A 'twist' on New Year's

SANDUSKY — A New Year's tradition is rolling out again this year. Whether they make one or buy one, many people look forward to eating a New Year's Pretzel each year. A New Year's Pretzel is neither crunchy nor salty. It's chewy and washed with a glaze — made in different sizes up to 36 inches across. The pretzels, a northern Germany tradition, are typically eaten for breakfast on New Year's Day. It's believed they bring good luck for an entire year. History of the New Year's Pretzel has ties to Sandusky. Several bakeries still make them today. History of the New Year's Pretzel When printed cards didn't exist, people in some areas of Germany exchanged golden brown New Year's greetings — a rich, bun-type pretzel. Dating back to about 1900, there was a heavy migration of German people to the Sandusky and Cincinnati areas, according to a past Register article. The old holiday tradition became part of the New Year's celebration in Sandusky. Rumor has it that the pretzel originated with the Kanzler Bakery, which was on East Water Street, according to a 1961 Register article. It was owned by the late Jacob Kanzler who came to Sandusky from Baden-Baden, Germany. Over time, many bakeries in Sandusky made the fancy pretzels, including Kanzler's, Feddersen's, Smith's, Knoerle's, Michel's, Sandusky Baking Co., among many others. Oswald Feddersen, the original owner of the family-named Water Street bakery, made pretzels in Sandusky since 1924, according to an article. His recipe, like many others, was brought from Germany. A December 1999 article said it was Feddersen's Bakery's last year of making the pretzels because new equipment for their frozen pizza dough business was being delivered and they needed to get rid of the ovens and steam box. Carolyn and Helmut Thomsen, the owners of Feddersen's Bakery at the time, expected to make more than 5,000 pretzels that year. They were sold at more than three dozen locations. As far as the pretzel's shape, it has different explanations. One story is that the pretzels were first baked by monks in southern Germany as a reward for children who learned their prayers, according to the article. The shape represents the crossed arms of a child praying. Another story is that the circular shape of the symbolic loaf is derived from the old calendar sign for the winter solstice, which was a circle with a dot in its center. The central cross was added to represent the four seasons. Continuing tradition Growing up, Liz Turner remembers her family having a New Year's Pretzel each year. She would eat a piece of it for tradition's sake, but she didn't know the meaning of it. Now that Turner is a baker and owns Bake Erie in downtown Sandusky, she discovered the history behind a New Year's Pretzel. Turner has her grandmother's cookbook, and it features a pretzel recipe. Also, another family member gave her articles about Sandusky's history and that included a few pretzel recipes that were a little different from each other. She played with ingredients and figured out a recipe that is now the Bake Erie New Year's Pretzel. It does contain an ingredient a lot of people look for: mace. "I think that hint of mace taste and smell is nostalgic," Turner said. Inside the Marketplace at the Cooke, Turner's business is located across from a display featuring the New Year's Pretzel. "It's stressful just trying to live up to it all," she said. "I want to do it justice." Turner believes her version of the pretzel has a similar taste to the past bakeries but she's always asking for others' opinions. Making the pretzels is an easy process, she said. But it takes patience. The pretzels take about two hours to make because the dough has to proof two times before it is baked, Turner said. People remember New Year's Pretzels and want that taste of nostalgia. Year after year, people continue to ask about them. "It's cool to keep the tradition going," Turner said. Traditional New Year's Pretzel Recipe (Makes two large pretzels) Ingredients • 1/2 cup sugar • 2 tsp. salt • 1 tsp. mace • 2 packages dry yeast • 1/2 tsp. sugar • 1/3 cup very warm water (110-115 degrees) • 1/2 stick butter (not margarine) • 1 cup room-temperature milk • 3 beaten eggs • 4 1/2 cups flour Directions 1. Place 1/2 cup sugar, salt and mace in large bowl and set aside. 2. Dissolve yeast and 1/2 tsp. sugar in warm water. 3. In small saucepan, mix milk and butter and heat until it melts. 4. Add milk mixture to dry mixture in bowl, add eggs and yeast mixture. 5. Stir in flour and cover with towel. Put in a warm place until it doubles (1-2 hours). A suggestion is to put the pretzels in a broiler pan with boiling hot water in it in an oven (off) to raise the dough. 6. Put the whole ball of dough on a floured board and knead for a few minutes. 7. Divide dough into two equal parts. Knead one part into a strip, 36 inches long and 1 1/2 inches in diameter. 8. Place on a greased cookie sheet with smooth side of the dough up and form a pretzel. Repeat with the other dough half. Cover and put it in a warm place until it doubles in size again. 9. Bake at 350 degrees for 15-20 minutes. As soon as the pretzels are taken from the oven, brush the tops with glaze of 1 1/2 tsp. of cornstarch and 1/2 cup of water, boiled together until clear. Submitted by Elmer Grahl, who said it's similar to the former Michael's Bakery of Sandusky recipe. This recipe published with a past Register article. Readers' memories of New Year's Pretzels • Nikki Hotchkiss: I remember when I was a kid: My mom would order one from Feddersen's every New Year's, and we'd have leftover ham or turkey in it or just eat it with a little butter! Was so good! • Maggie Thompson: I am so old, I remember when Feddersen's made those. • MaryBeth Windau: We would make cinnamon toast out of them. I get mine every year at the Sandusky House of Donuts. • Marcus Harris: I have very fond memories of spending winter break at Feddersen's Bakery bagging pretzels, and riding with Helmut to make the deliveries as well. He rarely called me by my name. It was almost always "skinny cousins." RIP Helmut! • Clint Wobser: Every new year growing up, had to be the first thing you ate (old German tradition). • Kim Howard: Mom always got them for us at Feddersen's. They were so good. Wish they were still there, or Smith's Bakery was good too. • Koren Orman: I just found a very old recipe I am going to make this year for the first time!