It's Time to Make the Bagels!

Okay, forgive me for this self-indulgent trip down memory lane (those who grew up with Dunkin Donuts know the reference). Last week, we had two snow days, which left me with plenty of time to scheme what I would bring to our weekly brunch that we have with neighbors. I've conquered cinnamon rolls, gone down the fritata and quiche route before and made an amazing banana french toast. Hmmm. I wanted something satisfying. Something really not virtuous at all. I was stumped. Then, I browsed over to Smitten Kitchen. Where all of my good dieting and exercising intentions go straight to hell.

And I saw this. Homemade bagels. Time consuming, but exactly what I wanted to eat. It was on. I had nothing but time.

Homemade Bagels

Part 1- Make the Sponge:

1 tsp active, dry yeast (from a packet, reserve the other tsp.)

4 c. flour (I used all-purpose, because it was all I had and I wasn't about to go out in a blizzard to get bread flour)

2 1/2 c. warm, not hot water

Mix together the yeast and flour in a large bowl. Add the water and mix well. Our mixture was really thick, although the original recipe says it should be like pancake batter. It still rose well, so don't worry.

Cover with saran wrap and leave to rise for 2 hours. We left ours in the oven, since our kitchen is cold and drafty. Lucky us.

Part Two- Make the Dough:

1 tsp. active, dry yeast (reserved from original package)

3 c. flour

3 tsp. salt

1 tbsp. agave nectar, honey or brown sugar (original recipe calls for malt powder)

The dough should be well-risen (ours was just about doubled). Tap the bowl a few times on the countertop to deflate it. Transfer to the bowl of your stand mixer and fit your mixer with the dough hook. Add 1 tsp. yeast (reserved), 3 c. of flour, salt and malt powder (we used Agave nectar, which worked fine.) Stir until ingredients form a ball. The original recipe calls for an additional 3/4 c. of flour, but we didn't need it. Our dough was super stiff at this point.

Transfer to a floured counter top and knead until dough becomes really smooth and elastic. This takes some muscle so be prepared.  We kneaded for about 10 minutes.

Prepare your baking sheets. We used a total of four (4) half-sheet pans. Spray them with non-stick spray (Pam) and then top with a sheet of parchment.

Begin breaking off pieces of dough. It's best if you have a food scale so you can make sure they 're uniform in size and will bake evenly. We made our bagels 2.5 ounces each.

Roll into little balls and cover all of your dough with damp paper towel. Rest for 20 minutes (we again rested in the oven).

Part 3- Form the Bagels:

After 20 minutes or so, take them out and form into your bagel shape. We did this by poking a hole in the middle of each little ball and gently stretching the dough into a 2 1/2-inch ring. Spray your parchment lined baking sheets with a little spray oil and place each bagel about 2 inches apart on the sheets. You want to leave plenty of space around each bagel.



Cover with saran wrap and let the bagels sit for another 20 minutes at room temperature.

Fill a wide bowl with room-temperature water. Take a bagel and plunk it into the water. If it floats, you're ready to refrigerate the bagels. If not, let them continue to sit at room temperature and check back after another 10 minutes. Dry your test bagel off, wrap the sheets really well with plastic wrap and slide into the fridge. You'll leave them there overnight, or for up to two days.

Part 4- Bake the Bagels!

Preheat oven to 400 degrees f. Take your widest pot (we used a cast-iron Dutch oven) and fill it with a few inches of water. Place it over high heat and bring to a boil. Add a tablespoon of baking soda. We also added a tablespoon of agave nectar to give the bagels some color.



When water is boiling, add in a few bagels- they shouldn't be crowded into the pot. While the bagels are boiling, spread out some cornmeal on your baking sheets.  After two minutes, flip each bagel and boil for an additional two minutes (We use a chopstick for easy flipping!). Remove the bagels back to the cornmeal lined baking sheet (if you want to top with anything, now is the time!) and place into the oven.



You'll need to do this in batches, but it's easier to just have a system where you can boil, bake, rotate and remove.



Bake for 5 minutes, then rotate your pan and bake for 5 minutes more. Bagels should be browned on top. Remove from pan onto a cooling rack or large platter.



Et voila! Bagels, from your very own kitchen. They were chewy, bready and delicous. Exactly what the doctor ordered on a snowy, icky New England weekend. Oh and they cost about $2 to make two dozen bagels. Score one for the Tiny Wallet!!!!!