Chocolate Chip Cinnamon Sugar Soft Pretzels

I love a mall pretzel as much as the next person, but it’s been a very long time since I’ve been to a mall. Even before the pandemic, I tried to avoid them as much as possible because they’re always a bit too hectic for me. I’ll take online shopping any day from the comfort of my own home. With that being said, the one thing I miss the most is stopping to get a pretzel. So I thought to myself, why not make super soft pretzels at home, but make them sweet. These Chocolate Chip Cinnamon Sugar Soft Pretzels check all the boxes. They’re easy to make, with only a 20 minute rising, no intense kneading, and no boiling! All that means is that you can make them often. Give them a try because I know you’ll fall in love. If you’re looking for some savory pretzel inspiration, check out these pizza pretzels, everything bagel pretzels and of course, these mega bacon, cheddar and jalapeño pretzels.

In a large bowl, combine the water, sugar and yeast. Allow to sit for 5 minutes to bloom the dry yeast somewhat. Then add in the flours and salt and stir with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together.

**Note: Using both bread and all-purpose flour gives these pretzels a nice chewy texture, but you can just use all of either one if you prefer or if that’s all you have on hand.**

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Add the chocolate chips and knead just a few times to smooth out the dough and distribute the chocolate, but do not over handle at this stage or it’ll toughen the dough. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest and rise for 20 minutes.

**Tip: I highly recommend using a flexible plastic bench scraper to help you knead the dough and distribute the chocolate. It helps tremendously!**

Meanwhile as the dough rises, preheat the oven to 500°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. Then, in a large bowl, whisk together the baking soda with 2 cups hot water. Set aside.

Transfer the dough to a very lightly floured work surface. Cut into six even pieces. Working with one at a time, roll each piece of dough into a long rope and shape into a pretzel, making sure to pinch the ends so that they don’t unravel.

**Tip: When rolling the pretzels it’s best to find that perfect balance of dusting your work surface with only a tiny bit of flour at a time. If you put too much flour down, you’ll dry out the dough and rolling them will be difficult. I find it’s best to roll them with just a teaspoon of flour rubbed between your hands to prevent the dough from sticking to you.**

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Carefully dip the pretzel into the baking soda solution and then place on the prepared baking sheet. Continue until all the pretzels have been shaped, spacing them out evenly, allowing them some space to grow while baking.

Bake until golden brown and puffed up, 5 to 8 minutes (because of the super hot oven they cook and brown pretty fast). Carefully Remove the pan from the oven and allow to cool slightly.

Place the melted butter into a shallow dish. Then whisk together the granulated sugar and cinnamon in a separate shallow dish. Working with one pretzel at a time, while still slightly warm, carefully dip into the melted butter, turning over to coat both sides. Allow the excess butter to drip off before dipping into the cinnamon sugar and to fully coat. Place on a baking sheet and continue coating the rest of the pretzels. 

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The pretzels are amazing served warm but ultimately they’re best when consumed the day of, especially if they’re coated in the cinnamon sugar. If you want to make these ahead of time, you can bake them off. Cool them down and wrap in plastic or store in an airtight container. Then just rewarm slightly in the oven before dipping and coating on the day you plan on eating them.

The pretzels puff up nicely and become super soft like little pillows of dough (the baking soda solution helps with that, along with the yeast of course). The warm chocolate in the inside along with the cinnamon sugar coating go so well together. Believe me, you’ll want to make them!

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If the chocolate is too decadent, you can omit them and just make these plain cinnamon sugar pretzels instead! They’re super easy to make and so I hope you’ll give them a try.

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If you do go without the chocolate chips inside, you can serve them with melted chocolate or warm chocolate ganache for dipping. That would be just as delicious. Let me know what you think below, and if you make them, I’d love to hear what you think! Thank you for reading and following along!