Zesty Party Pretzels

My grandmother –as I knew her– wasn’t much of a party animal although she told stories of loving to go out dancing in her early years! When I found this recipe in her recipe boxes, I renamed it “Mama Trudy’s Party Pretzels” because I started making them for various get-togethers. For the sake of the internet, we’ll call them Zesty Party Pretzels, but I’ll never forget the feisty lady they came from.

Actually, her recipe called for a whopping tablespoon of cayenne in which case we could call them FEISTY Party Pretzels, right? And if you like that much spice, please add it!

Modern Changes to Zesty Party Pretzels:

• Instead of packaged ranch dressing mix, I make a homemade version using buttermilk powder and herbs and spices: parsley, dill, granulated garlic, granulated onion, paprika, cayenne pepper, and of course, salt and pepper.
• I decrease the amount of oil called for.
• I use gluten-free pretzels!
• The original recipe says to put the pretzels in a large paper bag inside of a plastic bag so that the oil can be absorbed by the paper bag! There’s no need to oil a paper bag so I just use a large bowl.

I mixed the buttermilk powder, herbs, and spices with about a third of the oil called for in the original recipe and I used avocado oil.

I love my huge, vintage, stoneware bowls! They are just perfect for stirring the ranch dressing oil onto the pretzels.

Just stir them around with a rubber spatula until the pretzels are all well-coated. I like to leave them sitting for about 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so just to ensure that every pretzel gets coated.

And now, you have a zesty, tasty snack on hand for parties, movie nights, lunch boxes …

Don’t forget to package some up as gifts! I like to use these cellophane bags that come in all kinds of sizes! Tied up with ribbon or twine of some sort, bags of Zesty Party Pretzels make great party favors, stocking stuffers, teacher gifts, and neighbor gifts. Your thoughtfulness is your only limit.