Here’s A Bagel Recipe #2

HERE'S A BAGEL RECIPE

2

4 Preparation Time :

Categories : Breads

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method -- -- --

** NONE **

Once the dough has risen, turn it onto your work

surface, punch it down, and divide immediately into as

many hunks as you want to make bagels. For this

recipe, you will probably end up with about 15 bagels,

so you will divide the dough into 15 roughly

even-sized hunks. Begin forming the bagels. There are

two schools of thought on this. One method of bagel

formation involves shaping the dough into a rough

sphere, then poking a hole through the middle with a

finger and then pulling at the dough around the hole

to make the bagel. This is the hole-centric method.

The dough-centric method involves making a long

cylindrical "snake" of dough and wrapping it around

your hand into a loop and mashing the ends together.

Whatever you like to do is fine. DO NOT, however, give

in to the temptation of using a doughnut or cookie

cutter to shape your bagels. This will pusht them out

of the realm of Jewish Bagel Authenticity and give

them a distinctly Protestant air. The bagels will not

be perfectly shaped. They will not be symmetrical.

This is normal. This is okay. Enjoy the diversity.

Just like snowflakes, no two genuine bagels are

exactly alike.

Begin to preheat the oven to 400 degrees Farenheit.

Once the bagels are formed, let them sit for about 10

minutes. They will begin to rise slightly. Ideally,

they will rise by about one-fourth volume... a

technique called "half-proofing" the dough. At the end

of the half-proofing, drop the bagels into the

simmering water one by one. You don't want to crowd

them, and so there should only be two or three bagels

simmering at any given time. The bagels should sink

first, then gracefully float to the top of the

simmering water. If they float, it's not a big deal,

but it does mean that you'll have a somewhat more

bready (and less bagely) texture. Let the bagel

simmer for about three minutes, then turn them over

with a skimmer or a slotted spoon. Simmer another

three minutes, and then lift the bagels out of the

water and set them on a clean kitchen towel that has

been spread on the countertop for this purpose. The

bagels should be pretty and shiny, thanks to the malt

syrup or sugar in the boiling water.

Once all the bagels have been boiled, prepare your

baking sheets by sprinkling them with cornmeal. Then

arrange the bagels on the prepared baking sheets and put them in the oven. Let them bake for about 25

mintues, then remove from the oven, turn them over and put them back in the oven to finish baking for about ten minutes more. This will help to prevent

flat-bottomed bagels.

Remove from the oven and cool on wire racks, or on a

dry clean towels if you have no racks. Do not attempt

to cut them until they are cool... hot bagels slice

abominably and you'll end up with a wadded mass of

bagel pulp. Don't do it.

Serve with good cream cheese.

TO CUSTOMIZE BAGELS: After boiling but before baking,

1 egg white and tablespoons ice water beaten together. Sprinkle with

the topping of your choice: poppy, sesame, or caraway

seeds, toasted onion or raw garlic bits, salt or whatever you like. Just remember that bagels are

essentially a savory baked good, not a sweet one, and so things like fruit and sweet spices are really

rather out of place. Submitted By

15 MAR

0700 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -