Preschool Activities: Pretzel Letters

By: Deborah Pace Rowley

Preschool kids and fun foods go together like peanut butter and jelly! I love to make soft pretzels as an easy snack. When you let your preschooler shape them into alphabet letters, they are twice as fun. Make the simple dough using the recipe listed below. You don’t need to let them rise. As soon as the dough is finished, spray the counter with PAM and give your child a piece of dough just smaller than a golf ball. Let your child roll it out onto the counter with their hands until it makes a long snake. Decide what alphabet letter you want to shape together. Your child can spell out his name or the first letter of every family member or a sight word you are working on together. Once your child has made a letter, transfer it to a greased cookie sheet. Brush with water and sprinkle with kosher salt. Then bake at 425 degrees for about 15 minutes until lightly browned. Dip in melted cheese or ranch dressing or a jam or peanut butter dip. Yum!

Soft Pretzels

1 package dry yeast (2 ¼ teaspoons)

1 ½ cup warm water

1 tsp salt

1 tsp sugar

3 ½ to 4 cups flour

Dissolve yeast in warm water in a large bowl. Stir in the salt, sugar and two cups flour. Beat till smooth. Stir in enough of the remaining flour to make the dough easy to handle. Shape. Then brush lightly with water and sprinkle with kosher salt. Bake at 425 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes.