ALMOST-FAMOUS SOFT PRETZELS

ACTIVE: 45 MIN/ TOTAL: 1 HR(PLUS RISING)
MAKES: 6 PRETZELS AND 1/2 CUP SAUCE

FOR THE PRETZELS

• 1 cup milk
• 1 package active dry yeast
• 3 tablespoon packed light brown sugar
• 2 1/4 cups all- purpose flour, plus more for kneading
• 10 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
• 1 teaspoon fine salt
• 1/3 cup baking soda
• 2 tablespoons coarse salt

FOR THE SAUCE

• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
• 3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cider vinegar

1. Make the pretzels: Warm the milk in a saucepan until it's about 110 degrees; pour into a medium bowl and sprinkle in the yeast. Let the yeast soften, about 2 minutes; stir in the brown sugar and 1 cup flour with a wooden spoon. Dice 2 tablespoons butter and soften; stir into the mix. Add the remaining 1 1/4 cups flour and the fine salt to make a sticky dough. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead, adding more flour if needed, until smooth but still slightly tacky, about 5minutes. Shape into a ball, place in a lightly greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm spot until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
2. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees and grease a large baking sheet. Punch the dough to deflate it, then turn out onto a lightly floured surface. (If the dough seems tight, cover and let rest until it relaxes.) Divide the dough into 6 pieces. Roll and stretch each piece with the palms of your hands into a 30-inch rope, holding the ends and slapping the middle of the rope on the counter as you stretch.Form each rope into a pretzel shape.
3. Dissolve the baking soda in 3 cups of warm water in a shallow baking dish. Gently dip each pretzel in the soda solution, then arrange on the prepared baking sheet and sprinkle with the coarse salt. Bake until golden, 10 to 12 minutes.
4. Prepare the sauce: Combine the mayonnaise, mustard, brown sugar and vinegar in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate.
5. Melt the remaining 8 tablespoons butter in a shallow dish.
Dip the hot pretzels in the butter, turning to coat; place on a wire rack to let excess butter drip off. Serve the pretzels warm with the sweet mustard sauce.

ITALIAN CHICKEN SOUP WITH "TOASTED" PARMESAN GNOCCHI

ACTIVE: 50 MIN/ TOTAL: 1 HR 30 MIN/ SERVES:6

• 2 medium baking potatoes( about 1 3/4 pounds)
• 4 strips of bacon, thinly sliced
• 2 carrots, sliced into 1/2 -inch rounds
• 2 stalks celery, sliced into 1/2-inch pieces
• 24 pearl onions, peeled
• Kosher salt and freshly ground white pepper
• 1 3-to- 4 pound chicken
• 1 small bunch fresh thyme, tied with string
• 8 cups low-sodium chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1/4 cup breadcrumbs
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for garnish
• Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
• 2 large eggs
• 1/4 cup roughly chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup roughly chopped fresh basil
• 3 cups loosely packed spinach leaves
• 1 lemon, cut into wedges

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Bake the potatoes until soft, about 1 hour.
2. Meanwhile, in a large soup pot, brown the bacon over medium heat. add the carrots, celery and onions. Season with salt and pepper and cook until the vegetables are translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Add the chicken, thyme and broth; bring to a simmer and skim any foam that rises to the top. Reduce the heat and barely simmer until the chicken is cooked through, about 40 minutes. Discard the thyme. Remove the chicken and let cool. Pull off the meat and shred into bite- sized pieces; cover and set aside. Season the broth with salt and pepper.
3. Melt the butter over in a skillet over medium heat. Add the breadcrumbs and cook,stirring,until toasted, about 3 minutes; set aside. Halve the balked potatoes and scoop the flesh into a bowl; mash with a fork and season with salt and pepper. Sift the flour over the potatoes and add the toasted crumbs, Parmesan and nutmeg; lightly knead to make a firm dough. Roll into 1/2 inch -wide cylinders, cut into 1/2 inch pieces and round the edges to make oval-shaped gnocchi. Bring the soup to a boil and drop in the gnocchi. Cook until they float to the top, 1 to 2 minutes; transfer the gnocchi to warm bowls with a slotted spoon.
4. Beat the eggs with a fork; use the fork to "paint" ribbons of egg across the soup. Let set, about 30 seconds. Stir in the chicken meat, parsley, basil and spinach; season with salt and pepper. Ladle the soup over the gnocchi. Serve with lemon wedges and more Parmesan.

CHICKEN -AND- DUMPLING SOUP

Active: 50 min/ total: 2hr 45min/ serves 8

• 1 tablespoon of unsalted butter
• 4 cloves of garlic; minced
• 2 carrots; diced
• 1 bulb celery root,peeled and finely diced
• 1 turnip, peeled and finely diced
• 1 rutabaga,peeled and finely diced
• 1 onion; finely diced
• 1 bulb fennel,finely diced
• Kosher salt
• 4 cups white wine
• 1 tablespoonful seeds, toasted
• 4 sprigs fresh thyme
• 2 bay leaves
• 2 1/2 - pound organic chicken
• 1 cup milk
• 1/2 cup chicken fat(sold fresh or frozen in tubs at gourmet stores)
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon
• 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg]freshly ground pepper
• 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 3 large eggs
• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1. Melt the butter in a 6-quart pot over medium heat. Add the garlic, carrots, celery root, turnip, rutabaga, onion, diced fennel and a large pinch of salt; cook until the vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes.
2. Add the wine,6 cups water,fennel seeds, thyme and bay leaves; bring to a simmer. Add the chicken and simmer for 2 hours. Remove the chicken and let cool.Pick of the meat in shreds; set aside.
3. About 15 minutes before the chicken has finished simmering, prepare the dumplings: Combine the milk, chicken fat, 1 tablespoon of tarragon, the nutmeg and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and pepper in a medium saucepan Bring a simmer over medium heat. Remove from heat; add the flour and stir vigorously with a wooden spoon until the liquid is absorbed. Whisk in the eggs, one at a time, to make a thick dough.
4. Bring the soup to a boil. Form the dough into eight dumplings(an ice cream scoop is perfect for this): drop into the soup. Cover and cook until the dumplings float to the surface, about 10 minutes.
5. Add the chicken meat, parsley and the remaining 1 tablespoon tarragon to the soup; stir carefully and divide among warm bowls.