Bavarian Pretzel Bread With Mustard Butter - cooking recipe

Ingredients

1 (16 ounce) can pillsbury refrigerated French bread dough (or homemade)
3/4 cup baking soda
2 tablespoons coarse salt (kosher or pretzel salt)
1/2 cup unsalted butter
3 tablespoons spicy prepared mustard
1 teaspoon honey
1 egg yolk

Preparation

Cut dough in half and roll onto two smooth logs. Or form your own dough into logs about the size of a hoagie roll.
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F.
Put 10 cups of water into a large pan. Add baking soda and heat to barely boiling making sure that the baking soda is dissolved.
Lower one loaf at a time into the water. Let simmer for 30 seconds, then turn the bread over to let it simmer for 30 seconds on the other side.
Remove bread to a greased cookie sheet and repeat with the remaining dough.
Mix together egg yolk and 1 tablespoon water. Brush loaves evenly with a pastry brush. Sprinkle tops with salt.
Bake until loaves are a deep brown and sound hollow when thumped.
Remove breads to a wire rack to cool.
Mix together the butter, mustard and honey. Serve with the bread.
You can also make homemade mall style soft pretzels the same way. Just use refrigerated bread stick dough, roll into ropes and shape into pretzel shapes.