New York-Style Bagels

Breakfast at our house just got a little more interesting.  My daughter loves bagels and cream cheese in the morning, however, I am not a big fan of store bought bagels.  Having said that,  I don't feel so bad about giving her bagels after making them myself.  I know the idea of making your own bagels might not be appealing, but they are pretty easy.  They are only time consuming because you have to wait for the dough to rise. After that, it's a breeze.

I loved how chewy the texture was, just like you'd get from a New York bakery.  I'll admit that I've never been to New York, (I know, I'm going, hopefully sooner than later) but I have had New York-Style bagels before, and these tasted just like them.

My daughter is not a fan of flavored varieties, so I just made a plain bagel for her.  I honestly had to keep reminding myself that they were for her.  After all, she would not appreciate me eating them all. They were soooo good.

If you find yourself with a little extra time on Sunday, try to make some bagels.  They are quick breakfasts on busy weekdays. Also great for school lunches!

New York-Style Bagels

Recipe from Sophisticated Gourmet

Ingredients

• 2 tsp active dry yeast
• 1 1/2 tsp granulated sugar
• 1 1/4 cups warm water (you might need up to 1/4 more)
• 3 1/2 cups bread flour + more for kneading
• 1 1/2 tsp salt

Cooking Directions

1. Use 1/2 cup of the warm water to add the yeast and sugar to. Do not stir, just let it sit for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes you can stir it until the sugar dissolves.
2. Place the flour and salt in a large bowl, stir together and make a well in the middle and pour the yeast/sugar mixture into it. 
3. Pour half the remaining warm water, into the well. You're looking for moist but firm dough.  You might need to add all the remaining water or just a little of it, depending on where you live. I had to use it all. 
4. On a floured surface, knead the dough for about 10 minutes, adding in as much flour as needed to make the dough smooth and elastic yet stiff. 
5. Coat a large bowl in oil and then form the dough into a ball and coat it in the oil and then cover the dough with plastic wrap or a wet towel and let rise in a warm place for about an hour until doubled in size. 
6. Punch down the dough and let sit for another 10 minutes. 
7. Divide the dough into 8 even pieces. Shape each piece into a ball.  Now take each dough ball and using your hand, gently roll the dough ball on your work surface until you have a perfect little dough ball. Repeat with the remaining 7 dough balls. 
8. After shaping into balls, place on a lightly greased cookie sheet and cover to let sit for another 10 minutes. 
9. Preheat the oven to 425º
10. Get a large pot filled with water and bring to a boil. 
11. Use a slotted spoon or skimmer to lower several bagels into the water. Once they rise to the top, let them boil for 1 minute (2 for chewier texture), then flip over and boil for 1 minute (2 for chewier texture) then remove to the lightly greased cookie sheet. If you're going to top the bagels with anything, now's the time but you will need to put an egg wash over the bagels so the toppings will stick first. 
12. Bake for 20 minutes, until golden brown.
13. Cool on a wire rack.