Food for Thought: Homemade Bagels? Yes, You Can

DOUG REYNICS

We had a thing in our family for bagels. I grew up in New Jersey, and we frequented a bagel kitchen in the basement of a threestory home in Clifton. You’d park, then go down to the basement entry, where your eyeglasses would fog from the kitchen steam and the smells of so many fresh bagels would fill your nostrils. I was a poppy seed guy. Each Saturday, my dad would drive us to the bagel kitchen for us to pick our favorite bagels, then we would drive by the front of the theatre for the early Sunday edition of the New York Daily News. Of course, we would have to eat at least one bagel on the way home while they were still warm.

My dad passed away a few weeks ago, and family and friends actually talked about the bagel kitchen at my Dad’s funeral. During the recent pandemic, when many of my friends were finding comfort in baking bread, I decided to plunge headfirst into trying different recipes for New York-style boil and bake bagels. Each Sunday, I would freely share my results, but I quickly figured out my favorite recipe, as close to that Clifton bagel kitchen as I could get – based on the New York Style Bagel Recipe from sophisticatedgourmet. com. Making these bagels in my own kitchen brought me comfort during a difficult time, and always bring warm memories of Dad and Clifton.

Ingredients

2 teaspoons active dry yeast 4 ½ teaspoons granulated sugar 1 ¼ cups warm water (you may need ± 1/4 cup more) 3 ½ cups bread flour or high gluten flour (you may need up to 1/2 cup for kneading) ½ teaspoons salt

Toppings

While I’m partial to poppy seed, there are endless options to top your batch: Everything Bagel seasoning, minced fresh garlic, minced fresh onion or shallot, sesame seeds, caraway seeds, coarse salt, and cinnamon sugar are just a few additional options.

1. In ½ cup of warm water, pour in sugar and yeast. Don’t stir. Let sit for 5 minutes, then stir the yeast and sugar mixture until it dissolves in water. 2. Mix flour and salt in large bowl. Make a well in middle and pour in the yeast and sugar mixture. 3. Pour 1/3 cup of warm water in the well. Mix and stir in the rest of the water (the scant 1/2 cup that is remaining), as needed. You may need to add an additional couple tablespoons to about ¼ cup of water. You want a moist firm dough after you have mixed it. 4. On a floured countertop, knead the dough for 10 minutes until it is smooth and elastic. Try working in as much flour as possible to form a firm and stiff dough. 5. Lightly brush a large bowl with oil and turn the dough to coat. Cover the bowl with a damp dish towel. Let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, until the dough has doubled in size. Punch the dough down, and let rest for another 10 minutes. 6. Carefully divide the dough into 8 pieces. Shape each piece into a round. Take a dough ball, press it gently against the countertop, moving your hand and the ball in a circular motion pulling the dough into itself while reducing the pressure on top of the dough slightly until a perfect dough ball forms. Repeat with 7 other dough rounds. 7. Coat finger in flour, and press your finger into the center of each dough ball to form a ring. Stretch the ring to about the diameter of the bagel and place on a lightly oiled cookie sheet. Repeat the same step with the remaining dough. 8. After shaping the bagels and placing them on the cookie sheet, cover with a damp kitchen towel and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Preheat your oven to 425ºF. 9. Bring large pot of water to boil. Reduce heat. Use slotted spoon to lower the bagels into water. Boil 2-3 at a time. Once the bagels are in, it shouldn’t take too long for them to float to the top (a couple seconds). Let them sit 1 minute, then flip over to boil another minute. Extend boiling times to 2 minutes each, if you’d prefer a chewier bagel. 10. If you want to add toppings to your bagels, do so as you take them out of the water. 11. Once the bagels have boiled and topped with your choice of toppings, transfer to oiled or parchment-lined baking sheet. 12. Bake for 20 - 25 minutes, or until golden brown. 13. Cool on wire rack.

If you do make a batch, please share with me your process and a picture or two. Let me know how you enjoyed this recipe.

DOUG REYNICS is a longtime Tucker resident and self-described “foodie.” Many know him as “Doug the Driver,” who provides rides to and from both the domestic and international airport terminals. (To date, his service has provided almost 2,300 airport rides!) If you have a food story or question you would like to see him write about (or if you need a ride!), email him at dougthedriver1@gmail.com or call him at 770.842.4261.