Vegan Pretzel Bun Sandwich

This Vegan Pretzel Bun Sandwich. I am a serious soft pretzel lover! You can find me eating soft pretzels at nearly every sporting event I attend. I was looking to find a recipe that was gluten free for my daughter, but didn’t sacrifice taste. I tried a few variations until I came across this one from forkandbeans.com. They have some great ideas! Check out my homemade honey mustard recipe as well!

Ingredients:

• 2 ¼ tsp. dry active yeast
• 1 cup warm water
• ½ tsp. coconut sugar

• 1 Tbsp. psyllium husk powder
• 3 Tbsp. warm water

• 1 ¼ cup extra fine brown rice flour
• 1 ¼ cup sorghum flour
• ½ cup arrowroot powder
• ¼ cup potato starch
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• ½ tsp. sea salt
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• 1 Tbsp. pure maple syrup

Water Bath:

• 7 cups water
• ¼ cup aluminum free baking soda
• 2 Tbsp. maple syrup

To Coat:

• olive oil
• coarse salt

Instructions:

1. Mix yeast and sugar into 1 cup warm water and let froth for 10 minutes.
2. Mix psyllium husk powder with 3 Tbsp. warm water. Set aside to thicken for 1 minute.
3. Whisk flours, baking powder, & salt.
4. Set aside 1 cup of this mix.
5. Add the yeast mix into the larger bowl of whisked flour.
6. Continue by adding oil, maple syrup, and thickened psyllium into the bowl and stir until the mixture becomes somewhat crackly.
7. Begin adding the remaining cup of flour a bit at a time until it is all mixed in and it forms dough. At this time it’s good to use your hands to continue kneading, until it is moist. It should not be sticky.
8. Divide the dough into 5-6 balls. Make sure they are even and smooth.Here is where you can create buns or actual pretzel shapes. For buns, cut an X in the top. For pretzels, roll out to approximately 14” long and twist into a pretzel shape.
9. Place them on a cookie sheet and cover with a lightweight clean dishtowel for 30 minutes. (make sure they aren’t near an open window or air conditioning.
10. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Water Bath:

1. Bring water in a large pot to a boil.
2. Slowly add baking soda and maple syrup. Baking soda will make it fizzle big time.
3. CAREFULLY, using a large spatula place the buns or pretzels (one at a time.)into the water bath for 1 minute on each side. Turning over is tricky and takes practice, so be gentle.

Baking:

1. Place each pretzel on a baking sheet with the spatula and coat the tops with olive oil and salt.
2. Bake for 10-12 minutes and then turn the pan around for another 10-12 minutes or until a nice brown color develops.
3. Cool and eat. You can store pretzels in an airtight container, but they are freshest right after baking.