Classic Bagels.
Ingredients
For the dough
- 1 tbsp 9g Organic Instant Yeast
- 4 cups 480g All-Purpose flour, I use Kamut (khorasan) *Use an extra ¼ cup of water if using Kamut flour
- 2½ tsp 15g grey sea salt
- 1 tbsp 14g barley malt syrup or dark brown sugar
- 1⅓ cups 303g lukewarm filtered water
For the water bath
- 2 tbsp 28g barley malt syrup or dark brown sugar
- 1 tbsp 14g raw cane sugar
For Baking
- 2 tbsp semolina flour or medium-ground cornmeal
- 1 egg white
- 1 tbsp water
For white cheddar bagels
- ¾ cup sharp white cheddar cheese, freshly grated
Instructions
Make the dough
- Combine all of the dough ingredients and knead on medium speed for 10 minutes in a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. (or knead 15 minutes by hand.)Dough should hold its shape on the hook when you stop the mixer.
- Lightly grease a large glass bowl with avocado oil. Place the dough in the bowl, giving it a turn. Cover with plastic wrap and set it aside to rise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, until it's noticeably puffy but not necessarily doubled in bulk.After 1 to 1½ hours have passed, move onto the next step.
- Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and grease the parchment. Transfer the dough to a work surface, and divide it into 12 pieces (for standard-size bagels), or 9 pieces (for large bagels).
- Roll each ball of dough into a smooth, round ball. Place the balls on the greased baking sheet. Cover the baking sheet with plastic wrap, and let rest for 30 minutes, until slightly puffy.
- While the dough is resting, prepare the water bath by heating the water, barley malt syrup, and sugar to a very gentle boil in a large stock pot or Dutch oven. Preheat oven to 425°F.
- Use your finger to poke a hole through the center of each ball, then stretch the hole until it's about 1 1/2" to 2" in diameter.Place the bagels back on the baking sheet.Line a new baking sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle with a dusting of semolina flour or medium-ground cornmeal.
- Transfer 3-4 bagels at a time to the simmering water. Cook the bagels for 2 minutes, flip them over, and cook 1 minute more. Using a spider spatula, remove the bagels from the water and place them back on the baking sheet sprinkled with semolina. Repeat with the remaining bagels.
Seasoning the bagels
- In a small bowl, whisk together 1 egg white with 1 tbsp water until frothy.
To make onion, poppy seed, or everything topped bagels
- To make onion, poppy seed, or everything topped bagels, bake bagels for 20 to 22 minutes, remove the baking sheet from the oven, keeping the oven turned on.Brush the tops of the bagels with the egg wash, then sprinkle with minced, dried onion. Return the bagels to the oven for roughly 2 more minutes, until the egg white has cooked and the onion is just turning a light golden color.
Baking the bagels
- Bake the bagels for 20 to 25 minutes, or until they're golden brown. Remove the bagels from the oven and cool completely on a wire rack.
To make white cheddar topped bagels
- Sprinkle the top of each bagel with 2-3 tbsp white cheddar cheese and gently press to make sure the cheese stays on the bagel. Bake the bagels for 20 to 25 minutes, or until they're golden brown. Remove the bagels from the oven and cool completely on a wire rack.
Optional: To make cinnamon swirl flavored bagels
- To make cinnamon-raisin bagels, knead about 2/3 cup of raisins into the dough toward the end of the kneading process. After kneading, sprinkle your work surface heavily with cinnamon-sugar, and give the dough a few more turns; it'll pick up the cinnamon-sugar in r swirls. Divide the dough into 9-12 pieces, form each piece into a ball, and roll each ball in additional cinnamon-sugar. Proceed to let rest.