Bread, bread, bread, somehow I don't feel as guilty when I eat the bread I make myself, (all the kneading has got to burn some calories!) I got the bread making bug about 2 years ago and I can't stop making and baking the stuff. It's very therapeutic and there's something very rewarding about how every time I make some it gets better and better. It takes time, yes, but it's worth every second when you take fresh bread from the oven to eat it.
I use recipes when I bake bread, some of the best ones come from the 'Bread Baker's Apprentice', but they are laborious and fiddly and I rarely have the patience for them. The bagel recipe I'm going to share with you is from Nigella Lawson's, 'How to be a Domestic Godess', and as with everything in that book it's simple and divine. Since there's only two of us here and I have a freezer the size of a shoebox, boooo, I mostly cook only 2-4 portions of everything so I cut down the original family size recipe to a very manageable 4 bagels.
I say these are almost easy not because they're hard to make but because you'll have to invest some time into them. I hope you'll all go out and make some and enjoy the chewy fluffy goodness of home made bagels.
Adapted from Nigella Lawson, How to be a Domestic Godess
Makes 4 bagels
• 250gr of white flour, plus more as necessary for kneading
• 1/2 tsp of salt
• 3g of instant yeast
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 130mL warm water, plus more as needed
• 2 tablespoon of malt or honey, for poaching the bagels
• 2-3 baking sheets, oiled or greased
• Sesame seeds, poppyseeds, salt
You'll have to start this recipe the day before you want to eat them as they should sit in the fridge over night for the flavours to develop.
Day 1
Combine the flour, salt and yeast together in a large bowl, add the oil to the water. Make a well in the dry ingredients and add the liquid, mixing the dough with a spatula or wooden spoon until it's well combined.
Most bread recipes won't tell you this but I say to let the bread rest now. Rest it for 30 minutes. This let's all the ingredients get used to each other and make friends so it's easier to knead.
Knead the daylights out of your dough whack it around and smush it until it's soft and pliable for about 20 minutes. Stick the dough in a bowl and cover the bowl with clingfilm so there is not even a crack of air. Let your dough rest until it doubles in size — about 1-2 hours.
Punch down your dough and place it in the fridge.
Day 2
Pull out your dough and let it warm up about 30 minutes. Divide it into 4 equal pieces forming them into a ball.
Now we make the holes! The easiest and most effective way I've found is to stick a chopstick into the centre and stretch the dough into a loop. The hole should be about 2-3 cms wide.
Let the bagels proof for 1 hour until they are puffy and gorgeous.
Place your water to boil and set your oven to 225. When the water has come to a boil drop in the 2 tbsp of honey or malt and make sure it is dissolved.
Slowly drop your bagels into the slowly boiling water. Boil them 1 minute per side, they will already start to grow while in the water, very exciting!
Pull out your bagels and sprinkle whatever you like on them, I used coarse salt, poppyseeds and sesame seeds.
Place them in the oven immediately and bake them until they are browned, this will take anywhere from 15-30 minutes depending on your oven.
I had them for breakfast with some cheese and jam, I was much too lazy to run to the shops and get some cream cheese which I kind of regret now... Oh well, next time!
Please make these you won't regret it and let me know how they turn out.
Happy baking and happy eating.
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