In a small mixing bowl add 1 teaspoon sugar, yeast and 1 ¾ cups warm water. Stir gently. Cover and let rise until foamy. About 5-10 minutes.

In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer add the flour, ½ cup sugar and 1 ½ teaspoons salt. Blend well. Add the yeast mixture, oil, and honey. Mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon or a dough hook attachment. You want the consistency to be a soft, barely sticky dough. Turn out onto lightly floured surface and Knead by hand for 10 minutes or knead in the mixer for about 7-8 minutes.

Spray a large bowl with non-stick spray or brush with oil and place the kneaded dough into bowl. (I always push the dough over to one side of the bowl I already used and spray the empty side, then roll the dough to the sprayed side and spray the other side, to dirty less dishes). Cover tightly with plastic wrap and let rise for 1 ½ hours.

During the last half hour of rising, preheat the oven to 450 F, and line 2-3 baking sheets with parchment paper. Put 4 cups of water in a medium to large sauce pan and add the baking soda. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Melt butter and have a pastry brush handy.

Push the dough out onto the counter and cut into 16 pieces. Roll each piece into a snake about 20-24 inches long. Shape into a Pretzel (see pictures below). Make sure you press the ends well so it doesn’t fall apart in the boiling water. Set on a parchment covered baking sheet. Continue shaping the dough into Pretzels until you have a full tray. (you’ll finish the rest of the dough in a few minutes)

Gently drop each pretzel, 1 by 1, into the boiling water. Boil for about 3-5 seconds, making sure the pretzel is fully submerged, remove with a big slotted spoon or a large slotted spatula, draining as much water as you can. Gently place back on baking sheet and immediately sprinkle with salt, if desired*see note. Continue boiling and salting pretzels till your tray is done. Place in oven and bake till well golden brown, about 6-9 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately brush generously with melted butter. Let the pretzels cool on tray or eat right away.

While the first tray of pretzels is baking, continue rolling, shaping, boiling, and salting pretzels so you hopefully have the next tray ready to go when the first tray comes out of the oven. Continue till pretzel dough is gone.