1 oz (30 g) yeast
½ pint (3 dl) milk
3 ½ oz (100 g) butter
About 1 ¼ lb flour (500 g)
1 teasp. salt
3 tablesp. caraway seeds
Dissolve the yeast in the luke-warm milk, melt the butter and add together with the flour, salt and caraway seeds, saving a few of the latter for decoration.
Knead the dough until soft and shiny, leave to rise in a warm place for 45 min. covered with a damp cloth.
Knead again lightly, roll into thin strips and form into pretzels.
Drop them one by one into a pan of boiling water, taking them out when they rise to the surface and placing them on a greased bakingsheet.
Brush with egg, sprinkle with caraway seeds and brush again.
Bake at 480°F (250°C) for about 15 minutes.
Alternatively, the pretzels may be left to rise for the second time on the baking-sheet for 20 min., but the old-fashioned method with the boiling water makes them lighter.
Shrove pretzels (fastekringler)
Bake according to the previous recipe, but omit the caraway seeds.
Shrove stars (strutter)
These used to be eaten on Shrove Monday, as a first course, with hot milk and cinnamon mixed with sugar, but this custom has completely died out.
Nowadays they are served with coffee or tea.
The recipe is the same as for the pretzels, but a teaspoon of sugar is added to the dough.
When the dough has risen for the first time, roll it out into a long strip, divide into suitable lengths and form into buns.
Cut a deep cross in each and stretch the corners so formed outwards.
Turn the resulting stars upside-down and place on a greased bakingsheet, cover, and leave to rise for 15 min.
Brush with beaten egg and bake at 440°F (225°C) for about 15 min.