Hot Buttered Pretzels

* 2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
* 1/2 teaspoon salt
* 1 teaspoon sugar
* 2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
* 1 cup warm water

Topping:

* 1/2 cup warm water
* 1 teaspoon sugar
* Coarse, kosher or pretzel salt
* 3 tablespoons salted butter, melted

Place all the dough ingredients in a bowl and beat until well combined. Knead the dough, by hand or mixer, for about 5 minutes, until it's soft, smooth, and quite slack. Dust the dough with flour (to keep from sticking) and place it in a plastic bag; close the bag, leaving enough room for the dough to expand, and let it rest for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 500 degrees. Prepare two baking sheets by spraying them with vegetable oil spray or lining them with parchment paper.

Transfer the dough to a lightly greased work surface and divide it into eight equal pieces. Let the pieces rest, uncovered, for 5 minutes.

Roll each piece of dough into a long thin rope (around 28 inches) and twist each rope into a pretzel. Dip the pretzels in the warm water mixed with 1 teaspoon sugar, and place them on the baking sheets. Sprinkle them lightly with the salt. Let them rest, uncovered, for 10 minutes.

Bake the pretzels for 8-9 minutes, until they're golden brown, reversing the baking sheets halfway through.

Remove the pretzels from the oven and brush them thoroughly with the melted butter. Keep brushing butter on until you've used it all up; it may seem like a lot, but that's what gives these pretzels their ethereal taste. Eat the pretzels warm, or reheat them in an oven or microwave.