I think working with sweets all day has finally caught up with me because all I want to eat these days are salty, vinegary, spicy foods. When I flipped through my new favorite, Good to the Grain, these rye pretzels sprinkled with coarse salt immediately caught my eye. I used my favorite Maldon sea salt to finish off these burnished, dark golden beauties and I highly suggest you do the same. The combination of crunchy salt, crisp-chewy pretzel, and spicy mustard just can't be beat.

For the Dough

1 package (2 1/4t) active dry yeast
1T honey
1 c rye flour
2 1/2 c all purpose flour
1T kosher salt

Bath
1/2 c baking soda

To Finish
Maldon, or other coarse salt for sprinkling

1. In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in 1 1/2 cups of warm water, add honey, then stir in the flours and salt.
2. Dump the dough onto a floured surface and knead in up to 1/2c of all purpose flour until the dough is tacky, soft, and supple or about 10 min.
3. Brush a clean bowl with melted butter (I used oil so these pretzels would be vegan), place the dough in the bowl and cover with a towel until doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours.
4. While the dough is rising, heat your oven to 450 degrees and oil or butter 2 baking sheets.
5. Once the dough has risen, turn it out onto a lightly floured board and divide it into 12 pieces. Roll each piece into a thin log with tapered edges about 17 inches long. You can find a great diagram to help you form the pretzels here.
6. Place the shaped pretzels on the oiled baking sheets and let them rise for 15-20 min.
7. Meanwhile, fill your biggest, widest pot with water. Once the pretzels are proofed and the water is boiling, add the baking soda. Be careful, the water will bubble rapidly when you add the soda.
8. To poach the pretzels, gently place them in the boiling water and cook for 30 seconds on each side. Pat off any excess water and transfer back to the baking sheets. Sprinkle liberally with sea salt.
9. Bake for 15-18 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through baking. The pretzels should be very dark in color.
10. Transfer to a rack to cool and eat warm, with mustard. Then try not to have another, I dare you.

Phew! The

Apt 2B Shop

had an incredible first holiday season, so incredible that it has taken me weeks to recover from the insanity of it all (just in time for Valentine's Day!). Luckily I have a wonderful family that helped me relax and enjoy the last bit of 2010. My lovely brother and his wife gifted me every.single.baking book. on my holiday wish list and I couldn't wait to crack open up Kim Boyce's Good to the Grain after reading so many wonderful reviews

. This book is a great resource for folks, like me, who love the idea of baking with whole grains, but aren't quite sure where to start.

For my first go around I chose the whole wheat chocolate chip cookies and I am so happy that I did. They are perfectly chewy, hearty, chocolatey, and my new favorite treat. I made the recipe to the letter and then I couldn't resist sprinkling a little vanilla sea salt on the top of each one.

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies, from

Kim Boyce's

Good to the Grain

3 cups whole wheat flour

1 ½ tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

1 ½ tsp. kosher salt

2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch cubes

1 cup lightly packed dark brown sugar

1 cup sugar

2 large eggs

1 tsp. vanilla extract

8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped into ¼- and ½-inch pieces, or bittersweet chips

1T vanilla salt or sea salt for sprinkling

Position racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven, and preheat to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment. (If you have no parchment, you can butter the sheets.)

Combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl, and whisk to blend.

Put the butter and sugars in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. With the mixer on low speed, mix just until the butter and sugars are blended, about 2 minutes. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla.

Add the flour mixture to the bowl, and blend on low speed until the flour is just incorporated. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl. Add the chocolate, and mix on low speed until evenly combined. (Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl, and then use your hands to turn and gently massage the dough, making sure all the flour is absorbed.

Scoop mounds of dough about 3 tablespoons in size onto the baking sheets, leaving about 3 inches between each cookie. Sprinkle with sea salt if desired.

Bake the cookies for 16 to 20 minutes, rotating the sheets halfway through, until the cookies are evenly browned. Transfer the cookies, still on parchment, to a rack to cool.