Pretzel Baked Beer Dip

It’s Super Bowl time and that means it’s time to start thinking about your party menu for the big game! I know all of the men in my family are, that’s all they talk about actually; football, food, football, food! I mean I love to see them passionate, they always plan a big cottage getaway with all the boys (and no I’m not jealous!).. but it does get me thinking about what I’m going to bake for the big day? And what goes together better than beer and pretzels (especially for a bunch of men)?! Yup, you guessed it, pretzel baked beer dip, yum!

I had a lot of inspiration for this recipe, it seems like the web is loaded with beer dip, iron skillets, and pretzels, who would have thought, right?! But I wanted to try something a little different and experiment with the beer dip. Since I’m not a big expert when it comes to beer, I went straight to the source and who better to talk with than Oast House Brewers from Niagara On The Lake! Do you guys know this brewery? They have the coolest spot, located in a century-old barn in NOTL, and brew some amazing craft beer. Seriously you have to check them out! Word on the street is that Oast House Brewers are having a Super Bowl party in their event space; The Hayloft with a full tailgate menu by Chef Adam Hyam-Smith of El Gastronomo Vagabond and Chef Nathan Young from In the Smoke Cookery and Catering. Sounds like a fun night with some amazing food, or you could stay home and cook this pretzel baked beer dip, up to you 😉

For the recipe, Oast House suggested I use their Barn Raiser Country Ale. It’s a sessionable, hop-forward pale with citrusy/grapefruit characteristics balanced with subtle malty, peach notes coming in at the end (quoted from the experts themselves)! The overall impression the Barn Raiser beer gives to the dip is a sophisticated flavour that pairs nicely with rich smoked gouda and delicate shallots.

The pretzel baked beer dip is rich and full of flavour, perfect to kick off the Super Bowl weekend festivities! I do have to admit this recipe does take some time to make but it will be well worth it, and you will without a doubt impress your guests! This isn’t some store-bought cheez-whiz and crappy beer mixed together and your guests will surely be able to tell and appreciate that!

I had a lot of fun making the pretzel rolls and it was a lot easier than I thought it was going to be. There isn’t any actual rolling involved! After you cut up your dough into 16 equal parts, you tuck the pointy end in and pinch the rest of the dough around it to seal it closed, voila! Normally when I’m making yeast bread I have lots of downtimes in-between the ‘proofing’ stage but with this recipe, there is always something to do.

Pretzel baked beer dip

Print Recipe

What goes together better than beer and pretzels?! Yup you guessed it, pretzel baked beer dip, yum! This is a creamy, flavourful dip with small pretzel buns baked all together in a skillet.

• Author: Alie Romano
• Prep Time: 2 hours
• Cook Time: 18 mins
• Total Time: 2 hours 18 mins
• Yield: 10 1x
• Category: Appetizer
• Cuisine: German

Ingredients

Units USM Scale 1x2x3x

Pretzels

• 1 1/2 cups warm (110 to 115 degrees F) water
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 package active dry yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 4 cups all-purpose flour, approximately
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
• 8–10 cups water for water bath solution
• 1/4 cup baking soda for water bath solution
• 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water
• sea salt or kosher salt for tops of pretzels

Beer Dip

• 3 small shallots, diced small
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 package (8 oz) cream cheese at room temperature
• 2 Tablespoons seeded dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
• 1/2 cup shredded smoked gouda cheese
• 1/2 cup shredded spicy monterey jack cheese (plus a little extra for topping)
• 1/2 cup Barn Raiser Oast Beer
• 1 Tablespoon flour (optional, to thicken dip)
• 1 green onion (green parts only) chopped

Instructions

1. In a large bowl, combine the warm water, yeast, and sugar. Let sit for 5-10 minutes, or until foamy.
2. Add your flour, Kosher salt, and the melted butter. Mix until ragged and starts to come together (view picture gallery above for reference).
3. Pour dough out onto a work surface and knead dough until dough is smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes (try not to use too much extra flour for your work surface, if the dough is way too sticky and you are having a hard time, add a little flour slowly to the work surface).
4. Roll dough into a ball and place into a large greased bowl (with oil) and lightly oil the surface of the dough as well. Cover with plastic wrap or a tea towel and let rise for about an hour until double in size.
5. Meanwhile make your beer dip.
6. Sauté your shallots in a tablespoon of oil on medium low heat until translucent. Turn off heat, add your minced garlic, stir and set aside.
7. In a mixing bowl, add cream cheese, dijon mustard and worcestershire sauce. Mix until blended. Then add your shallots and garlic, mix well.
8. Add your cheese (gouda and monterey jack) and beer, alternating in two batches, go slowly so the beer doesn’t splash out. At this point, you can add flour to thicken up the mixture if you’d like. Set aside.
9. Your dough should be ready. Take the dough out and flatten it into a disc on a prepared work surface (lightly floured).
10. Cut dough into 16 equal parts (start by cutting into four, then cut each four in half and so on, until you have 16 triangles. Make sure to keep the triangles covered with plastic wrap or a tea towel while you work).
11. Take each piece and shape into balls by pulling each corner toward the middle and pinching together. Place pinched-side down on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet. Make sure to (loosely) cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel, you don’t want your dough to dry out.
12. Let your rolls rest for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, you can get your water bath solution ready.
13. Preheat your oven to 425˚F.
14. In a large pot, bring 8-10 cups of water to a boil. Slowly add your baking soda.
15. Place the rolls (1-3 at a time, depending on the size of your pot) in the water pinched side down. Boil for approx. 30 seconds, then flip and boil the other side for another 30 seconds.
16. Using a slotted spoon, remove the pretzel rolls from the water and place back on the baking sheet to cool. Continue until all of the pretzels have been boiled in the baking solution.
17. Grease an iron skillet with oil, place the rolls along the rim of the skillet, leaving the centre open. This is where you will fill the beer dip (you will have extra rolls, that’s okay, bake them separately on the baking sheet).
18. Using a sharp knife, cut an ‘X’ on the top of each roll, brush each roll with egg wash and sprinkle salt on the tops.
19. Add your beer dip in the centre of your rolls and top dip with extra shredded cheese.
20. Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes or until the pretzels are brown and the dip is hot.
21. Sprinkle the chopped green onions onto the top of the dip and let cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Notes

While working with dough, remember to keep it covered as you work. I normally have a few clean towels on hand to keep the dough covered so it won’t dry out.
I did find the pretzel rolls to be quite large, it would be nice to have smaller-sized rolls.

Nutrition

• Serving Size: 1 serving of 24
• Calories: 171
• Sugar: 0.8g
• Sodium: 918mg
• Fat: 8.3g
• Saturated Fat: 5.1g
• Unsaturated Fat: 0
• Trans Fat: 0
• Carbohydrates: 17.6g
• Fiber: 0.6g
• Protein: 5.6g
• Cholesterol: 32mg

Keywords: Beer Dip, Baked Pretzels, Appetizer, Oast Beer, Beer, Dip

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