they are baked. Freeze extras in an airtight container and reheat from frozen at 350°F (177°C) until warm through and crisp at the edges. Refrigerate the dip at 40°F (4°C) or colder within 2 hours, or within 1 hour above 90°F (32°C), and use within 2 days. Keep any infused dip clearly labeled, separate and secured.

Serving with THC Use only a labeled oral product for consenting adults of legal age where permitted. Health Canada suggests choosing 2.5 mg THC or less if you are new to edibles. Effects can take up to 4 hours to fully develop. Avoid taking more during that time. Do not drive or operate machinery after using cannabis. Label infused food, keep it apart from plain food, and lock it away from children and pets.

Kitchen notes

Get a brown crust and a soft center

Watch the dough as it rises

A cool kitchen can slow the rise. Wait until the dough looks puffy and nearly doubled before cutting it.

Keep the soda bath brief

A long soak can leave an alkaline aftertaste. Work in small batches and drain each batch before moving it to the parchment. Too much surface water can make the bites wrinkle.

Salt the bites when you plan to eat them

For make-ahead bites, bake them without the coarse topping. Brush the tops lightly with water and sprinkle on the salt just before reheating so it sticks.

Serve the whole tray plain

The pretzels are baked plain. Leave every dip cup plain for a non-infused tray. If you add oil to one cup, estimate what went into that cup from its label and serve it separately.

Use the product label

Estimate THC in a portion

Enter the amount of labeled edible oil you actually stirred into one dip cup. That cup goes with one serving of four plain pretzel bites. Use the same unit for the label amount and the amount used.

Enter the label values and the amount you used.

The estimate is for what you add to one serving. Product variation and any finish left on the spoon can change the amount consumed.

THC in one portion = label THC (mg) × amount used ÷ label amount.

If the label lists 10 mg THC per 5 mL, adding 0.5 mL to one dip cup adds an estimated 1 mg THC to that serving. If eight cups each get 0.5 mL, the measured amounts add up to 4 mL of oil and an estimated 8 mg THC across the eight cups. A plain cup has no added THC.

Serve it plain if you cannot verify the label or measure the amount in the label’s units.

Recipe and safety references