Our Keto Soft Pretzels rival any standard carb-filled pretzel in terms of softness and chewiness. They are a great option to serve on game day or anytime you are feeding a crowd! These keto soft pretzels are low-carb, grain-free, and gluten-free!
Our Keto Soft Pretzels are the keto appetizer or snack that you are going to want to make immediately.
You've never tasted anything like these!
These are going to become your favorite homemade low-carb pretzels. Make them once, and you'll be hooked. We promise!
Every single bite tastes like carb-filled goodness. But there are only 5 grams of net carbs in each pretzel.
It's like keto magic.
Why You Will Love These Pretzels!
- Delicious: These pretzels are soft and chewy. They crisp up perfectly. And the large salt crystals satiate any salty-snack craving you may have.
- Versatile: Serve these pretzels with our cheese dip or mustard butter (recipes below) or try some of our other favorite versions like our Keto Reuben Soft Pretzels or our Keto Spinach and Artichoke Soft Pretzels.
- Gluten-free: These pretzels are made with almond flour, which makes them both grain-free and gluten-free.
Check Out How to Make These Pretzels
These pretzels are really simple to make. Creating that standard pretzel shape my seem tricky or intimidating, but trust us it is actually way easier than it seems.
The entire recipe is at the bottom of the post. But first, we made this video tutorial so you can see how easy these are to make. Watch it now!
Ingredients
Here's what you need in your kitchen to make these pretzels:
- Cheeses: Shredded mozzarella and cream cheese are the base of our soft pretzel dough.
- Almond flour: A great low-carb and gluten-free alternative to all-purpose flour.
- Xanthan gum: Used as a thickening agent.
- Active dry yeast: To help the pretzel dough rise.
- Eggs: To help bind the ingredients together.
- Butter and coarse salt: To top the pretzels.
How to Make Keto Soft Pretzels
The full instructions are detailed in the recipe card at the end of this post.
But we wanted to give you step-by-step instructions, so you know exactly how to make these low-carb pretzels, especially the pretzel shaping step!
Step #1. Melt Your Cheeses
The dough for the keto soft pretzel uses a combination of melted mozzarella cheese and cream cheese.
Use a microwave to melt the cheeses and make sure they are completely melted.
If you notice any tiny shreds that aren't melted, keep melting it.
Step #2. Make the Pretzel Dough
If you don't have a stand mixer, get one. It makes this recipe so much easier. Plus, you'll use it over and over again - like if you make our keto cinnamon rolls.
But if you don't have one right this minute, you can mix the dough by hand with quite a bit of elbow grease.
Don't use an electric mixer, because the dough will stick to the beaters and it will be a mess. Trust us - we know from experience!
Mix together the dry ingredients first and then add in the wet ingredients followed by the melted cheeses.
This is going to be a super-sticky dough. It's a lot easier to work with if you let it cool off completely after melting the mozzarella.
It usually takes about 10 minutes to cool down enough to work with.
Step #3. Shape the Pretzels
There's an art to shaping the perfect keto soft pretzel. We have some step-by-step pictures to help you see the entire process.
But first, tape down your parchment paper onto your kitchen counter and grab your rolling pin.
You'll be rolling out very sticky dough. Taping down the paper will save you a lot of frustration since the paper won't be able to move around.
Here are the size guidelines for the pretzels:
- For 12 small pretzels, roll the dough out in 14-inch long ropes.
- For 9 medium pretzels, roll the dough out into 18-inch long ropes.
- For 4 large pretzels, roll the dough out into 24-inch long ropes.
Then just follow the same method as detailed below to create your pretzel shapes.
- A) Roll Out the Dough Into a U Shape - First, make a long snake out of your dough. Then form the letter U.
- B) Lay the Left Leg On Top of the Right One - Next, pick up the left "leg" of the U and cross it over top of the right one.
- C) Twist the "Legs" Once - Pick up the legs and twist them once, putting the left one underneath the right one.
- D) Pull the Legs Down and Form a Pretzel Shape - Just take those twisted "legs" and pull them down towards you and lay them on the middle of the pretzel.
See! Aren't they pretty?
Step #4. Bake Them
Now that you have all of your keto soft pretzels formed, brush them with melted butter and sprinkle some salt on the pretzels before you bake them.
Bake the pretzels in the oven at 350°F for 25-30 minutes.
The pretzels will be golden brown when they are done baking (like the picture below).
While the pretzels are baking, you can make your dipping sauce. Check out our favorite keto dipping sauces in the recipe card below.
Recipe Notes and Tips
- Keep the pretzel dough thin. Since the pretzels rise in the oven, roll the pretzel dough out into ropes that are no thicker than 3/4 inch thick. In other words, you want them to look like thin snakes.
- Don't use an electric handheld mixer. This dough is really sticky because of the cheeses, so the dough will stick to the beaters and it will be a mess. Instead use a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment or roll up your sleeves and combine the dough by hand.
- Let your dough cool before shaping it. It's a lot easier to work with if you let it cool off completely after combing all the ingredients. It usually takes about 10 minutes to cool down enough.
- Any kind of coarse salt works. If you want, you can even use pink Himalayan salt. We think this sea salt looks and tastes amazing on the pretzels. Make sure to sprinkle the salt on before baking, otherwise, it won't stick to the pretzels if you wait until the end.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, yeast is keto-friendly. Most people associate yeast with carby breads like white or wheat bread.
Yeast is the ingredient that makes the bread fluffy. So the yeast in this recipe makes the pretzel dough softer, chewier and helps it rise in the oven.
Without the yeast, these pretzels would look more like flat bread. Make sure to activate by mixing it with warm water.
These are so yummy, you'll be tempted to eat them all in one day.
You can store them in a sealed container or bag at room temperature on the counter top for a day. Or put them in the refrigerator for about a week.
They will stay fresh in the freezer for up to 2 months.
Since these keto soft pretzels are so tasty, you might want to bake up a double batch and freeze them. Here's how to freeze our keto soft pretzels, and how to thaw them to eat later.
1) Let them cool off completely. You can do this by just letting them sit on the counter after they come out of the oven.
2) Wrap them individually in plastic wrap. This is especially important if you are going to be thawing them individually. The plastic wrap will also make sure they don't freeze together in one big clump.
3) Put them all in a zippered freezer bag. Label the bag with the date you froze them.
When you are ready to thaw a few, just pull them out and put them in the refrigerator. They will thaw overnight.
Then, you can either warm them back up in the oven or in the microwave. The microwave might change the texture a bit. We suggest warming them in the oven, at 300°F for about 10-15 minutes.
These pretzels taste great with so many different dipping sauces:
1) Cheese Dip (see recipe below)
2) Mustard Butter (see recipe below)
3) Spinach & Artichoke Dip
Want to make your dip spicy? Add a few drops of hot sauce, or sprinkle in some red pepper flakes.
More Keto Appetizer Recipes
If you’d like more delicious appetizers that are perfectly keto, then check out these favorites:
- Keto Garlic Knots
- Keto Cheese Sticks
- Keto Chicken Wings with Old Bay
- Keto Italian Cheese Bread
- Keto Crispy Zucchini Fries
We Can't Wait To See You Try It!
We love seeing our recipes come to life!! We can’t wait to see how you make these and loving seeing each person's unique spin on it! Tag us on Instagram @cleanketolifestyle or use the hashtag #CKLrecipe!
Keto Soft Pretzels
Ingredients
For the Pretzels
- 3 cups shredded mozzarella
- 2 tablespoons cream cheese
- 1 1/2 cups almond flour
- 2 teaspoons xanthan gum
- 2 teaspoons active dry yeast mixed with 2 tablespoons warm water
- 2 eggs
- 3 tablespoons melted butter divided
- 1 tablespoon coarse salt
For the Cheese Dip (optional)
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 1 cup heavy whipping cream
- 1/8 teaspoon xanthan gum
- 1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
For the Mustard Butter (optional)
- 4 tablespoons room-temperature butter
- 1 teaspoon whole-grain mustard
- 1/4 teaspoon raw honey provides a touch of sweetness and adds only 1.5 net carbs
Instructions
For the Pretzels
- Heat your oven to 350°F and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
- In a microwave safe bowl, microwave the mozzarella and cream cheese for a total of 90 seconds in 30-second intervals, stirring between each interval until the cheese is completely melted and there are no visible shreds.
- In a large bowl fitted to a stand mixer with a hook attachment, mix together the almond flour, xanthan gum, yeast mixture, eggs, and 1 tablespoon melted butter.
- Next add in the melted cheese mixture.
- Beat on medium speed until all the ingredients are combined, scraping down the sides of the bowl to help get the dough mixed together.
- Allow the dough to cool slightly for 10 minutes so that it is easier to work with.
- Tape a large sheet of parchment to your counter.
- Portion the dough into equal portions (12 portions for small pretzels, 9 portions for medium pretzel, 4 portions for giant pretzels).
- Roll each dough portion into a rope shape that is no thicker than 3/4 of an inch.
- Form pretzel shapes with the dough (see the pictures above for our technique) and place them on the lined baking sheets.
- Space them at least 1.5 inches apart from one another.
- Brush on the remaining 2 tablespoons melted butter to the tops of the pretzels and sprinkle with coarse salt.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown.
For the Cheese Dip (optional)
- In a saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter.
- Slowly stir in the heavy cream continuing to stir until the mixture comes to a low boil.
- Stir in the xanthan gum.
- Add the cheddar cheese and stir until the cheese is fully incorporated.
- Let the cheese mixture simmer over low heat for 5-10 minutes or until it's reached your desired thickness.
For the Mustard Butter (optional)
- In small bowl, mix all the ingredients together.
Notes
- Keep the pretzel dough thin. Since the pretzels rise in the oven, roll the pretzel dough out into ropes that are no thicker than 3/4 inch thick. In other words, you want them to look like thin snakes.
- Don't use an electric handheld mixer. This dough is really sticky because of the cheeses, so the dough will stick to the beaters and it will be a mess. Instead use a stand mixer with the hook attachment or roll up your sleeves and combine the dough by hand.
- Let your dough cool before shaping it. The dough is a lot easier to work with if you let it cool off completely after combing all the ingredients. It usually takes about 10 minutes to cool down enough.
- Any kind of coarse salt works. Or you can even use pink Himalayan salt. We think this sea salt looks and tastes amazing on the pretzels. Make sure to sprinkle the salt on before baking, otherwise, it won't stick to the pretzels.
- After one day, store in the fridge. The pretzels can be stored in a sealed container at room temperature for one day. Store in refrigerator after that.
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