Quest for Homemade Bagels

[Natasha]

I am on a MISSION.

Does anyone make bagels at home? I used to do this occasionally several years ago, but haven't recently. Though I enjoy the process, I have never been particularly thrilled with the results. Would anyone care to share any tried and true recipes that don't need a bread maker? Maybe part of the problem is that I don't have the equipment at home that a bagel bakery would, but I'm convinced I can do better than I have been with the recipes I have.

Of course, it's so much easier to just buy bagels, and I will no doubt keep buying them in large quantities (we love them http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif ), but with fall coming, I feel like occasionally embarking on projects such as this!

Thanks in advance - and a good Monday morning to all.

[This message has been edited by Natasha (edited 09-11-2000).]

[RunnerKim]

Hi Natasha,

I've made bagels a few times - but mostly buy them (its our standard breakfast). They're the only bread product I buy anymore.

I do use my bread machine to make the dough but I don't think that should really be that different than doing it by hand or in the food processor.

The following website gives good information about bagel making:
http://www.betterbaking.com/baker2/bagel2rec.html

What you boil the bagels in and how you bake them I think makes the biggest difference. I've always used brown sugar as I've never picked up malt powder.

Kim

[Star]

Hello there!
I have made bagels a few times and have had some luck. Some recipes say to broil the bagel dough first, then boil. I have read a book about making bagels, I'm pretty sure it was "The Bagel Bible" and it said that the type of flour used is most important. Definitely check this book out or one like it. Good luck and happy baking!
Diona http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[Nanci]

Natasha,

I am not certain what happened to the reply I posted earlier . . . but here's my favorite bagel recipe.

* Exported from MasterCook *

Bagels

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 16 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Breads

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
1 1/4 cups warm water
3 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons salt
4 cups bread flour
2 1/4 teaspoons dry yeast
4 ounces Asiago Cheese

Bring 3 quarts water to boil in a large pot. Stir in 1 tablespoon barley malt syrup or dark corn syrup.

Place dough on a lightly floured surface. Let dough rest for 5 minutes.

Cut dough into 9 equal pieces. Roll each into a smooth ball (1). flatten balls, and poke a hole in the middle of each with your thumb (2). Next twirl the dough to enlarge the hole and even out the dough around it. Cover bagels with a clean cloth, and let rest for 10 minutes.

If desired, glaze tops of bagels with egg white and sprinkle with poppy or sesame seeds, coarse salt, and/or reconstituted dry onions (4). Bake bagels in a preheated oven at 375 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes, until well-browned.

Description:
"Bagels"
Yield:
"1 each"

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Per serving: 160 Calories (kcal); 3g Total Fat; (14% calories from fat); 6g Protein; 28g Carbohydrate; 6mg Cholesterol; 355mg Sodium
Food Exchanges: 1 1/2 Grain(Starch); 1/2 Lean Meat; 0 Vegetable; 0 Fruit; 1/2 Fat; 0 Other Carbohydrates


Nutr. Assoc. : 0 0 0 0 0 0

I love Pannera bagels with Asagio cheese so I often add 2 ounces to the bread while mixing and top with an add'l 2 before baking, 1/2 whole wheat 1/2 bread flour is great.

I do use my bread machine to make the dough, but I imagine it is easy to use in a food processor or kitchen aid.

I love bagels so much I almost make a batch a week!!!

[Beth]

Nanci, I copied your recipe, and it might actually get me to try making bagels again. I used toget Asiago Bagels in CA, but none of the shops here have them. I tried bagels exactly once before, and getting them into and out of the boiling water deflated them and my enthusiasm. I have made soft pretzels that were boiled before baking more recently, and they worked better. Maybe it's worth a try....once we get some cooler weather anyway. Still near 100 here, but that's down from 108-109. Not into boiling and baking right now.

[Natasha]

Thank you all for your suggestions and recommendations, and Nanci, thank you for the delicious-looking recipe! I can't wait to try it and to check out the other info sources. I will probably wait until fall starts to make an appearance, which probably won't be too long now!

[MrsReber]

Nanci, is there a step missing in your recipe? You boil the bagels before baking them, correct? I am not sure how to do that- how long to boil them, do you need to let them rest afterwards? Do you boil them after they rest for 10 mins or before? I really want to try to make them sometime. I've thought about it for a while now.

[BeckyM]

I too used to make homemade bagels, but I haven't in a long time. They were a lot of work, and I had mixed results. My recipe said to let them rise, then broil them, then boil them, then bake them. After the boiling step, some of them would come out fine, but others would wither into a shrunken, wrinkled mass. I would bake them all anyway, and some were great, but the withered ones were too dense and looked weird. I couldn't ever figure out what was different with those particular bagels, since I didn't think I was doing anything differently, and they all came out of the same batch. Since then, I've discovered that bakeries make some awesome bagels (Panera Bread is also one of my favorites) that are much better than mine and require less work! I'll probably continue buying them unless someone convinces me they have a foolproof method for preventing withered bagels!

[Nanci]

Mrs. Reuber,

I guess I did leave out a step -- you boil the bagels a minute or two, turning once with a slotted spatula. After boiling I place them on a cookie sheet coated w/cooking spray and a little cornmeal. They don't need to rest. After 10 minutes I rotate the cookie sheets (top rack to bottom and bottom to top).

I hope everyone likes them as much as I do.

[MrsReber]

Thanks Nanci- I really want to give these a try! Sounds like fun to make them!

[sooz]

Yankee Magazine had a recipe for bagels several years ago-I will try to find it--it wasn't difficult and the bagels turned out quite well.

[Natasha]

Originally posted by sooz:
Yankee Magazine had a recipe for bagels several years ago-I will try to find it--it wasn't difficult and the bagels turned out quite well.

Thank you, sooz! If you do happen to find the recipe, I would love to have it. Hope you have a terrific day.

[Nanci]

In talking with my SO last night -- he recommends leaving them rest after boiling for about 5 - 10 minutes. He said, "When he makes them he does this, and . . . his come out puffier and bigger than mine."

Let me know what everyone thinks.