These days there are two dominant cravings in my life: my sweet tooth and my salt tooth. Is that a thing? It should be.
Put a plate of French fries in front of me and they disappear. A loaf of bread with salted butter — goodbye. The problem is that if left to my own devices, I will eat it all by myself, which is never a great idea.
This time, rather than hoarding the salty goodness, I decided to invite a few friends over for a game night and serve finger foods for everyone. I’m always looking for reasons to gather with friends, and this felt like the perfect one. Pretzels, anyone?
I partnered with Gather, a Tumblr by Clorox that shares ideas for getting people together, to present my game-night inspiration along with a recipe for homemade twisted ranch pretzels and a sriracha marinara dipping sauce.
My go-to games are classics — mostly card games and some dominoes. I’ve been collecting interestingly designed decks, and this neon set is a current favorite. I simply set the games out on the dining table so everything’s ready to play when guests arrive.
Finger foods keep things casual and easy. Alongside the pretzels I served raw veggies in mini baskets to balance the menu. If you want to make your own pretzels, here’s the recipe I used.
Twisted Ranch Pretzels Recipe (makes about 16)
Ingredients
– 1 oz package Hidden Valley Original Ranch Salad Dressing & Seasoning Mix
– 2 packages store-bought pizza dough
– 1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
– Flour, for dusting the work surface
– Extra melted butter for brushing (optional)
– Sesame seeds for topping (optional)
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C). Line baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a small bowl, combine the room-temperature butter with the ranch seasoning and mix thoroughly with a fork.
3. Cut each package of pizza dough in half to create four balls of dough.
4. Lightly dust your work surface with flour. Roll the first dough ball into a large rectangle with a rolling pin. Spread a portion of the butter-and-ranch mixture evenly over the dough.
5. Starting from one edge, roll the dough up into a log so the layers form a spiral. Pinch the long edge to seal.
6. Roll the sealed log into a long rope. Cut the rope lengthwise into four equal strips, then cut each strip in half so you have eight shorter strips per package. If needed, roll each strip a bit longer so you can shape it into a pretzel.
7. Arrange the strips on the prepared baking sheet and twist each into a pretzel shape. Bake for 8–10 minutes, until lightly golden.
8. Remove the pretzels from the oven, brush with melted butter if desired, and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Repeat the process with the remaining dough.
Sriracha Marinara Sauce
Mix 1 cup of store-bought marinara sauce with 2 tablespoons of sriracha (adjust the amount to suit your heat preference) in a small bowl and serve alongside the pretzels.
Recipe by Linda Jednaszewski
Concept, styling, and photography by Brittni Mehlhoff
What do you like to do when you gather with friends?
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This post was created in partnership with Gather. Visit Gather on Tumblr for more ideas to inspire your own gatherings. Thank you for supporting the brands that help keep Paper & Stitch running.