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Hard Cider Pretzels with Creamy Honey Mustard, simply the best! Homemade soft pretzel dough made with autumn spiced cider and baked until golden. These pretzels are soft, chewy, and rich with autumn flavors. Serve each salty pretzel up with a creamy spicy honey mustard…such a classic and SO GOOD. Serve these up for game day or as a delicious appetizer for any party.
Are you ready to enter a new season? With Labor Day now behind us, I’m so excited to slowly begin to embrace the autumn season. I know it’s still summer for two more weeks, and I’m not breaking out the pumpkin just yet. But with the temps dropping, and our leaves turning, fall is creeping in!
For me, September is apple season, I save the pumpkin for October and November. But in September, I try my best to really embrace the fall apples.
So here we go with our first fall-like recipe of the year, Hard Cider Pretzels. Yes, these soft pretzels have a little cider mixed in, one of my favorite autumn ingredients.
The Idea
I stole this idea from myself kind. A few years back I shared these pumpkin beer pretzels with chipotle queso. They’re always one of my favorite appetizers to make come October.
When I was thinking about fall recipes, I couldn’t get my mind off of soft pretzels. I had a good handful of ideas in my head, but these just sounded so perfect. Simple, but so perfect.
Using cider in the dough adds a slight warmth to the pretzels with notes of warming spices and sweet apples. It’s faint, so you don’t know it’s there necessarily, but it makes the pretzels a little more special than all the rest.
Fun fact, I really love soft pretzels…
Over the years I’ve created a good amount of fun pretzel recipes.
My first pretzel recipe was these hot buttered rum cinnamon sugar stuffed soft pretzels. And then these sweet peanut butter cup soft pretzel ice cream sandwiches. Next were my Chocolate Chip Cookie Stuffed Soft Pretzels (legit, these are the BEST thing ever). Then came everyone’s favorite, Spinach and Artichoke Stuffed Soft Pretzels. And then my favorite, pumpkin beer pretzels with queso.
Yeah, we love soft pretzels. Pretty sure I get my love of buttery soft pretzels from mom. She loves them too, but then are you surprised?
What’s not to love about salty, buttery carbs? They’re just too good!
Onto the details, start with the pretzels
Making soft pretzels is easy. First, you’ll need a nice, good quality, apple cider, both hard and regular will work. Then just some yeast, honey, flour, butter, and salt. Super simple ingredients. Simply knead everything together in a mixer and let the dough rise.
The pretzel dough is very easy to work with, so don’t let anything intimidate you!
When the dough is ready, just divide it into 8 equal balls, roll them out into long ropes, and twist each into a pretzel. Use the photos for guidance, but I promise this is easy!
And remember, they don’t need to be perfect.
Boil and bake the pretzels
Once the pretzels are shaped, boil them in water mixed with baking soda. The baking soda in the water helps the pretzels achieve that soft, chewy texture we all love so much!
When you have all the pretzels boiled, brush them with a beaten egg, then sprinkle with salt. I love using this pretzel salt, it’s so good.
While the pretzels bake, make the honey mustard
I love to make a creamy spicy honey mustard with high-quality olive oil, mayo, honey, and Dijon, plus chili powder and cayenne for a nice kick.
This is so quick to mix up, which is great for easy fall entertaining!
When the pretzels are done baking, you have to serve these up warm. When they’re warm, they’re perfectly soft, doughy, buttery, and have the slightest notes of warming autumn flakes.
Then just add the spicy, creamy honey mustard for dipping – perfection!
Looking forward to making these all month long. Great for Sunday game nights, and dinner parties to come. These are the perfect laid-back appetizer. And let’s be real, everyone loves a warm pretzel with honey mustard for dipping.
So good.
Looking for other fun fall appetizers? Here are a few ideas:
Pumpkin Beer Pretzels with Chipotle Queso
Pastry Wrapped Baked Brie with Maple Butter Roasted Apples
Caramelized Onion, Spinach, and Cheddar Flaky Pastries
Everything Ranch Cheese and Pretzel Snack Mix
Cheesy Buffalo Chicken Strombolis
Lastly, if you make these Hard Cider Pretzels with Creamy Honey Mustard, be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! Above all, I love to hear from you guys and always do my best to respond to each and every comment. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! Looking through the photos of recipes you all have made is my favorite!
Hard Cider Pretzels with Creamy Honey Mustard
Servings: 8 pretzels
Calories Per Serving: 444 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Pretzels
- 1/3 cup warm water
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 1 bottle (12 ounce) hard cider
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) salted butter, melted
- 4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/4 cup baking soda
- 1 egg, beaten
- coarse pretzel salt or sea salt
Creamy Honey Mustard
- 1/4 cup dijon mustard
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1/3 cup olive oil based mayo
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
- 1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- kosher salt and black pepper
Instructions
- 1. Combine the water, honey, and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer. Let sit for 5 minutes, until bubbly on top.2. Add the cider, butter, flour, and salt. Mix on medium speed until the dough is smooth and begins to pull away from the sides of the bowl, about 3 to 4 minutes. If the dough is too wet, add additional flour, 1 tablespoon at a time. Cover the bowl and place in a warm spot until the dough doubles in size, about 1-2 hours.3. Preheat the oven to 425° F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. 4. Remove the dough from the bowl and place on a floured surface. Divide the dough into 8 equal balls. Roll each ball into a long rope. To shape into pretzels, take the right side and cross over to the left. Cross right to left again and flip up. 5. Add the baking soda to the boiling water. Boil the pretzels, 1-2 at a time, for 30 seconds. Remove with a large slotted spoon. Place the pretzel on a parchment lined baking sheet. Brush the pretzels with the egg and sprinkle liberally with salt. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes or until pretzels are golden brown.6. Meanwhile, make the honey mustard. Combine all ingredients in a bowl and whisk until smooth and creamy. 7. Serve the pretzels warm, with lots of honey mustard for dipping.
Incredible! So so delicious! Will def be making these again. Highly recommend.
Any chance you have experimented with gluten free flour for these?!?!
Hey Ann,
Wonderful!! I love to hear that this recipe was a hit, thanks for giving it a try! I’ve had readers say that an equal amount of gluten free flour worked well for them! Have a great weekend:)
DO NOT MAKE THESE, unless you like to eat parchment paper. No matter what you do they stick because they are soaking wet!! If you move them to dry parchment, nope. If you spray your parchment with non-stick spray, nope. Let them cool on the baking sheet, nope. Try and take them off while warm, nope. This is one of the worst recipes I have ever made in my life.
Usually I like the recipes on this site and in the cookbooks but this was an absolute disaster…everything had to be thrown away.
Hi Sarah,
So sorry to hear you had some issues with this recipe, I’ve never received this feedback for this recipe, so it makes me feel as if you may have done something wrong….are you sure you used parchment paper and not wax paper? It’s pretty much impossible for things to stick to parchment. Let me know how I can help! xx
Made these last night for a party and they were an absolute hit! Thank you for the awesome recipe! I will be making these again tomorrow – hopefully I get to eat more than 1 before they’re all gone.
(I did have to add quite a bit more flour than the recipe called for so the dough wasn’t so sticky)
Hey Sarah,
Happy Sunday!🌾🌽 I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks so much for making it and sharing your feedback! xx
Could I make these through step to boil and then freeze until I want to bake them? I want to take for family Christmas, but have to travel and want them mostly made.
Hi there,
Yes, that will work well for you! I hope you love this recipe! xx
Mizzou tailgating tomorrow… can I make the night before m; wrap in thick foil and place on a grill to warm slightly?
Hey Janice,
Sure, sounds like a great idea!! I hope you love the recipe!! xT
I want to make pretzel rods using this recipe. How long should I boil and how long should I bake for pretzel rods? Thanks!
I would like to make these as pretzel balls using this recipe. I too would like to know how long I should boil and bake them for, as well as what would be the size of the dough ball I would want to make?
Please and thank you!
Hi Heidi,
I’ve never made these as dough balls, but I would boil for the same amount of time and then you’ll probably need to reduce the bake time, just keep an eye on them starting at 25 minutes. I hope this helps! xT
Hi Ashley,
I’ve never made pretzel rods with this recipe, please note that they will be soft pretzel rods:) But you can follow the recipe as written and just keep an eye on them while baking! I hope this helps! xT
Took these to a potluck last weekend and they were gone almost instantly. I was told to triple the recipe for the next one!
Hey Liz,
Happy Wednesday!!👻 I truly appreciate you giving this recipe a try and sharing your feedback, I love to hear that it was enjoyed:)
Can I boil these the day before I bake them. Want to make them for a football party ahead of time and bake them there
Hey Teresa,
You are going to need to bake them right after you boil them, so you could save both of those steps to do at the party. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xT
So good! And perfect instructions! I can’t believe I made these and how good they were! I have started trying some of your recipes lately and everything turns out incredible! You’ve changed my life and created someone who cooks because I never knew how just a few weeks ago! It’s really empowering and I now love trying new recipes! Thank you so much!!
Hey Hailey,
Fantastic!! So glad to hear that you enjoyed this recipe, thanks so much for trying it out! Have a great weekend! xx
I can’t wait to try these! What kind of hard cider did you use? It seems like there are a lot on the market. Thank you!
Hey Allison,
Any hard cider will work:) I love using one from a local brewery, or something as simple as Angry Orchard is great. I hope you love the recipe! xx
These pretzels are AMAZING! They were so simple to make and everyone loved them – especially the kids! We took a small detour and sprinkled everything but the bagel seasoning on half of them. So good! Can’t wait to make them again!
Hey Lindsay,
Happy Monday!🎃 I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was tasty for you, thanks a bunch for making it! xx
Ho! Can I store the dough to make for the next day?
Thanks,
Ash
Hey Ash,
Sure, just keep in the fridge and bring to room temp before using. I hope you love the recipe, let me know how they turn out! xTieghan
I Love it when a recipe turns out! Especially when all the measurements work out.
These were delicious, I am going to try some of your other pretzel recipes. YUM
Hi Sara,
Happy Wednesday! I am thrilled to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks a bunch for making it! xT
Hey Tieghan! Can we replace the butter to make it vegan?
Hey Neha,
You could try using ghee in place of the butter, that should work well for you! I hope you love the recipe! xT
Any tips for making ahead?
Hi Nickola,
How far in advance are you trying to make these? I would say a day before is just fine! I hope you love the recipe:) xT
Hi Tieghan!
I don’t have a stand mixer. Do you have any suggestions as how to make these without one?
Thanks!
Lauren
Hey Lauren,
You bet, just mix with a wooden spoon and knead by hand until the dough ball is soft. Please let me know if you have any other questions! xx
Hi Tieghan! What other liquid can be used in place of the hard cider if we have none? Thanks!
Hi Kelsey,
You can use a sparkling cider or beer. I hope you love this recipe, please let me know if you have any other questions! xTieghan
Hi! If I use a gluten free flour, do you think it might turn out pretty similar to your original recipe?
You bet! That should work well for you:)
I made these with some red ale I had on hand instead of cider and they were so good! Super simple recipe to follow. Was my first time and they came out great. Honey mustard was really tasty too!
Hey Bree,
Wonderful!! I love to hear that this recipe was a winner, thanks so much for making it and sharing your review! xT