We served these delicious bite sized treats at our Super Bowl party. They were so good that not everybody got to try them because they were gobbled up. So if you are having a lot of guests, I would make a double batch! The dough is perfectly soft and tastes just like the pretzels you buy at the mall! I served these with a honey mustard dipping sauce and it paired nicely. This is great for any party and I made these ahead of time and then put them back in the oven to warm them up just before my guests arrived. I had people asking me what these little bites were and raving over them for days after the party.
Ham & Cheese Pretzel Bites
Source: Pennies on a Platter adapted from Pink Parsley
Yield: 42-48 bitesIngredients:
1 package (1/4 oz) active dry yeast
2 Tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon packed brown sugar, divided
1/4 cup warm water (110-115˚F)
1 cup warm milk (110-115˚F)
2 1/2 to 3 cups flour
1/2 cup finely chopped ham (about 3 ounces)
1/2 cup shredded cheese of choice
6 cups water
4 teaspoons baking soda
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1-2 Tablespoons coarse salt
Directions:
In a large bowl, combine the yeast, 1 tsp. brown sugar & warm water. Let stand until foamy, about 5-8 minutes.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together 2 tbsp. brown sugar and warm milk until brown sugar is dissolved.
Once yeast is foamy, add 2 1/2 cups flour & the milk mixture to the yeast. Stir with wooden spoon until a soft dough forms. Add remaining flour if dough is too sticky. Turn the dough out to a floured surface and knead a few times, forming a smooth ball. Alternatively, you can knead in a stand mixer with a dough hook briefly until dough is smooth.
Lightly oil a large bowl with olive oil and place dough in bowl. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and allow dough to rise in a warm draft free area for 2 hours, until dough doubles in size and bubbles appear on the surface.
Meanwhile, cover a large baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
Once dough has risen, lightly flour a surface for rolling the dough. Turn the dough out and divide into four equal pieces. Roll one section of the dough into a 12×4 inch rectangle. With the long side facing you, press 1/4 of the ham & cheese into the bottom third of the dough. Roll the dough up tightly as possibly, starting with the filling end. Cut the dough roll into 1 inch pieces and place on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining 3 sections of dough.
Once all pieces are cut, let them rest uncovered at room temperature for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400 degrees.In a medium sized pot, bring 6 cups of water to a boil. Once boiling, add in baking soda and reduce heat to a simmer. Add pretzels in batches and boil for 20 seconds each, turning once. Pretzels should be slightly puffed. Use a slotted spoon to transfer pretzels back to baking sheet.
Once all pretzels are boiled, place baking sheet in oven and bake until golden brown, approximately 15 minutes. Brush the warm pretzel bites with melted butter & sprinkle with salt.
If preparing these ahead of time, you can place the pretzel bites in a 200 degree oven and warm them up for about 10-15 minutes prior to serving. You can keep them in the warm oven until your guests arrive.Serve with honey mustard or your favorite dipping sauce.
{ 17 comments… read them below or add one }
That looks so yummy.
Those look really good. I don't love ham but maybe I could try another meat center or jalapenos!
oh. my. god. they look like heaven.
These look DELISH.
I love making these with pepperoni as well.
Ben is always asking for these for what seems like every get together. If I gave in, we'd never try new things! These are definitely a winner!
These look great! Have you ever tried them with cream cheese in the center? Disney World have these cream cheese pretzels that I LOVE! Can’t find them anywhere else, so I’ll just have to make them myself
Also, do you use all-purpose flour or self-rising?
Thanks! I haven’t ever tried that! Sounds amazing though! I use all purpose flour. Hope they turn out great!
Oh my good heaven–I am SO using these for my one year old’s birthday party this weekend! Thanks!
Let me know how you like them. Hope the birthday party goes great!
Made these last night and they are so delicious!! I did brush a mustard mixture onto the dough before adding the ham and cheese since it wasn’t easy to take along a sauce. I went on the idea of the ham and cheese party rolls that uses a spicy mustard/butter/onion/poppy seed mixture (didn’t use near as much butter as most of those recipes call for) and froze the rolls before cutting into pieces. Just thawed the rolls about 30 minutes, cut them into pieces and let rest another 30 minutes before boiling and baking. Mine needed to bake about 20 minutes at 425 to become golden brown. Definitely a favorite and am worried I’ll be making them a lot just to eat at home! Thanks for a great recipe!!
I’m so glad you enjoyed them! Great idea to brush them with a mustard mix! I love those party rolls-they are my favorite thing to take to a party.
Being that my time in the kitchen is limited with a new baby, do you think I could use store bought bread dough? And do you think the dough recipe would be about one loaf? Obviously, the taste would be a bit different…
Congratulations on your new little one!:) I definitely think you could use bread dough or you could even do crescent roll dough or those crescent roll sheets. And I think it would probably be about one loaf. Let me know if you try it and how it works out!
I made the ham & cheese bites for my family to enjoy during the football games this past weekend, and I have to let you know they were delish! Seriously gone if 15 minutes….and everyone (kids too) loved them and wanted more. Thank-you for sharing!
Thanks Emily! So glad everyone loved them!
I really want to make these! Do you recommend any type pre-made dough for these?! Thank you!!!
You could try using crescent roll dough or premade pizza dough. Let me know if they work!
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