The first time I had a bretzel roll was as the bun for a cheeseburger in St. Louis, MO. Instant favorite. I’ve always been appreciative of a denser bun on a burger, and the flavor of this particular bun tops it off (no pun intended). Until recently it had not occurred to me that I could recreate the experience from the comfort of my home. Planning cheeseburgers for dinner I decided it was time!

Big hit! Definitely going to be making these more often instead of  taking the easy way out and buying regular buns from the bakery (time permitting). I ended up making 4 large buns instead of 8 rolls as the recipe indicates since I wanted them to fit full grown burgers, not sliders.

And they are so pretty!

Here it is, reposted from Smitten Kitchen. Please check out the original post for additional pictures and information.

Ingredients:

2-3/4 cups bread flour

1 envelope quick-rising yeast

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

1 cup plus 2 Tbsp (about) hot water (125°F to 130°F)

Cornmeal

8 cups water

1/4 cup baking soda

2 Tbsp sugar

1 egg white, beaten to blend

Coarse salt

Directions:

1. Combine bread flour, one envelope yeast, one teaspoon salt and one teaspoon sugar in food processor and blend. With machine running, gradually pour hot water through feed tube, adding enough water to form smooth elastic dough. Process one minute to knead.
2. Grease medium bowl. Add dough to bowl, turning to coat. Cover bowl with plastic wrap, then towel; let dough rise in warm draft-free area until doubled in volume, about 35 minutes.
3. Flour clear area of counter. Punch dough down and knead on lightly floured surface until smooth. Divide into 8 pieces (or 4 for hamburger buns). Form each dough piece into ball. Place dough balls on prepared surface, flattening each slightly. Using serrated knife, cut X in top center of each dough ball. Cover with towel and let dough balls rise until almost doubled in volume, about 20 minutes.
4. Preheat oven to 375°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle with cornmeal.
5. Bring 8 cups water to boil in large saucepan. Add baking soda and 2 tablespoons sugar (water will foam up). Add 4 rolls and cook 30 seconds per side (2 at a time for larger rolls). Using slotted spoon, transfer rolls to prepared sheet, arranging X side up. Repeat with remaining rolls.
6. Brush rolls with egg white glaze. Sprinkle rolls generously with coarse salt. Bake rolls until brown, about 25 minutes. Transfer to racks and cool 10 minutes. Serve rolls warm or room temperature.

Helpful tip: These are best eaten the same day but keep for two days at room temperature, uncovered. Do not, I repeat DO NOT seal any leftovers into a bag or container. They will get soggy and a bit shriveled. Thankfully this bit of advice was made clear to me beforehand.

Source: Smitten Kitchen