Bake It!: Polish Soft-Baked Pretzels

This weekend, Boston got slammed by a blizzard. A real life blizzard. Two feet of snow, whipping wind, snow drifts, the whole nine yards.  There is something about snowy or rainy days that inspire the baker in me.  Maybe it is the cold outside that inspires to create something warm and comforting inside.

Pretzel Baking Weather

As a first-generation Polish-American, I often find myself gravitating toward recipes that reflect my heritage.  My grandfather was a baker in Poland before he came to America, so perhaps I inherited some of my inspiration from him.  I imagine that these pretzels are something he would have made and sold in his bakery in the 1950s.


These Polish homemade pretzels are called precle domowe (PRREHTS-leh doh-MOH-veh).  They are delightfully golden brown on the outside and soft, tender, chewy on the inside.  A baking soda-water bath takes the place of the lye bath common used on German pretzels.

After two hours of shoveling out my driveway, I rewarded myself with a Long Trail Ale and started my Polish pretzel making adventure.

Precle Domowe (Polish Homemade Soft Pretzels)
Yield 12 pretzels

For dough:
1 1/2 cup warm water
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons salt
1 package active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
4 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
5 tablespoons butter, melted and slightly cooled

For boiling:
10 cups water
2/3 cup baking soda

For topping:
1 large egg, beaten + 1 tablespoon water (aka egg wash)
coarse salt or seasoned salt like Borsari
sesame seeds (optional)

Making the Dough:

• In the bowl of an electric stand mixer, combine water, sugar, salt, and yeast.
• Wait 5 minutes until the mixture starts to bubbly.
• Add flour and melted butter.
• Using the dough hook attachment, mix at low speed for 5 minutes, then increase to medium speed and mix another 5 minutes until dough is smooth and elastic and cleans the sides of the bowl.
• Transfer dough to greased bowl and cover with a cloth.  Let stand in warm place for 1 hour to allow it to rise.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
• Divide risen dough into 12 equal parts.
• Roll each piece into a rope about 24 inches long and form into pretzel shape.

• Longer the rope, the thinner and more traditionally the pretzel will look.
• Shorter the rope, the thicker the pretzel. And if its especially thick, you can use it as a sandwich roll
• Place parchment paper on a baking sheet and lightly coat the paper with cooking spray.
• In a large stockpot or dutch oven, bring water & baking soda mixture to a boil.
• Drop as many pretzels as will fit comfortably into the boiling baking soda-water mixture (my dutch oven held 4 pretzels at a time).
• Cook for 30 seconds on each side and transfer to prepared cookie sheet.
• Brush with egg wash and sprinkle on coarse salt, seasoned salt, or sesame seeds
• Bake 12 minutes or until golden.
• Remove from pan and cool on wire rack.

Of course, these pretzels are best warm right out of oven.  You can store the extra (if there are any left) in a air-tight container.  Reheat by warming in the toaster oven.

Tried this recipe? Leave a comment or tweet me at @lostinlaliland

Restaurant Review: Back Deck Boston

On Sunday, January 20th, I was one of the select few selected to enjoy brunch at Back Deck Boston, courtesy of the Boston Brunchers.

from beantowneats.com

Now, I know that brunch is all uber trendy and the "thing" to do, especially on a Sunday, when you've been partying all weekend and your liver is screaming at you to just knock it off already.  There is something to be said for the hungover genius that invited brunch and brought the best of breakfast and lunch together for one meal.

God bless that man.  (Or woman.)


Back Deck Boston is located on the corner of Washington and West Streets in Downtown Crossing.  This bright, light restaurant is decorated to invoke the feeling of relaxing in a friend's backyard on a warm summer night.

from yelp.com

Their brunch is a good balance of fare, focusing on the restaurant's theme of using a charcoal grill to prepare their foods.  I was especially excited by the bar menu, including several drinks that sounded delicious.

I started off with a Bloody Mary, because let's be honest, no brunch is truly complete without one. 

Back Deck makes theirs with Absolut Peppar, which give it just the right amount of HELLO to your palate.  Nice way to wake up those tastes buds from their slumber.  I prefer my bloody Marys made with GrandTen Distilling's Firepuncher vodka, but Back Deck's version was perfectly delicious.

With ten girls there for the brunch, we made the exceptionally wise decision to order a bunch of appetizers for the table to share. 

Chicken livers with watercress salad - I'm not particularly fond of livers of any sort (with the exception of liverwurst pate from my Polish store), however these were flavorful and the lightly-dressed watercress salad was a fresh compliment.

Grilled pink grapefruit, drizzled with honey - Without a doubt the most unique appetizer on Back Deck's menu. The honey, along with the grilled preparation balanced out the tartness of the grapefruit.  It was exceptionally juicy, but was hard to eat given the softness of the pulp.

Creamy Eggplant Spread - While tasty, this dish was not "eggplanty" enough for me.  I craved more eggplant mixed in to balance out the overwhelming flavor of the cream cheese.

Grilled vegetables with garlic aioli - a fairly standard offering for an appetizer.  The Brussels sprouts were great though.  But let's be honest here, when are they ever not?

Butternut Squash Soup - topped with sour cream and pipitas (pumpkin seeds), this soup everything you'd expect.  Thick, warm, comforting, and very delicious.  Perfect for all these cold New England days we've been having.

Next, we were on to entrees.  I went with the Eggs Diablo.

I tend to be more of a savory vs. sweet breakfast sort of person - especially if someone else is making the poached eggs.  I also have a weakness for huevos rancheros, so my eyes was immediately drawn to this on the menu.

The pork was sliced like a slab of Canadian bacon.  Personally, I would have loved to have the pork shredded  carnitas style, as I think this would have added to the overall presentation of the dish.  The eggs were poached nicely and had just the right amount of ooze that I like. The habanero drizzle added a punch of heat.

I ordered a side of the green apple coleslaw to share with the table.  I'm a big fan of coleslaw but this one was just okay.  I couldn't taste the apples and it could have benefited from having more dressing to hold it together.

If you are a sweet breakfast person, I'd recommend the Challah Bread French Toast.

Seriously, how good does that look?  Nice thick slices of toast, warm bananas, and a carafe of maple syrup to douse it in.  

After we'd devoured our entrees, our waitress asked us if we'd like some dessert.  After moment of hesitation and thought to determine if our stomachs could handle it, we went for it.

I tried the Grilled Pound Cake with pineapples and whipped cream. 

A for presentation, but a B for taste.  The pound cake was drier than I wanted it to be and didn't have that butter pound cake taste that you expect. It was too crumbly that even the moisture from the pineapples did nothing to help.  The flavor was fine but I was disappointed. 

As for my brunch buddies, they were all raving about the homemade graham crackers for the S'mores   Many of the dessert items are chocolate-based so if you're into that, you'll be satisfied.  The drunken 3 Musketeers ice cream was deliciously boozy, as if made by Porthos himself. An adult root beer float or milkshake made with it would be something I could get behind. 

Bar area is nice, if small. If you're looking for a easy relaxed atmosphere for a pre-movie or pre-theater meal, this is good, moderately priced option.  The service was friendly and prompt.  

But you know what the BEST THING about Back Deck is?  Their soundtrack!

Seriously, they played all of my favorite songs out of the 80s & 90s - exactly what I would play at my own back deck parties.  The songs would come on and each time, I would exclaim "This is my JAM!"  It made me quite happy.

Back Deck is located at:
2 West Street, Boston
(corner of West St. and Washington St. in Downtown Crossing)

Like them on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/BackDeckBoston
Follow them on twitter at @backdeckboston


Note: This meal was provided to the Boston Brunchers free of charge. I was asked to write a review of my dining experience. All of the opinions expressed here are my own.

New York State of Mind: Day 1

One of my favorite things about traveling is about sampling the best of what the city (or country) I'm in has to offer.  Perhaps no other city in the US has more offer than New York City.

New York is a city that I enjoy visiting but one I find very overwhelming.  Boston is a big city, but pales in comparison to NYC.  In NYC, there is just so MUCH going on - the people, the traffic, the lovely aromas of the subway. It's a place that I can take in small doses. Just like Las Vegas.

Recently, a friend and I traveled down to NYC for a weekend.  Just a little break from work and Boston to spend some time in the City that Never Sleeps.

This time, I decided to take the train down from Boston to NYC.  Price was a bit more expensive than a plane ticket but the total travel time worked out to be about the same, if you factor in airport security, actual flight time, cab from the airport, etc.

Plus the train is comfortable and has free wi-fi, people. Oh and large windows, which for a gazer like me, is great.  I could just pop in my headphones, gaze out the window, and watch the New England coast fly by me.

After arriving in NYC, I made my way to the Hilton New York, where I had booked a room for $133 a night through Priceline's Name Your Price tool.  If looking for a 3 or 4-star hotel in a certain area (and not a specific chain of hotels), then I highly recommend this option. I've used it twice (NYC and San Francisco) and each time the hotel has been great, both in location and price.

While waiting for my friend to arrive on her train (and to escape the cool weather), I dashed in between the raindrops to Bar Americain, one of Bobby Flay's restaurants, for a bowl of French Onion Soup.

After my friend arrived, we made our way out to explore the city.  Stops included:

Times Square - oh the tourists.  Everyone needs to visit Times Square at least once in their life. But that is it.  Otherwise, it will just annoy you with the tourists and the lights and the commercialism.

Forgive the hair. Humidity is evil.

Union Square

Strand Book Store - I'm a book nerd. I love books and bookstores and if left on my own, could probably spend hours wandering the stacks.  Strand is a bibliophile's heaven.  Books from (where book nerds like me could spend HOURS)

ALL OF THE BOOKS!

East Village & The Redhead NYC ( read my review [here] ), with a photo op in front of a restaurant of my people!  

Glass of wine Bar Veloce with its funky sunglasses lamp.

We ended our night by walking to the nearest subway station and navigating the labyrinth that is the NYC subway system back to our hotel. After a night cap at the hotel bar, we collapsed into our beds to get a good night's sleep, ready to explore the city the next day...

To be continued...

Scotch, scotch, scotchy scotch scotch...

Restaurant Review: The Redhead NYC

Two words.  Soft pretzels.  Two more words. Beer cheese.

Put them together and you have one of many culinary gems at The Redhead in New York's East Village.  This small, bustling eatery with a very understated store front is anything but understated when it comes to the food coming out of its kitchen.

On a recent visit to NYC, I was determined to try this place, which I'd first seen featured on the Food Network's Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives.  After walking the four long city blocks down E. 13th from Union Square, I was greeting with this.

So, of course, I had to go in. 

My friend and I arrived about 6pm and although we didn't have a reservation, we didn't have to wait long for a table.  The bar was busy but not crazy, although I would think that making a reservation for a later time is definitely recommended.

The restaurant is small, mostly with tables of 2 or 4, with seating for a larger party across from the bar or in the back corner. The decor is warm with wood and deep red cushions.

We immediately ordered the homemade soft pretzels with the Kentucky beer cheese - this is the reason why we came, after all.  This little pieces of heaven were warm, chewy, simple delicious.  Everything you want a soft pretzel to be.  Just the right amount of salt too.  And the beer cheese was creamy and cool - the perfect accompaniment to the warm pretzel.

hello gorgeous

My friend ordered the fried chicken, which she promptly proclaimed to be the "best fried chicken" that she'd ever had. I tried the cherry lambic-braised pork ribs.  The ribs were tender and fell of the bone.  I wasn't crazy about the taste of the whole cherries, but the meat itself was well complimented by lambic.

For sides, we order the traditional biscuits and honey and fried green tomatoes, and the not-so-traditional watermelon with chili and lime.  

The biscuits and tomatoes were excellent but it was the watermelon that really caught us off guard.  The coolness of the watermelon paired with the tartness of the lime and heat of the chili was delightfully unexpected and refreshing.  Although summer is almost over, I definitely recommend trying this dish for your next BBQ or party.  

The aftermath....

Slowly, we began drifting in a blissful food coma.  To avoid the embarrassment which would come from us curling up on the velvet cushions and nodding off to sleep, we decided to skip dessert in favor of an after dinner walk.  The Redhead does offer a few options for your sweet tooth, including a bacon peanut brittle, which is quite popular and available for purchase to take home with you.

Next time you find yourself in the East Village and in search of a warm, inviting restaurant with delicious comfort food, you know where to go.

The cool peeps will be waiting for you.

The Redhead is located at 349 E. 13th (at 1st Ave)

http://www.theredheadnyc.com

Follow them on twitter at @theredheadnyc

Back in the Saddle

In the 6 months (six!) since my last post on "Lost in Laliland", lots has happened in my life.  

I graduate with my master's degree after 3 years of working full time and going to school part time. (am now offically wikkid smaht).  

I got a promotion at work and a raise.  (It's all about the benjamins, baby.)

But probably most significant was the success of my other blog, What's Up, Ya Sieve?. Things really took off for myself and my friend, co-creator, and co-writer Shannon and our little hockey blog.  

In addition to writing content for WUYS, we started writing for THE premier hockey blog, Puck Daddy on Yahoo! Sports.  Our readership skyrocketed and we surpassed 600,000 hits in the almost 2 years that we've been blogging.  

Needless to say, the success of WUYS has been flattering, surprising, and awesome.  I am very proud that people find it insightful, funny, and worthy of their attention.  

With WUYS blowing up, the mad crunch to finish my degree, and additionally responsibilities at work,  it didn't leave much time to write about the other things that interest me - movies, music, tv, makeup, food, wine, books, etc. 

But that is all about to change, people.

Starting today, I am making a commitment to LiL and post more frequently about the other things that inhabit my life.  So for those of you who read this blog (all 3 of you), expect to read more about my travels, my city, my hobbies, my obsessions, and my non-hockey passions.  Now that I have the time, there is no telling what might end up on here.

I sincerely hope you enjoy.

Nobody puts Brendan Shanahan in the garbage. Not even Christina Applegate.

Taken from my other blog What's Up, Ya Sieve? (it's about hockey, but with a fun twist).

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If you aren’t watching “Up All Night’ on NBC, you should be.

First off, it is hilarious.

Secondly, Christina Applegate & Maya Rudolph.  I love them.

Thirdly (and most importantly), Will Arnett plays a retired hockey player turned lawyer turned stay at home DILF.

And honestly how you can you not like a show that has scenes like this?

She straight up shanabanned Shanahan!

Clearly, you can see why this is one of my favorite shows on TV right now.

You can watch episodes on Hulu.   (Personal faves are “Week Off”, “New Car”, and “Birth”)

MLK Day Brunch at Ceia Kitchen + Bar

When one has a day off from work, one must indulge.  Right?

Luckily, my Monday of errands and shopping (for new jeans and hockey tees) started off with a exceptional brunch at Ceia Kitchen + Bar in picturesque Newburyport, courtesy of Boston Brunchers.

Located right on State Street, Ceia Kitchen + Bar (SAY-yah) is a intimate restaurant featuring "coastal European" cuisine (flavors of coastal Spain, France, Italy, and Portugal).  Its exposed brick, warm lighting and cozy feel make this a great date spot or local haunt.  It has the feeling of place you'd go all the time, to hang at the bar and have a glass (or two) of wine.

Also, as a side note, I would highly recommend visiting Newburyport on a summer day trip.  It is only about 40 minutes from Boston, located right along the water, and beyond adorbs.

Brunch started off like every good brunch should...with booze.  A St. Germain 75 cocktail (Tanqueray, St. Germain, lemon juice, simple syrup, and sparkling rose).  I love me some gin and was pleased that the cocktail was not overly sweet.  But at 10:30 in the morning, it was quite potent. (Not that I'm complaining or anything).  

Good thing, I was ready to get my food on.

First out were warm rolls and a roasted tomato tapenade.  Not the best rolls that I've ever had, but the tapenade was good. 

Next, we enjoyed Oyster Escabeche with blood orange.  While oysters are not high on the list of my favorite foods (the texture creeps me out a little), blood orange is.  I will pretty much eat anything with blood orange on it or in it.  Including oysters.

Insalate course was a salad of cold smoked asparagus, organic mache (aka lamb's lettuce), fresh mozzarella, and shaved cipollinis.  The smokiness of the asparagus really came through, which was unique and quite tasty.

But the real star of the show was the main entree - Poached eggs with Quail Bernaise with a sweet potato & linguica hash.  

Oh my god, the hash.  It was OFF THE CHAIN.  Seriously.  If it was legal, I would marry this hash.  It was subtly sweet and spicy at the same time.  The linguica was not overpowering and paired with the perfectly poached egg, this might have been the best brunch food I've had in a while.

Hello there beautiful.

Needless to say, I licked my plate clean.

To round of this lovely meal, we finished with a raspberry and coconut pain perdu.  A pain perdu is like a french toast, bread pudding thing and it was so yummy.  I'm more of a fruity dessert person, as opposed to a chocolate dessert person (I know.  I'm weird), so this was right up my alley.  Accompanying the dessert was a late harvest Chilean wine, which was sweet and auburn colored. 

Kudos to Chef Brando and Nancy, the owner, for putting together an amazingly delicious meal.  I'm looking forward to a return trip to try the dinner menu.

Disclaimer: this brunch was provided free of charge to Boston Brunchers. I only paid gratuity and was not required to write a review. 


But I did anyway. :)

Follow Ceia Kitchen + Bar on twitter: @ceiakitchenbar