I am absolutely a fan of eating bagels. But I have never attempted to make them before now.
I had seen them made, so I knew that it was a two step cooking process. So I guess I had a little knowledge going in.
The dough is very soft. This, of course, makes it tricky to work with. It is. Very sticky as well. Once the flour is right and the kneading is complete the dough is less sticky, but stiff very soft.
Rolling the dough was pretty simple. My bagels were on the small side - definitely not a New York sized bagel! I actually think this was fine though. I liked that they were on the smaller side. I have trouble finishing a big bagel - I know, I’m strange.
You could easily cut the dough into 9 pieces and then roll it. You would have a much larger bagel. If you do this, make sure you adjust your cooking time for the larger pieces of dough.
Cooking the bagels in the sugar water gives them a little crust on the outside edges. This is vital to get the authentic bagel feel.
The bagels turned out perfectly. They were crunchy on the outside and soft on the inside. My husband grabbed one while it was hot and didn’t even bother putting cream cheese or butter or anything on it.
My daughter said they had a bit of a soft pretzel feel, I think this adequately describes the texture.
I am definitely going to be making these again - maybe playing with the flavors and toppings next!
Bagels
1 Cup Scalded Milk
1/4 Cup Butter
1 Tablespoon Sugar
1 Teaspoon Salt
1 Package Active Dry Yeast
1 to 2 Eggs
3 3/4 Cup Sifted All Purpose Flour
2 Quarts Hot Water
1 Tablespoon Sugar
1 Egg White, Beaten
Combine scalded milk, butter, sugar and salt in saucepan. When mixture reaches 105-115 degrees add yeast packet and dissolve. Blend in flour and enough of the eggs to form a soft dough. Knead dough 10 minutes, adding more flour if necessary. Let rise, covered, in a greased bowl until doubled in bulk. Punch dough and divide dough into 18 equal pieces. Roll each piece into a rope about 7 inches long with tapered ends. Wet ends and press together to seal. Let rise, covered, on a floured board for 15 minutes. Bring water to almost a boil with sugar dissolved in it. Drop dough rings one at a time into water. As bagels surface, turn them over and cook about 3 minutes more. Skim out and place on an ungreased cookie sheet. Coat with beaten egg white. Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown and crispy.
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