Homemade Soft Pretzels With Beer Cheese Sauce

Zach and I had a fun Saturday night last weekend. There was nothing fancy about it, just hanging out together, making fun food. The pretzel recipe that I made is from a site I recently found on You-tube called Tastemade. They create food themed videos ranging from specialty artisan ingredients, road trips to cultural specific food, even vegan and raw food recipes. I love the quirky, relaxed atmosphere in the videos and the laid back instructions that makes eating and cooking food fun!

Here is a link to the Pretzel Recipe. I found the lye portion in the video really interesting. Zach and I did the baking soda version because we are "chicken" to eat something dipped in lye...oh and also we didn't have any food grade lye on hand.

But I came up with a beer cheese recipe that was delicious for dipping the pretzels. I found that they were also wonderful dipped in this Vermont Maple Mustard that I found at Kroger by Private Select brand.

We bought a 6=pack of our favorite beer...Ok, so it has a naughty name, but I really like this beer. Ready for it? ....Dirty Bastard....uhhhhh!

Founders is located in Grand Rapids Michigan, so it's a local brew for us. Dirty Bastard is a Scotch Ale that has a rather high alcohol content, and I love that it's a traditional cap so we get to use Zach's hand forged bottle openers! (Maybe a little sales pitch there...maybe.)

Anywhoo, we needed a delicious beer for the pretzel ingredients, and I thought a beer cheese dip would work perfect.

This dip has a bite! The aged ingredients and sharp cheeses give it a hearty edge that is not for the faint of heart.



Beer Cheese Dip

1/2 bottle of your favorite beer.
4 oz of a sharp cheddar -shredded. We used Pinconning Extra Sharp, which is a local cheese.
4 oz of a real stinky blue cheese or Gorgonzola -shredded
1/4 Tbsp butter
1/4 Tbsp cup flour (less or more)
1 green onion minced finely
1 garlic clove minced finely
1 tsp All-Purpose seasoning like Lawrys

In a small pot melt butter. Slowly whisk in flour until smooth. Cook for about 5 minutes, or until the flour is lightly golden. Set aside.

In another smallish pot. On medium heat, bring beer to a boil and simmer about 5 minutes. Add the onion and garlic. Add the cheese a little at a time, stirring to incorporate, allowing each addition to melt before adding more. Thicken the mixture by adding the flour and butter a little at a time until the dip has reached desired thickness. Season with salt and pepper or All-Purpose seasoning.

Enjoy with homemade pretzels, or crusty bread and a good beer!