These pretzels are super soft, moist, and fluffy, with more fiber and healthy fats than the traditional kind. It also has no dairy or eggs, making it vegan-friendly!
I've made these pretzels so many times but only just took the pictures and finally got around to writing the post! I promise this is not one you want to miss 😉
I usually made them as pretzel bites and you can totally do that too! But there is something different about pretzels that are actually shaped like pretzels...it just has a different feel, ya know? Or is that just me😂
Anywayyy the thing about pretzels you get from the mall is that they fill you up like air and don't make you feel too great afterwards. While I'm not saying there is anything wrong with eating those kind of pretzels, I will say that these ones are perfect when you're looking for something more filling, satisfying, and nutritious.
These pretzels are soft, fluffy, and moist, plus they have more healthy fats and fiber than regular pretzels! They're also vegan and have no dairy or eggs 🙂
If you don't have time to read or make these now, click here to save the recipe on Pinterest! That way, you can always come back to it.📌
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how to make vegan pretzels that are soft and moist
Yes, you can make pretzels without any dairy and they will still taste amazing! It's actually not complicated at all.
Most pretzel recipes don't have eggs to begin with, so that leaves milk and butter that are usually in pretzels but they are easily replaceable.
For the milk, my favorite nondairy milk is oat. It's creamy and pretty close to actual milk. When used in a recipe like this, you can't even tell the difference! Other nondairy milks like almond or coconut also work well here.
This might sound strange, but the replacement for butter is also oat milk here. How does this work? Well, most pretzel recipes use a water base, and add butter to that. But in this case, there is no water.
We're completely replacing the water with oat milk, which makes the pretzels extra rich, because oat milk will give the same creaminess as butter in larger amounts, like we're using here.
Then for the rest of the moistness, olive oil is essential. Oil brings in the second part of what butter would give, which is the moisture. Olive oil will give that same effect, but with no dairy and instead with healthy fats and omega-3s.
fluffy & high fiber pretzels
So we've covered the moisture and richness. Now how do you increase the fiber without making it dry or wheaty?
I'm sure you've seen and probably tried whole wheat recipes that claim to taste exactly like the white flour version...but really don't.
Whole wheat flour is a higher fiber alternative to all purpose or white flour. If fills you up for longer too! However, the satisfaction won't be the same, because it tends to make any kind of dough dry and hard.
So in this recipe, we're using a combination of all purpose flour and whole wheat flour! This way, you'll get the fluffiness of the white flour + the fiber of whole wheat flour.
Another key to this is using white whole wheat flour--not regular whole wheat. This actually makes a huge difference but it is often overlooked. They both have the same fiber content, but white whole wheat just has a lighter taste and texture since it's made from a different type of wheat. No, it's not a mix of white and whole wheat flour 😉
If you can't find it at your local grocery store, you can get some on Amazon here. You probably won't want the regular wheat after this😝
By mixing white flour with white whole wheat, it is inevitable that this will result in less fiber. This leads me to one of my favorite tricks ever...
Adding flaxseed meal! I add this in all my cinnamon roll recipes as well; it really is so amazing. Here's why: flaxseed meal is just flaxseeds that are ground up, becoming almost a powder. It's super easy to add in recipes, and it's high in fiber, protein, and healthy fats + omega-3 fatty acids (the dream team😌).
What makes this really special is that it doesn't dry up the dough like whole wheat flour does. The healthy fats keep it moist without adding extra liquid, so that you can add extra nutritional value without noticing a difference! You can't taste it at all (unless you eat it by itself obviously😂).
This is my favorite brand because it is ground much more finely than others I've tried. This is not a one-time use thing...check out all the recipes you can make with it! It's also great to add in oatmeal and as an egg substitute in some cases 🙂
step-by-step instructions
The process of making pretzels isn't too difficult, but I thought it would be a lot easier if you have step-by-step instructions with pictures. So here ya go!
First, you'll need to warm up your oat milk until it is slightly warmer than room temperature. Anything too cold or too hot will kill your yeast, so be careful! Mix this with your sweetener of choice (actual sugar, NOT artificial sweeteners). Yeast feeds on sugar so your best choices are maple syrup, regular sugar, or honey if you aren't vegan.
The yeast to use here is active dry. Instant yeast is fine too, but it doesn't foam up like active dry does and is harder to tell if it is activated or not. If you bake a lot (like me!) you can get active dry yeast in a bottle, but if this is all you're going to make, you can get them in little packages here.
Below is a picture of what your yeast should look like after 10 minutes of resting:
If you wait 10 minutes and nothing happens, your milk was either too hot or too cold. Unfortunately, you can't fix this and will have to start over.
Next, add in all the rest of the ingredients and mix until combined and a dough forms.
Cover with plastic wrap or a towel and rest for 30 minutes, to rise.
Lightly flour the counter with all purpose flour and knead the dough just until it doesn't stick to the surface. DO NOT knead until it becomes dry!
Divide the dough into 8 equal triangles and roll them into strips.
Twist the strips into a pretzel shape!
Boil a pot of water and add baking soda to it. Let the pretzels soak in the water for 30 seconds to a minute, but no longer!
Bake for 5 minutes, then brush with olive oil and milk. Add salt and bake for another 4-6 minutes and enjoy!
>> Click here to save the recipe on Pinterest so you can always come back to it!📌
I really hope you like this recipe! If you decide to make it, be sure to post a picture/story and tag me @nutritiousdelights on Instagram–I’d love to see!🥰 Also leave a comment below so everyone can see how it goes 🙂
More recipes you might love:
Vegan Tofu Mashed Potatoes with Balsamic Glazed Mushrooms
Healthy Vegan Soft Pretzels
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup all purpose flour plus 6 tablespoons for kneading
- ¾ cup white whole wheat flour
- ½ cup flaxseed meal finely ground
- 2 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast or 1 packet
- 1 cup oat milk or any milk
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 tablespoon salt
- 2 tablespoons honey, maple syrup, or sugar
- pot of boiling water
- 2 teaspoons baking soda
topping
- 1 tablespoon oat milk
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- salt
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, heat up the milk with sugar until just warmer than room temperature (not cold or hot). Add in the yeast and let it rest for 10 minutes until foamy.
- Add in the rest of the dough ingredients: all purpose flour, white whole wheat flour, flaxseed meal, olive oil, and salt.
- Mix until a dough forms and rest for 30 minutes in a greased bowl.
- Lightly flour surface with the remaining flour and knead the dough. Keep doing this until the dough no longer sticks to the counter, but DO NOT add so much that it becomes dry. You should only need about 6 tablespoons.
- Divide the dough into 8 equal triangles and roll into thin strips.
- Twist the strips into pretzel shapes.
- Mix the boiling water and baking soda, and let the pretzels sit in the water for 30 seconds - 1 minute (no longer!). Place the pretzels on parchment paper and bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 5 minutes.
- Mix together the olive oil and milk, then brush on the pretzels. Add salt on top and bake for an additional 4-6 minutes. Enjoy!
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