Swabian New Year Pretzel
Description
A large braided yeast pretzel that is eaten in Swabia on New Year's morning and taken along on New Year visits. Unlike the everyday lye pretzel it is not dipped in lye, but brushed with egg and decorated with a plait of dough.
Directions
✓ researched- 1
Warm 250 ml of the milk until lukewarm and dissolve the yeast in it. Mix the flour, the egg and the yeast milk into a rough dough for two minutes and let it stand for 15 minutes.
⏱️ approx. 20 min - 2
Knead for five minutes, then add the soft butter and the salt and knead for another ten minutes until the dough is glossy and comes away from the side of the bowl.
⏱️ approx. 15 min - 3
Cover and let rise for 30 minutes, until the volume has clearly increased.
⏱️ approx. 30 min - 4
Roll two thirds of the dough into a strand about 90 cm long, thick in the middle and tapering at the ends. Shape it into a pretzel on baking paper: cross the ends over each other and press them down onto the arc.
⏱️ approx. 15 min - 5
Divide the remaining third of the dough into three strands, plait them and lay the plait across the arc of the pretzel. Prove for another 20 minutes.
⏱️ approx. 20 min - 6
Whisk the egg yolk with a tablespoon of milk and brush the pretzel thoroughly with it. Bake in an oven preheated to 190 °C top and bottom heat for 30 minutes until golden brown.
⏱️ approx. 30 min💡 Tip: If the pretzel browns too quickly, cover it loosely with baking paper after 20 minutes.
- 7
Cool on a rack and put it on the table on New Year's morning. Everyone breaks off a piece; hot chocolate, warm milk or coffee go well with it.
⏱️ approx. 10 min
Recipe video
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📜 Origin & History
The New Year pretzel has been regarded as a bringer of luck for centuries. The custom goes back to the early Middle Ages, when monks baked pretzels in their monasteries and handed them out to pupils and parishioners; it survives above all in the Palatinate, in Baden and in Swabia. Swabians eat their pretzel for breakfast on New Year's morning, while people in Baden traditionally finish theirs during the night of New Year's Eve. Everybody breaks off a piece and makes a wish for the coming year, and on 1 January the pretzel is carried along on visits to relatives together with the New Year greetings. It differs from the everyday lye pretzel above all in size, in that it is not dipped in lye, and in the decoration that befits the occasion.
🗺️ Where is Schwäbische Neujahrsbrezel cooked?
Wuerttemberg · Baden-Württemberg
Main regionIn Württemberg's Swabian districts and around Heilbronn the New Year pretzel belongs on the breakfast table on New Year's morning. Bakeries make it about 40 centimetres across, often with a braid laid on top. It is given to friends and relatives as a mark of esteem, and godparents pass it on to their godchildren at the turn of the year.
More from Wuerttemberg →Baden · Baden-Württemberg
In Baden the same custom is shifted by half a day: there the New Year pretzel is cut on New Year's Eve rather than on New Year's morning. Dough and shape remain the same.
More from Baden →🌿 Regional variants
Baden version (Baden)
Same dough, different moment: in Baden the pretzel comes to the table on New Year's Eve, in Swabia only at breakfast on New Year's morning. The custom is identical; only the first cut still falls in the old year.
Rhenish New Year pretzel (Rheinland)
In the Rhineland a plaited yeast loaf shaped into a pretzel is cut on New Year's morning, strewn with flaked almonds and pearl sugar. This version is considerably sweeter than the Swabian one and closer to a plaited loaf than to a pretzel.
Baker's version with lard (Wuerttemberg)
Craft bakers work a fat-rich dough and use lard instead of butter. The crumb becomes finer and the flavour fuller. Added to that are the elaborately plaited braid on top of the pretzel and an egg wash that gives the bake its sheen.
🍷 What goes with it?
For breakfast on New Year's morning: cut open with butter and jam, and thanks to the salt just as happily with cold cuts and cheese. Coffee alongside, hot chocolate for the children – dunking pieces of pretzel in it is part of the ritual in many families and carries on through the first week of January. In company the large pretzel is broken up and everyone receives a piece with a good wish.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is the New Year pretzel not dipped in lye?
It is a festive bake, not a lye bake: the soft, buttery yeast dough is meant to stay pale and mild, so it is only brushed with egg. Lye would also make the decorations run.
Is the New Year pretzel sweet or savoury?
The Swabian version is deliberately neutral: unlike a sweet plaited loaf the salt makes it work with butter and jam as well as with cold cuts and cheese. Sweetened versions with raisins or pearl sugar are a later addition.
How does it differ from the Biberach Lenten pretzel?
Both are Swabian occasion pretzels, but for different times of year and made from different dough. The Lenten pretzel belongs to Lent and traditionally does without egg and butter; the New Year pretzel is a rich, egg-washed yeast dough for the turn of the year.
Can the pretzel be baked the day before?
Yes, and that is in fact the norm: bakeries sell them on New Year's Eve. Ideally keep it wrapped in a cloth and refresh it briefly in the oven on New Year's morning.
How big is a Swabian New Year pretzel?
Bakeries make it about 40 centimetres across – it is a family bake, not a single portion. In many households it is broken up at the table and everyone present is handed a piece with a good wish. For home baking 30 centimetres will do, which still fits on a standard baking sheet.
Why give a pretzel of all things at the turn of the year?
The pretzel counts as Sinngebäck, a symbolic bake: its closed, interlaced shape stands for the cycle of the year that starts afresh on New Year's Day. It is meant to bring the recipient luck, health and prosperity – which is why it is given to friends and relatives, and why godparents pass it to their godchildren. On Swabian farms even the livestock used to get a piece.
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Ingredients
verified- Flour500 g
- Milk265 ml
- Yeast42 g
- Butter100 g
- Egg50 g
- salt10 g
- Egg yolk20 g
Nutrition per serving
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