September 24, 2008

Chocolate chip Whole Wheat Pretzels - A plate to call my own

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Wondering why I would call that plate my own? Because I made it... yes, I made the cute looking yellow dinner plate myself at a crafts center. Unfortunately, it is not something one can make at home. I would have filled the house with plates if only I could.

It basically involves some basic stuff, like the "slip" (which is liquid clay), I could have used the pottery wheel, but I am not an expert at it, so decided to go with liquid clay.
The slip is poured into a mold, as you clearly can see I used a square dinner plate model. And it sits for about two days in the mold.
Then the third day, the plate is unmolded, it is still slightly wet, and then it is fired under very high temperature.
Next comes the paint, I chose lemon yellow.
You see... I was working on a theme here with lemon, lime and cantaloupe colors (basically light yellow, lime green and light orange) for a dinner set.
So after painting with the desired color, it is again fired to set the colors, then glazed (to give that glossy finish to the plate) and again fired. Lot of repetitions, yes...
It is a long process, but it sure is satisfying to eat from a plate that you made with your own hands. To call it your very own.

Slight shift in focus, away from the plate, and to what is on it today. Chocolate chip good-for-you pretzels made with white whole wheat flour. I like the regular cinnamon sugar pretzels a lot, but what fun would it be to make the same at home?
So I deviated a little from sugar to chocolate, still keeping it in the sweet category though! It is best eaten hot from the oven. So big batches are not advisable. I have given a little note about the yeast used in the ingredient list. So, keep an eye out for it. Other than that, we are all set to dive into the recipe.

Chocolate chip Whole Wheat Pretzels

Ingredients:

Method:

White Whole wheat flour - 1 1/2 cups
Butter - 2 tbsp at room temperature
Instant Yeast - 1 tsp (I used the rapid rise, highly active kind), this did not require adding water to activate it. If you are using the normal yeast, then you may have to let it sit in warm water for a few minutes before kneading it in with the flour, or follow package instructions.)
Sugar - 1 tsp
Salt - 1/2 tsp
Water - To knead
Chocolate chips - A handful
Water - 4 cups
Baking soda - 2 tsp

Method:

Preheat oven to 400F.

Mix the flour with the yeast, butter, salt and sugar and knead with just enough water to form a elastic ball. You may have to knead for at least 10-15 minutes or until smooth.

Cover with a cloth and let it rise for an hour or two, till it doubles in size.

Once it has doubled, then punch down and knead again for another 5 minutes. Make 8-10 equal sized balls and let it sit for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring the 4 cups of water and the 2 tsp of baking soda to a boil in a pot.
Then turn down to medium heat.

Then take one ball of dough and form it into a rope using the palm of your hands, in a rubbing motion.
Form into a long rope, at least 15 inches in length, and shape into a pretzel knot.
Make pretzel shapes with all the remaining dough.

knot

Grease a baking sheet and set aside.

Drop the pretzels, two to three at a time gently into the hot water on medium heat. Let them boil for one minute on each side.

boil

Gently transfer onto the baking sheet one by one.

Now insert the chocolate chips around the pretzel and gently press in so it does not fall apart.

bake

Bake for 10-15 minutes at 400F or until lightly browned on top.

Remove and let cool for about a couple of minutes on a cooling rack.

Top with chocolate sauce and serve hot. Cold pretzels don't taste good in my opinion. So enjoy them fresh and hot from the oven.

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48 comments:

  1. Hey this is really amazing yaa! pretzels with choco chips in your own hand made plate!!!!!

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  2. Very nice plate! We do not have such kind of craft store here or I would have filled our house with gorgeous plates like yours!

    I had no idea pretzels are easy to do! This is something the kids like to munch on. So, maybe I should try my hand at this... :)

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  3. Chocolate chip looks yumm yumm

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  4. We don't get pretzels here, so I make my own, but chocolate chip pretzels are new to me.
    They look really good. But I like your plate better.:)

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  5. MAking you're own clay plate ? That sounds interesting...The pretzels are droolworthy and I appreciate u're patience on inserting the choc-chips into them in that wonderful pattern!

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  6. HI Divya.. really Excellant dear.. looks delicious & awesonme... thxs for shar..

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  7. Lovely plate and pretzels have come out equally good. Nice color chosen for the plate... So looking forward to many more of ur crafts here.

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  8. Wow your plate looks neat...I did pottery as well..but we had to mold them on the wheel.

    am yet to make some pretzels...

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  9. Hey divya ,

    Awesome yaar .. the plate and the Pretzels... U R Too Creative ...

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  10. Wow , Divya the plate looks terrific! Very beautiful! So do your pretzels!

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  11. love the plate - nice color! and the pretzels look delicious.

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  12. Looks really tempting and delicious.

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  13. Looks really tempting and delicious.

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  14. Both the pretzel and the plate looks good.
    I am really impressed about you making the plate.

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  15. Bookmarked,I have been looking for pretzels.

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  16. the plate you made is so beautiful..
    And thats a lovely recipe..they look gorgeous!!

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  17. Divya I really wish you lived close enough to my place for me to visit you and taste all these yummy goodies...looks awesome and doesn't seem very high in fat either...good job...and you made your own dinner plate ?! Wow talk about creativity...looks beautiful :)

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  18. My first time here....
    The plate and pretzels compete against each other.....wow, so delish....and you made that plate....am drooling at both of them....wish I could get my hands on them...and how I wished such crafts centres exist in India....great post.

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  19. I admire ur creativity :) The color of ur plate is just eyecatching!
    The choco chips look like a pearl in ur pretzel!
    Kuddos Dear :)

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  20. hi divya...thanx for visiting my blog...this is my first visit to ur blog and i must say ur blog is sooooo good...i really like the maroon n green color combination of ur blog..:-) n ofcouse it has all yummy recipes....:-) good job dear!

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  21. Lovely plate and beautiful pretzels. I would like to taste them.

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  22. Such a nice idea to top the pretzels with chocochips - makes it very attractive too! Yes - I like the idea of making my own plate and eating my baked goodies from it:)Great job there too!

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  23. you made your own plate??!?!?!! that's interesting! It must've been fun... Pretzels look so soft and nice...

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  24. Oh lovely entry, pretzels looks divine and delicious!!!

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  25. Am too tempted to make these right away..Thanks for the recipe Divya..Am bookmarking it..

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  26. amazing plate and pretzels. But I just love your plate. I wish I could do something like this... and we do have pottery places here... just don't get time. may be I'll just take my lil daughters with me and make them do something too.

    u inspire me:-)

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  27. the pretzels look wonderful. i haven't seen them with choc chips before.

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  28. pretzels look gr8 divya. yeah, i used store bought cottage cheese.. it is not too watery.it is just like ricotta cheese.. yes, it does have a different texture.. somewhat like homemade paneer..

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  29. I HAVE to share this recipe with my sister, who is an absolutely chocolate chip nut. She'll find any way to add chocolate chips to anything!

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  30. hai divya...yaaa according to ur taste u can add sweetness...and regarding ghee, add 1 tbs at the time b4 adding banana' and at last at the time of removing from pan...because u need to keep on stirring the banana mixture in between with ghee till the mixture leaves its side of the bowl and lastly it turns automatically into deep brown colour..and btw ur chocolate chip looks yumm...nicely presented..

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  31. The plate looks great and so do the pretzels. Also, I'm with you about cold pretzels--warm and chewy for me!

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  32. Those pretzels look picture perfect, Divya. And -- talented you! -- that plate is equally gorgeous.

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  33. A small treat for you in my blog.Kindly visit http://tastycurryleaf.blogspot.com/2008/09/cheese-pennies.html

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  34. Wow, the pretzels are resting like little angels on your wonderful creation Divya! Awesome recipe and beautiful plate!

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  35. vow this is damn easy recipe.....am going to try it out today itself.....thanks for sharing.....

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  36. Usha - Maybe you should consider relocating ;) We could have a lot of fun. And yes, the recipe calls for only 2 tbsp of butter, and no other form of fat is used. So I would say it is pretty healthy!

    Curry Leaf - Thanks so much for the award. You made my day.

    Suma & Mahimaa - Thanks for getting back to me.

    Rachel - You are very crafty. I am terrible at the wheel. Maybe because I never learnt it formally.

    Rupa - Welcome gal! If you live in a pretty big city, you may want to try at some pottery/crafts center. I don't know if they exist in India, but worth a try.

    Cilantro - Girl, you love close by. Drop in!

    Soma - It is a great hobby for little kids. You must give it a try.

    Bee - A little longer comment next time ;) Read your post today... Hilarious!

    Thanks to the others for being so encouraging. If I have not answered any queries, do ping me.

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  37. What are the chances of us posting whole wheat pretzels a few days apart. Of course you've one-upped me because yours have chocolate in it! They look fabulous, I'll be incorporating chocolate chips in my next batch when I make peanut butter pretzels =)

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  38. divya,chocolate chips looks really great,its mouth watering yaar...i will try this one today

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  39. What fun to make your own plate!

    Those pretzels look like they'd be quite delicious warm from the oven.

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  40. Hi Divya,chocolate chips looks really great,looks divine and delicious!!!Lovely entry..

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  41. Yummy pretzels Divya..that too using whole wheat flour..amazing!!Simply loved it..and not to forget the lovely plate that you've made..great!!!

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  42. Wow they are looking so yummy...what a lovely piece of work...gud one dear

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  43. These pretzels look so good - were they soft and chewy? The last time I made them they were rather tough.

    Handmade plate is very pretty :)

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  44. thx divya. i used thin poha.. i always buy only thin ones..they cook quickly.i don't think thickness matters for payasam.. u can use anything.

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  45. Both the plate and the pretzels look fantabulous !

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  46. Good looking plate and pretty pretzels.......nice photos too.

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  47. Pretzels look yummy...didn't know they go in water before baking. Will be definitely trying this one. Plate is looking beautiful...lucky you got to try your hands at it.

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  48. You have SO many amazing recipes on here but this one takes it for me!!

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Thank you for taking the time to comment on this post. I will try to respond to queries as soon as I can. If I miss anything that needs to be addressed... please feel free to ping me again.
Happy cooking/baking or whatever it is you are doing in the kitchen! :)