Danish Rye pretzel cookies

Anyone ever have those Danish cookies in the blue tin?  I always loved the ones in the pretzel shape.  These cookies are like that only better!



Sugared Pretzel Cookies via smitten kitchen1 large egg, hard-boiled and cooled
10 T unsalted butter, softened
1/3 c plus 1 T  sugar
1/4 t salt
1 1/2 t vanilla
1 c unbleached  flour
1/2 c rye flour (medium or white will work)
1 large egg white, lightly beaten with 1 t water
4 t turbinado or clear sanding sugar

Place butter, sugar and salt in the bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Crack egg and peel shell. Separate yolk from white; discard or feed to your child who is freaky about hard boiled egg whites. mash yolk with a fork and dump into mixer bowl with other ingredients. Beat on med speed til light and fluffy, scraping down sides of bowl and beater with spatula as needed. Add vanilla, mix until combined. Add flours and mix at low speed until just combined. Using rubber spatula or your hands, reach into bowl and knead dough a few times into a cohesive mass.

Divide dough in half; place each half on a square of parchment paper. Form each into a log about 6 inches long (it will be about 1 3/4 inches in diameter) and wrap tightly with parchment, twisting ends to seal. Chill logs for 30 minutes, until semi-firm. (If you chill them longer, you’ll want to warm them up a bit or it’s difficult to work them into pretzel shapes.)

Heat oven to 350 F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Slice 1/4" off first chilled log and roll slice into a ball in palm of  hands; this softens dough. On a counter, roll ball into a 6" rope. Pick up each end of rope and fold turn it into center, pressing it into a pretzel shape. Transfer to baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough, placing cookies 1" apart on prepared sheets.

Brush each pretzel cookie with egg white wash, then sprinkle with coarse sugar. Bake cookies until they have golden brown edges, about 13-15 min. Remove from oven but let firm up on baking sheet for 5 min before transferring cookies to cooling racks.

Cookies stored in an airtight container between sheets of waxed/parchment paper will keep for at least 1 week.