Soft Buttery One-Hour Pretzels

Easter Sunday. Calvin preached on Facebook Live from the empty sanctuary, just him and a microphone and the light coming through the stained glass windows that no one was sitting under, and it was the most unexpectedly beautiful service I have ever seen him preach because the emptiness was its own statement—the empty sanctuary, the empty tomb, the absence that contains more than presence sometimes does. I watched on the tablet in the kitchen, sitting at the table in my good dress because Easter requires the good dress even when you are alone in your kitchen, and I said "He is risen" to the screen at the end and Calvin said "He is risen indeed" and we were both in the kitchen and both in the sanctuary and both in the space between, the way love works, the way the Spirit works, the way this year is working—everyone everywhere at once, nothing in its ordinary place, and somehow still: risen.

Easter dinner was just us. The first Easter with only Calvin and me at the table since before the children were born, or maybe since the year the children were all too young to know what Easter was. Just us: the ham, the potato salad, the yeast rolls I made Friday—the air quiet, the street quiet, the neighborhood observing the same strange suspended Easter that every household was observing. I set Marcus's candle and I set Bernice's water glass and I said grace myself because Calvin had been preaching all morning and sometimes the pastor needs someone else to say the prayer, and I said: Thank you for the risen ones. Thank you for the ones who are almost gone. Thank you for the ones who are here. Thank you for the ham. Amen.

The yeast rolls were the thing I made with my hands, the thing that asked something of me on Good Friday when sitting still felt impossible — and honestly, this pretzel dough is what I come back to now whenever I need that same reminder that something living is rising, right there on the counter, right there in the quiet. It is a humble recipe, an hour from start to finish, but humble is not the same as small, and that Easter taught me that better than any other year ever has.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 12 min | Total Time: 1 hour | Servings: 12 rolls

Ingredients

1 packet (2 1/4 tsp) active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups warm water (110°F)
1 tsp granulated sugar
4 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for kneading
1 tsp fine salt
4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted and divided
1/2 cup baking soda (for the water bath)
6 cups water (for the water bath)
1 egg yolk, beaten with 1 tbsp water (egg wash)
Coarse sea salt or flaky salt, for topping

Instructions

Activate the yeast. Combine warm water, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl. Let stand 5–8 minutes until foamy and fragrant.
Make the dough. Add 2 tbsp melted butter and the salt to the yeast mixture. Add flour one cup at a time, stirring until a shaggy dough forms, then turn out onto a floured surface and knead 5–6 minutes until smooth and elastic.
Let it rise. Place dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with a clean towel, and set in a warm spot for 25–30 minutes until nearly doubled.
Preheat and prep. Heat oven to 425°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment. Bring 6 cups water to a boil in a wide saucepan and carefully add baking soda (it will bubble up).
Shape the rolls. Divide dough into 12 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a smooth ball or short log. For pretzel rolls, tuck the ends under to form a round.
Boil the dough. Working in batches, drop rolls into the baking soda bath for 20–30 seconds per side. Remove with a slotted spoon and place on prepared baking sheets.
Top and bake. Brush each roll with egg wash and sprinkle generously with coarse salt. Bake 10–12 minutes until deep golden brown.
Finish with butter. As soon as rolls come out of the oven, brush with remaining 2 tbsp melted butter. Serve warm.

Nutrition (per serving)

Soft Buttery One-Hour Pretzels — The Yeast Rolls I Made on Good Friday