Joan of the Kitchen: December 2014

Ethan really loves bagels. So I wanted to see if I could make them.

I never held bagels to any certain standard, seeing as I’m from Massachusetts (western Massachusetts) and the only real bagels we have are Lenders and Dunkin Donuts. I’ve never had a true New York bagel (a great failing, I understand), but if they are anything like these homemade bagels, then I am starting to grasp the foundational argument.

Now if you haven’t made bagels before, what sets bagels apart from other delicious yeasty bread products is that they are boiled as well as baked. This specific recipe also requires about a day of prep time (almost entirely unattended). This method is called “cold-fermented", but there are other methods that are more timely. These are worth the extra planning, in my opinion.

Dough Ingredients:
1 TBS instant yeast
4 c. bread flour**
2 tsp salt
1 TBS brown sugar
1 1/2 c. water

1 egg + 1 TBS water
1/4 c. dehydrated onions, rehydrated

You can use any number of things to top the bagels:
Garlic
Cheese
Sesame Seeds
Cinnamon Raisin (these get added directly into the dough, however)
I would also like to try: sun dried tomatoes, olives, or whole wheat

Water Bath ingredients:
2 quarts water
2 TBS honey
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon baking soda

**In this case it’s important to use bread flour, which has additional wheat gluten. Your bagels will still turn out if you use standard all-purpose flour, but you may find a chewier texture. (If you can find it) you can add extra gluten, which is sold seperately by both Hodgsen Mill and King Arthur Flour among others. However short of ordering it online, I can never find it in any stores in the area.

1. Whisk all dry ingredients in a large bowl or in the bowl of a stand-mixer. Add water and mix to combine. Let rest 5 minutes.

2. Knead with hands or dough hook for 10 minutes. When the dough is done it will feel tougher than other standard yeast doughs but will be pliable, smooth, and not sticky.

3. Let the dough rest approximately 1 1/2 hours.
4. Divide the dough into 7-8 equal pieces. You’ll notice that I only made 6 in my original batch. I was afraid that it would make 8 small bagels when I wanted them to be medium-sized. Instead some are larger than others so if I did it again I would aim for 7 or 8 bagels.

5. Roll each dough ball into a rope.

6. Wrap each rope around your four fingers, starting by pinching one end between your thumb and forefinger. Overlap both ends and pinch to secure. (There are probably 1000 videos on this process, but there is also the “poke a hole in the middle” version, which a little easier but apparently “unprofessional”).

7. Place all bagels on a baking sheet and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Refrigerate over night.
8. An hour or so before you plan to process your bagels, rehydrate onions in enough water to just cover the onions.
9. Remove from the refrigerator and let rest 30 minutes. Meanwhile, create your water bath in a large pot (wider is more important than tall) and bring to a boil. Preheat your oven to 450˚F.