This pull-apart pretzel skillet with cheese dip is a real special treat for my pretzel and cheese lovers. Soft and chewy pretzel buns are baked to golden brown perfection with the center filled with a perfectly creamy and flavorful cheese dip! For the ultimate cheese flavor, the dip is made with three types of cheeses – cream cheese, mozzarella, and sharp cheddar cheese.
This post is sponsored in partnership with Cabot Creamery Co-operative. However, all expressed thoughts and opinions are my own. Thanks for supporting the brands that help make Nourished Endeavors possible.
Why You Will Love This Recipe?
- Perfectly soft and chewy pretzel buns baked to golden brown perfection
- Creamy and flavorful melty cheese dip made with a trio of cheeses – cream cheese, Cabot Creamery’s Mozzarella Whole Milk Shredded Cheese and Cabot Creamery’s Vermont Sharp Cheddar Cheese
- Easy, adaptable recipe that is great for sharing and serving at gatherings
How to Make Pull-Apart Pretzel Skillet
This pull-apart pretzel skillet with the most amazing cheese dip is an incredibly delicious treat that is so easy to make! The three-cheese dip nicely complements the soft and chewy texture of the pretzel buns. I really wanted the cheese flavor to come through in the dip and decided to go with a mix of three kinds of cheeses – cream cheese, mozzarella, and sharp cheddar cheese.
The mozzarella and cream cheese add a nice melty creaminess to the dip while the sharp cheddar cheese adds a rich, savory flavor. Specifically, I used Cabot Creamery’s Vermont Sharp Cheddar Cheese which never disappoints in taste and flavor. I truly love creating recipes with Cabot Creamery’s premium selection of cheeses due to its great quality and the fact that this brand (a co-operative owned by farm families in New England and New York) gives 100% of the profits made back to the farmers.
To make this recipe, you will need:
Key Ingredients
- Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
- Active Dry Yeast
- Granulated Sugar
- Salt
- Water
- Unsalted Butter
- Cream Cheese
- Whole Milk
- Seasonings – Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Ground Black Pepper
- Egg
- Flaky Sea Salt
Tips for Making the Best Pretzel Buns
- Divide the Dough into Equal Pieces – for evenly shaped buns with similar size, the pretzel dough should be divided into12 equal pieces that are rolled into a smooth ball. In terms of weight, each piece of cut dough should weigh about 1.2 to 1.3 oz.
- Briefly Boil the Dough in Pre-Bake Bath – for that quintessential soft on the inside but chewy on the outside pretzel texture, the shaped pieces of dough should be briefly boiled in a pre-bake bath for about 30 seconds. The pre-bake bath is a mixture consisting of water, baking soda and molasses which is an optional ingredient.
- Score and Coat the Dough in Egg Wash – once removed from the pre-bake bath, the pieces of dough should be scored and lightly coated in egg wash. Scoring the dough will allow for the pretzel buns to bake evenly while the egg wash adds a nice golden brown color on baked buns.
How To Store
- Pull-apart pretzel skillet is best eaten the day it is baked. However, leftover pretzel buns stored in an airtight container will last 1-2 days in the fridge and 1-2 months in the freezer. To thaw frozen pretzel buns, place in the fridge overnight or leave at room temperature for 1-2 hours to restore soft texture.
- To heat up cold pretzel buns, I recommend doing so in a toaster or conventional oven at 350F (175C) for about 10-12 minutes or until heated through. I do not recommend warming up buns in the microwave as doing so may cause them to become hard if warmed up for too long.
- Cheese dip stored in an airtight container will last 1-2 days in the fridge and can be warmed up in the microwave to restore melty consistency.
Frequently Asked Questions
What type of skillet should I use to make recipe?
It is best to use an oven-safe skillet to make this recipe. I recommend using a cast iron if you have one.
Can I use a different mix of cheese for the dip?
Yes, most certainly. If preferred, you can use white cheddar, gouda, pepper jack, or any other hard cheese in place of the yellow sharp cheddar cheese in the recipe. I do not recommend omitting the cream cheese or mozzarella cheese as both kinds of cheese add a nice melty creaminess to the dip.
Can pretzels buns be made without pre-bake bath?
I do not recommend making the pretzel buns without briefly boiling them in the pre-bake bath. It is this process that gives the buns its chewy, golden brown exterior with a soft interior.
Looking for More Cheesy Recipes, Checkout the Links Below:
I hope you enjoy this recipe! If you make this pull-apart pretzel skillet with cheese dip, please make sure to let me know by tagging me @nourishedendeavors on Instagram. I love looking at the photos of recipes you all have made, or you can leave a comment and rate the recipe in the comment section down below. Happy baking, friends!
PrintPull-Apart Pretzel Skillet with Cheese Dip
Soft and chewy pretzel buns are baked to golden brown perfection with the center filled with a creamy and flavorful cheese dip! For the ultimate cheese flavor, the dip is made with three types of cheeses – cream cheese, mozzarella and sharp cheddar cheese.
- Prep Time: 2 Hours
- Cook Time: 30 Minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours 30 minutes
- Yield: 12 Pretzel Buns with Cheese Dip 1x
Ingredients
Pretzel Buns
- 2 Cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour, Spooned and Leveled
- 1 Teaspoon Active-Dry Yeast (may use Instant/Rapid Acting Yeast)
- 1 Teaspoon Granulated Sugar
- 1 Teaspoon Salt
- 2/3 Cup Warm Water, 100-110F (38-43C)
- 1 Tablespoon Unsalted Butter, Melted, Room Temperature
- 1 Teaspoon Flavorless Oil i.e. Avocado or Vegetable Oil
- 1 Large Egg, Room Temperature
- 1/2 Tablespoon Water
- Flaky/Coarse Sea Salt
Pre-Bake Bath
- 6 Cups Water
- 1/4 Cup Baking Soda
- 1 Tablespoon Molasses/Honey (Optional)
Cheese Dip
- 6 Ounces (3/4 Cup) Full-Fat Cream Cheese, Softened
- 4 Ounces (1 Cup) Cabot Creamery’s Vermont Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Shredded
- 4 Ounces (1 Cup) Cabot Creamery’s Mozzarella Whole Milk Shredded Cheese
- 5 Tablespoons Whole Milk, Room Temperature
- 1 Tablespoon Honey
- 1/4 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1/4 Teaspoon Onion Powder
- Ground Black Pepper, to Taste
- 1–2 Tablespoons Fresh Parsley, Finely Chopped, Optional
Instructions
Instructions
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour and salt. In the bowl of a stand mixer, whisk to combine the warmed water, sugar and yeast. Cover the bowl with a large plate or clean kitchen towel.
- Allow the yeast mixture to sit untouched for 8-10 minutes. Yeast is properly activated when the mixture appears foamy and has a fermented aroma.
- In the bowl with yeast mixture, add melted butter and all of the dry ingredients. With the dough hook attached, mix the ingredients together at low speed until a shaggy looking dough starts to form.
- Increase mixer speed to medium high and knead dough for 6 minutes. You will know when dough is ready when you press into it and it bounces back. Pretzel dough will be soft touch but not tacky/sticky.
- Add 1 teaspoon of oil to a large mixing bowl and grease the base and sides of the bowl. Transfer dough to the greased bowl. Turn and flip the dough in the bowl to ensure all sides are coated in oil before covering the bowl with plastic wrap.
- Allow the dough to rest and rise in a warm area of the kitchen for 1 hour or until it has doubled in size.
- As the dough rests, make the cheese dip. In a medium mixing bowl with a hand mixer or wire whisk, mix the cream cheese and milk together at medium speed until smooth. Next, mix in the black pepper, garlic and onion powder before folding in the mozzarella and cheddar cheeses with a rubber spatula.
- Set the cheese dip in the fridge until ready to use. Generously grease a 9 inch oven-safe skillet and line a medium baking sheet with parchment paper. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the egg and 1/2 tablespoon water. Set aside until ready to use.
- Preheat the oven to 400F(200C). Bring 6 cups of water and molasses or honey (optional) to boil in a large deep bottom pot under medium high heat. Whisk in the baking soda and reduce the heat to medium to maintain a light boil.
- Deflate the dough by gently knocking it down with a fisted hand and transfer to a clean work surface. Divide the dough into 12 equal pieces. Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll the dough into a smooth ball. Transfer pretzel buns to the parchment lined baking sheet.
- Add the shaped pretzel buns 1-2 at a time into the boiling mixture for 30 seconds. Do not go beyond the 30 second mark. Use a slotted spatula to remove boiled buns from the water taking care to allow as much of the excess water to drain off before placing on the prepared baking sheet.
- Score the top of each bun with a sharp knife to form an X. Take care to not cut too deep into the buns. Arrange the buns in a circle pattern in the greased skillet and fill the center with the cheese dip filling.
- Using a pastry brush, brush the pretzel buns with the egg wash and sprinkle with flaky or coarse sea salt (optional). Bake the buns and cheese dip for 20-22 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through bake time.
- Allow pretzel buns and cheese dip to cool for 5-10 minutes. Sprinkle the top of the dip with the pasley (optional) before serving.
Notes
- Recipe purposely omits salt as I found the savory flavor of the cheeses to be sufficient. However, for a more savory tasting dip, feel free to add salt to the dip mixture along with the other seasonings.
- Pull-apart pretzel skillet is best eaten the day it is baked. However, leftover pretzel buns stored in an airtight container will last 1-2 days in the fridge and 1-2 months in the freezer. To thaw frozen pretzel buns, place in the fridge overnight or leave at room temperature for 1-2 hours to restore soft texture.
- To heat up cold pretzel buns, I recommend doing so in a toaster or conventional oven at 350F (175C) for about 10-12 minutes or until heated through. I do not recommend warming up buns in the microwave as doing so may cause them to become hard if warmed up for too long.
- Cheese dip stored in an airtight container will last 1-2 days in the fridge and can be warmed up in the microwave to retore melty consistency.
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