Bagels

 

 

'If you've never made bagels before, you may be rather surprised to find that they get their dense chewiness from being poached first and then baked.  I make these in an electric food mixer using the dough hook, but you can make them perfectly well by hand too'.

Rachel Allen, 'Bake', p166

 

 

Well, I promised you a bagel challenge and here I am!  They were surprisingly straightforward to make, and I was very happy with the result. Here's how it's done...

 

You will need...

 

• 450g (1lb) strong white flour
• 1 x 7g sachet fast-acting yeast
• 2 level tsp salt
• 250mls (9fl oz) warm water
• 2 tbsp runny honey
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• 3 tbsp treacle or molasses
• Maize or cornmeal, for sprinkling
• 1 egg, beaten
• Sesame seeds; sea salt; poppy seeds or a savoury topping of your choice (optional)

1. Sift the flour and salt into the bowl you plan to make the bread in, add the yeast and mix well.

 

2. Measure the water in a measuring jug, then stir in the honey and oil.  With an electric food mixer on the lowest setting, slowly add all the liquid to the dry ingredients.  Knead on the lowest setting for 10 minutes, checking to make sure the dough is not too wet and adding more flour if it does look too sticky. 

 

3. Turn the dough onto a clean, dry and floured work surface.  Using more flour if necessary, start kneading the dough for 10 minutes.  You may need more flour to avoid getting a sticky dough - you don't want this.  (I actually did carried out this step in my mixer too, just on a higher setting.  It worked well, although my KitchenAid started protesting after about 15 minutes of use and went walkies along the kitchen worktop!)

 

4.Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, and turn in the oil to coat.  Cover with cling film or a plastic bag, and put in a warm place for 1-3 hours or until doubled in size. (I put the dough in the fridge overnight, for a slow rise.  It was beautifully aerated the following day...)

 

5. When the dough is nearly ready - doubled in volume - bring a large saucepan of water to the boil (about 4 litres/ 7 pints) and add the treacle or molasses.  Cover and turn off the heat while you shape the bagels. (Even my biggest saucepan wasn't large enough for this, so I used my big stock pot.  I got this from Aldi, and it's proved to be really useful.  I use it for jam making and for large quantites of stew or casseroles.  And now for bagel poaching!)

 

 

Lightly oil 2 baking trays, and sprinkle with maize or cornmeal.  Remove the dough from the bowl, then punch down and knead briefly.  Divide into 7 chunks.  Take one, keeping the others covered with a tea towel.

 

6.  There are 2 ways to shape your bagel.  First, roll each chunk into a 'snake', then bring the ends together and seal with a small amount of water.  Or, roll each chuck into a ball, pierce a hole in the centre and pull the dough open until you can fit your hand inside.  Turn and squeeze, like a steering wheel, to keep it even (I found the second technique easier, I wasn't very good at keeping the 'snake' even as I rolled it along).  There are loads of videos on YouTube if you want to see how it's done.  Place your bagel on the prepared sheet, and make the rest.  Note that the hole will shrink slightly during cooking, so don't worry if it looks a bit too big.

 

7.  Cover and allow to stand for a further 10-20 minutes, for the dough to bounce back.

 

 

Here are my shaped bagels, the 'snake' version at the top and 'steering wheel' version at the bottom.

 

 

8. Preheat the oven to 220C/425F/GM7, and heat the saucepan again to a gentle simmer.  Gently lift each bagel into the water and poach up to 3 at a time, for about 1 1/2 minutes on each side.  Remove from the water and allow to drain.  Place on the prepared trays, spacing 3-4 cm apart.  Brush with beaten egg, and add topping if desired.  Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, then turn upside down for a further 10 minutes to cook the bases.

 

 

Et voila!  One batch of bagels, ready in time for lunch. 

 

I enjoyed them in my favourite way, with smoked salmon; cream cheese; a sprinkling of black pepper and some lemon juice.

 

 

Evan had them with jam for his packed lunch the next day, and Nigel enjoyed them with just butter.  For more bagel recipes and topping ideas, I found these websites...

 

http://bagelrecipes.net/

http://bagelnash.com/love-bagels/filling-ideas/

http://homecooking.about.com/library/archive/blbread26.htm

 

I'd like to try cinnamon and raisin next.  How about you?!

 

Also this week, I've made Rachel's 'chocolate lava cakes', AKA chocolate fondants.  Was a little nervous as this is what always seems to trip up contestants on cookery shows.  The timing is crucial, too long and they set all through like a sponge cake; not long enough and they disintegrate.  Luckily I wasn't on a cookery show, and had time to watch the oven like a hawk!  We all loved them, especially Megan, who grinned her chocolatey approval!