No I am not angry at Dunkin. The place will still hold a happy place in my heart. I just won't be needing them anymore now that I know how freaking easy it is to make bagels. Yes I am a baking and pastry school graduate and yes I have made bagels before, but class life isn't real life. In the big scary real world that does not require a chef coat, skull cap, and checkered pants I have not made bagels, until today.
Soft pretzels are something that I started making when I was in Oregon. I have never made them without my friend Jillian. Well one time I think I made them at home, but it just wasn't the same. Last week Matt brought up the fact that he had heard all about these pretzels, but he had never tasted them. I felt bad, but pretzels are Jillian and my thing. I had to come up with a new thing for Matt. Bagels!!! Why didn't I think of it, oh yeah I did.
Whenever I make bread related stuff it normally involves a lot of dishes and work. This is probably why I choose to buy the stuff. There really is nothing as exciting as bringing some yeast to life, letting it make some flour delicious and doughy and then killing it. The problem is the time and clean up involved normally scares me away. Today I had worked ahead on all my homework, so I knew I had the time and I had Matt to tell me that he finds dishes gross(no actually Matt was super helpful flipping the bagels and taking them out and all sorts of stuff); what more could I need.
I am slightly ashamed to say I went online as my first source for a bagel recipe, but it worked out so if you're interested in looking at other bagel recipes that may or may not be as good as the one Matt and I tried go to bagelrecipes.net. We chose to try the New York Style bagels, but we changed a few things, because I'm just Emily like that.
Emily Style Bagels:
A large pot of water
2 large eggs
1 egg white
1 packet of active dry yeast
4 cups of all-purpose flour
1 cup of warm water
¼ cup of vegetable oil
1 ½ tablespoons of sugar
½ tablespoon of salt
In a small bowl pour 1/2 cup of warm(if it feels warm on your hand it's good; if you feel heat, no good) and sprinkle the packet of yeast on top. Mix the yeast into the water and let sit till a little foamy.
In a large bowl add the flour, 1/2 cup of water, 1/4 cup of vegetable oil, 1 and 1/2 tablespoons sugar, and 1/2 tablespoon of salt. Add in the yeast mixture and the whole eggs.
Knead the dough for 10 minutes or until smooth. Pour some oil into the bowl and turn the dough into it so that it is all slightly oily. Cover and let sit in a warm area for 60 minutes.
Separate into 16 equal pieces. Roll into snakes about 6 inches long and 3/4 inch thick. Form it into a circle. I find the easiest way to do this is to kind of roll the ends around each other and pinch and reform around. This way it won't come undone during the boiling process.
Cover the circles and let rest for 20 minutes.
Bring the large pot of water to a boil. I have a pretty big pot, so we were able to do 4 bagels at a time, but consider that the bagels will double in size so don't over crowd. Boil each bagel for 3 minutes and flip half way.
Mix the egg white and about 2 tablespoons of water in a bowl. Beat till sort of foamy. Wash each boiled bagel with the egg white mixture and bake at 450 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes or until toasty and brown.
I think I could eat these every morning. And the best part I bought flour and yeast so cost of 16 homemade bagels around $1. How sweet is that?
Bagel day was a success. I hope you enjoy the pictures and the video of me kneading. Matt felt if you saw it you would understand a little better. I hope to make bagels again soon. Maybe next time I'll play around with flavors and toppings. I would be in heaven if I could make the french toast bagels I had at that little cafe at home.
Happy Eating!!!
Emily
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