Easy Delicious Pretzels

Staring down our first full week of distance learning, we needed snacks. Fun, easy, stress-relieving snacks. These homemade soft pretzels are up for the challenge.

In my search for a little baker friendly soft pretzel recipe it didn’t take long before I found one I could not resist. The one that promised only 10 minutes of rise time and a total time of 40 minutes. Plus, step by step pretzel folding pictures. The clear winner.

We’re rating this a Ladybug Learner level 3 recipe. While it only takes a few ingredients, there are multiple steps that add a challenge, like boiling the dough and forming the pretzels. It took us closer to 1 hour from start to finish but I usually anticipate a little extra time. The dough is so not fussy and forming the pretzels was almost relaxing. The step by step pictures really helped P understand what to do and after a little practice she was folding all by herself. (Check out our Instagram page for our pretzel folding form 😉

Baking Pretzels with Your little baker

So definitely don’t go into this bake expecting 12 uniform mall-stand pretzels. I let go of that idea pretty quickly when I saw how much fun she was having forming the pretzels her way. As you’ll see we had a variety of shapes and they all turned out delicious! Lots for little bakers to do like:

• Combine the water and yeast and watch it bubble.
• Pour flour into bowl while you mix (we used a wooden spoon but you can use a stand mixer.)
• Practice kneading the dough for older bakers. For younger ones you might break off a tiny piece and let them play with their own ball. (P took her own little section to knead while I worked over the large ball of dough. It’s a quick knead, only 3 minutes.)
• Roll the dough and form the pretzels. (Hands down the most fun.)
• Season the pretzels (We used Trader Joe’s Everything Bagel Seasoning and salt.)

How we Baked it

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Recipe

You can find this truly easy and delicious recipe at Sally’s Baking Addiction: Easy Homemade Soft Pretzels

And another quick grab by little brother. Yum!

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Almond butter + flaxseed granola bars

Snacks are kind of a big deal. And it’s not just the toddler and preschooler, I love a little afternoon bite to hold me over until dinner. These easy no-bake granola bars are super tasty and packed with protein and nutrients.

I started eating flaxseed meal to increase supply while I was nursing and it worked wonders. Aside from that, flaxseed also contains essential fatty acids and is a great source of vitamins. The flavor works really well alongside the almond butter to provide some extra fuel for your day. Both of my kids devour them.

Baking tips by age

I would usually break down some baking tips by age but really these are just so simple any age can measure, pour and mix up this tasty treat. We found it helpful to use a big spoon to scoop the granola from the mixing bowl to the square pan. You can even have fun switching up the coconut and chocolate chips for your favorite add-ins, like nuts or dried fruit. I like to ground nuts so they are easy chewing for little mouths.

How we baked it

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Almond Butter + Flaxseed Granola Bars

Hands on 20 minutes | Freezer 1 hour
Makes 16 bars in 9 inch pan

Ingredients

2 cups rolled oats
1/3 cup flaxseed meal
1 cup almond butter or peanut butter
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/4 cup chocolate chips

Directions

1. Combine oats and flaxseed meal in large bowl.
2. Add nut butter and honey.
3. Mix until oats are well coated.
4. Mix in coconut and chocolate chips.
5. Place in 9 inch square baking pan lined with parchment paper.
6. Press well into the bottom and sides of pan.
7. Freeze for 1 hour
8. Remove granola bars from baking pan by pulling up on corners of the parchment paper.
9. Place parchment paper on cutting board and cut granola into 16 squares.

Notes:
Granola bars can be kept in the refrigerator for about a week.
To transport, wrap bars in parchment paper and place in small bag or container.

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