You’ve not done snacking right until you’ve had this Pretzel Bread with Pimento Beer Cheese! Good luck not eating the whole loaf on your own!
If I had a roster of my favorite recipes that I’ve ever posted to the blog, this Pretzel Bread with Pimento Beer Cheese would be at the top. OH MY GOSH. The bread should almost be illegal, especially piping hot from the oven.
And the pimento beer cheese? Well, that just speaks for itself. Whether you’re cooking for a crowd to watch basketball or you just need some comforting carbs in your life, this recipe will be your best friend this weekend.
The best part? The bread is SO much easier to make than you think. Trust me. Give it a try and you won’t regret it.
The perfect accompaniment to this recipe is a tall glass of Yuengling Traditional Lager. I used the beer in the beer cheese so it goes perfectly! If you didn’t know, Yuengling is America’s oldest brewery, dating back to 1829.
Now, after much begging from the good folks of our state, Yuengling is FINALLY being distributed in Kentucky! You’ll now be able to find the Lager that I used today, the Black & Tan, and the Light Lager (my mom’s all-time favorite beer) in various stores.
Pimento cheese and pretzels are a match made in heaven. Try my Pimento Cheese Stuffed Pretzel Bites!
Pretzel Bread with Pimento Beer Cheese
Ingredients
- Pretzel Bread
- 3/4 cups warm water
- 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast (or 1 packet)
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon coarse salt
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- ¼ cups baking soda
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- flaked or coarse salt, for topping
- Pimento Beer Cheese
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 2/3 cup beer
- 1/3 cup milk
- 6 ounces freshly grated sharp cheddar cheese
- 1/4 cup chopped roasted red peppers
Instructions
- Pretzel Bread
- In the bowl of your electric stand mixer, combine the water, yeast, and honey. Let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes, until foamy. Add the flour, salt, and butter, and mix with the dough hook until a ball of dough forms. Cover with a towel and set in a warm place to rise for an hour, or until it doubles in size. I like to heat my oven to 200ºF, then turn it off and let the dough rise in the oven with the door open.
- After the dough has risen, turn the dough out a knead a few times on a lightly floured surface.
- Form the dough into the shape of a loaf of bread. Place it on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Cover and let it rise for another 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 425ºF.
- Bring 2 quarts of water to a simmer. Add the baking soda to the water and bring it back up to a simmer. Gently pick up the bread and place it in the simmering water. Simmer for about 1 full minute on each side, gently turning it over to do the other side. Carefully remove it from the water and place it back on the baking sheet.
- Brush the dough with the beaten egg and slice a few slits in the top of the bread. Sprinkle with coarse salt. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until deeply golden brown. Mine took right at 30. Let the bread cool completely before using it.
- Pimento Beer Cheese
- To make the pimento beer cheese, heat a small saucepan over medium heat, and add butter.
- Once sizzling, whisk in flour and stir for 1-2 minutes until golden and fragrant, and bubbly. Add in beer and milk, whisking well to combine, then reduce heat to low and add cheese and roasted red peppers, stirring until totally melted and smooth.
- Serve the bread dunked in the pimento beer cheese or spread with salted Irish butter.
Jane
Monday 20th of December 2021
I wonder if you could dunk the bread into a lye bath as one does for making actual pretzels and then proceed with the baking.
Paige
Monday 27th of December 2021
I'm sure you could!!
Beef, Onion and Kale Stew -
Thursday 29th of March 2018
[…] Pretzel Bread with Pimento Beer Cheese […]