Bagels

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Growing up, bagels or (non-sugared) cereal were what we ate for breakfast regularly. On weekends my mom would make us these baked pancakes with apples and cinnamon, but most of the time it was bagels.

In fact, until I went away to college I had never even tasted a Pop Tart or eaten a doughnut for breakfast, and to this day, doughnuts for breakfast are just odd to me. I’ve been told this is a Jewish thing.

Back to the bagel. There are two kinds of bagels: good bagels and bad bagels. Good bagels have a tough exterior and are chewy on the inside. Bad bagels have a soft exterior and are bready on the inside. Seriously, it’s that simple.

My family would usually buy a dozen bagels at a time, and we’d eat them throughout the week, in various ways. For breakfast you can eat them with a schmear (and lox), with jelly, with melted cheese, you name it. At lunch time, you can use a bagel in place of loaf bread in a sandwich. And for dinner–the pizza bagel (my sister and I loved these)! See, bagels are a multi-purpose food. And you can freeze them too. Which is what I did with some of these.

And surprisingly, they weren’t that difficult to make. As with most breads, there was a lot of waiting time, but other than that, the recipe was pretty simple. Unfortunately, mine are ugly and probably could have used more time to initially rise, but I was impatient and my apartment was getting warm (this is when I mention it was 75 degrees here yesterday, don’t hate me.)

Sponge Ingredients
1 teaspoon instant yeast
4 cups unbleached high-gluten or bread flour (I used bread flour)
2 1/2 cups water, room temperature

Dough Ingredients
1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
3 3/4 cups unbleached high-gluten or bread flour (I used bread flour)
2 3/4 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons malt powder or 1 tablespoon dark or light malt syrup, honey, or brown sugar (I used brown sugar)

To Finish
1 tablespoon baking soda
Cornmeal or semolina flour for dusting
Sesame seeds, poppy seeds, kosher salt, rehydrated dried minced garlic or onions, or chopped onions that have been tossed in oil (optional)

Day one

1. To make the sponge, stir the yeast into the flour in a 4-quart mixing bowl. Add the water, whisking or stirring only until it forms a smooth, sticky batter. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature for approximately 2 hours, or until the mixture becomes very foamy and bubbly. It should swell to nearly double in size and collapse when the bowl is tapped on the countertop.
2. To make the dough, in the same mixing bowl (or in the bowl of an electric mixer), add the additional yeast to the sponge and stir. Then add 3 cups of the flour and all of the salt and malt (I used brown sugar.). Stir (or mix on low speed with the dough hook) until the ingredients form a ball, slowly working in the remaining 3/4 cup flour to stiffen the dough.
3. Transfer the dough to the counter and knead for at least 10 minutes (or for 6 minutes by machine). The dough should be firm, stiffer than French bread dough, but still pliable and smooth. There should be no raw flour – all ingredients should be hydrated. The dough should pass the windowpane test and register 77 to 71 degrees F. If the dough seems to dry and rips, add a few drops of water and continue kneading. If the dough seems tacky or sticky, add more flour to achieve the stiffness required. The kneaded dough should feel satiny and pliable but not be tacky.
4. Immediately divide the dough into 4 1/2 ounce pieces for standard bagels, or smaller if desired. Form the pieces into rolls.
5. Cover the rolls with a damp towel and allow them to rest for approximately 20 minutes.
6. Line 2 sheet pans with baking parchment and mist lightly with spray oil. Proceed with one of the following shaping methods:
• Method 1: Poke a hole in a ball of bagel dough and gently rotate your thumb around the inside of the hole to widen it to approximately 2 1/2 inches in diameter (half of this for a mini-bagel). The dough should be as evenly stretched as possible (try to avoid thick and thin spots.)
• Method 2: Roll out the dough into an 8-inch long rope. (This may require rolling part of the way and resting if the pieces are too elastic and snap back, in which case, allow them to rest for 3 minutes and then extend them again to bring to full length. Wrap the dough around the palm and back of your hand, between the thumb and forefinger, overlapping the ends by several inches. Press the overlapping ends on the counter with the palm of your hand, rocking back and forth to seal.
7. Place each of the shaped pieces 2 inches apart on the pans. Mist the bagels very lightly with the spray oil and slip each pan into a food-grade plastic bag, or cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let the pans sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes.
8. Check to see if the bagels are ready to be retarded in the refrigerator by using the “float test.” Fill a small bowl with cool or room-temperature water. The bagels are ready to be retarded when they float within 10 seconds of being dropped into the water. Take one bagel and test it. If it floats, immediately return the tester bagel to the pan, pat it dry, cover the pan, and place it in the refrigerator overnight (it can stay in the refrigerator for up to 2 days). If the bagel does not float. Return it to the pan and continue to proof the dough at room temperature, checking back every 10 to 20 minutes or so until a tester floats. The time needed to accomplish the float will vary, depending on the ambient temperature and the stiffness of the dough.

The Following Day

1. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F with the two racks set in the middle of the oven. Bring a large pot of water to a boil (the wider the pot the better), and add the baking soda. Have a slotted spoon or skimmer nearby.
2. Remove the bagels from the refrigerator and gently drop them into the water, boiling only as many as comfortably fit (they should float within 10 seconds). After 1 minute flip them over and boil for another minute. If you like very chewy bagels, you can extend the boiling to 2 minutes per side. While the bagels are boiling, sprinkle the same parchment-lined sheet pans with cornmeal or semolina flour. (If you decide to replace the paper, be sure to spray the new paper lightly with spray oil to prevent the bagels from sticking to the surface.) If you want to top the bagels, do so as soon as they come out of the water. You can use any of the suggestions in the ingredients list or a combination.
3. When all the bagels have been boiled, place the pans on the 2 middle shelves in the oven. Bake for approximately 5 minutes, then rotate the pans, switching shelves and giving the pans a 180-degree rotation. (If you are baking only 1 pan, keep it on the center shelf but still rotate 180 degrees.) After the rotation, lower the oven setting to 450 degrees F and continue baking for about 5 minutes, or until the bagels turn light golden brown. You may bake them darker if you prefer.
4. Remove the pans from the oven and let the bagels cool on a rack for 15 minutes or longer before serving.

Recipe from Peter Reinhart via Smitten Kitchen.

Sugared Peanuts

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When I was kid, every year just before Labor Day my dad and I were among the first people to visit The Franklin Cider Mill when it opened for the season. We would gorge ourselves on fresh apple cider (you could even watch the wheel crush the apples!) and hot greasy doughnuts, fresh from the fryer. And there was always a caramel apple that would find its way to our house too.

You’re probably wondering why I’m telling you about a cider mill in a post about peanuts, aren’t you? Well, it’s the smell. The smell of the sugar and spices coating the peanuts while heating in the oven smelled exactly like the cider mill. And for a few hours, my apartment here in Los Angeles smelled like my childhood in Michigan. Trippy. And delicious.

And so are these peanuts. Of course, the original recipe called for pecans, but I’m not a fan so I subbed in peanuts. I’m pretty sure you could use most kinds of nuts. Anyway, these are the kinds of nuts that would go well in a salad, but trust me, they’re just as yummy going straight from your hand to your mouth!

Ingredients
1/2 cup butter or margarine, melted
2 egg whites
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons apple pie spice
1 pound peanuts

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 325°F. Pour butter into a 15 1/2×10 1/2×1-inch jelly roll pan. (I used a Silpat on top of parchment on the pan because my cookie sheet has seen better days.)
2. In large bowl, beat egg whites and salt until foamy. Gradually add sugar and apple pie spice, beating just until blended. Add peanuts and stir to coat.
3. Spread peanuts in a single layer in prepared pan. Bake about 30 minutes or until peanuts are crisp and butter is absorbed, turning peanuts over with a metal spatula every 10 minutes. Cool peanuts on baking sheet until crisp, about 2 hours. Store tightly covered.

Makes about 4 cups.

Recipe adapted from Domino Sugar.

Cookbook Giveaway!

The kind folks at Sasquatch Books have given me an advance copy of Flying Apron‘s Gluten-Free & Vegan Baking Book. Even better, they’re giving a copy to one of my lucky readers as well! The cookbook is filled with all kinds of yummy recipes–muffins, scones, cakes, and even soups and main dishes.

To enter, leave a comment below telling me where you live and what you do for a living. (I’m trying to find out more about my readers, I promise I won’t stalk you.)

Contest ends at 11:59 p.m. PST on Sunday, December 15, 2009. One winner will be selected at random on Monday, December 16 and contacted by email shortly thereafter. Please note this contest is only open to residents of the U.S. and Canada.

***CONTEST IS NOW CLOSED.***

Apple Brown Sugar Tart

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Every now and then someone tries something I’ve baked and finds it so good that they ask me to make it and they’ll pay me for it. This is one of those recipes.

Earlier today we had a huge Thanksgiving lunch at work, and when the sign up sheet went around last week, I of course knew I had to make a dessert. (Trust me, you don’t want me cooking for you.) I hate anything pumpkin related, so when I saw this recipe for an apple brown sugar tart, I was smitten. As you know by now, I love anything with brown sugar. This did not disappointment.

The crust was buttery and held its shape well, and the orange marmalade was a nice touch with the apples. I’m still on the fence about the addition of the tapioca, mainly because it looks weird, but I think it works as a thickening agent. (Can anyone back me up on that one?)

Photos of the process here.

Shell Ingredients
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup sweet cream butter
1 large egg

Filling Ingredients
3 apples, approx. 1½ lb., choose between Gala or Pink Lady
1/3 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
2 tbsp. orange juice
1 tbsp. instant tapioca
3 tbsp. orange marmalade

Shell Preparation

1. In a cake or pie pan, toast ½ cup (2 oz.) slivered almonds in a 350° oven until golden, shaking often, about 10 minutes.
2. In a food processor or bowl, combine almonds, 1¼ cups all-purpose flour, and ¼ cup firmly packed light brown sugar. Add ½ cup (¼ lb.) butter, cut into pieces; whirl or rub with your fingers until fine crumbs form.
3. Add 1 egg yolk; whirl or mix with a fork until dough sticks together. Pat into a ball.
4. Press dough over bottom and up sides, flush with rim, of a 9- or 10-inch fluted tart pan with removable rim.

Filling Preparation

1. Rinse apples and peel or leave skin on as desired. Core apples and cut into ¼-inch thick slices. In a bowl, gently mix apple slices with 2 tbsp. of the brown sugar, orange juice, and tapioca. Let rest 10 minutes to soften tapioca, then overlap slices neatly in unbaked tart shell.
2. In a glass-measuring cup, combine remaining ¼ cup of the brown sugar and marmalade. Heat in a microwave at full power in 30-second intervals, stirring each time, until marmalade is melted. Evenly spread over apple slices.
3. Bake in a 350° oven until crust is well browned and apples are tender when pierced, about 45 minutes (mine was done in about 40). Let tart cool on a rack at least 15 minutes. Serve warm or cool, cut into wedges, with ice cream if desired.

Recipe adapted from Safeway.

Oatmeal Mini Pieces Cookies

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I discovered these mini Reese’s Pieces at the market last week and immediately decided I had to buy them. I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do with them though, so when I noticed the recipe on the bag I figured I’d give it a try. I’m glad I did–these are cookies E.T. would devour in a heartbeat.

And as much as I wish E.T. could have eaten them, I was pretty satisfied that my new coworkers (yes, I got a job–a two month freelance gig, but it’s a job!) gobbled them up well before lunch. And I can’t blame them. The cookies are the perfect texture–chewy on the inside, crispy on the outside, and have wonderful flavor and crunch from the Reese’s Pieces. I’ll definitely be making these again!

Ingredients
2/3 cup shortening
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons milk
1 1/2 cups oatmeal
1 1/3 cups Reese’s pieces (10 oz pkg)

Preparation

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease cookie sheet.
2. Cream shortening, brown sugar, granulated sugar in large bowl until fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Stir together flour, baking soda, salt. Add alternately with milk to sugar mixture. Stir in oats and candy pieces.
3. Drop by scant 1/4 cupfuls or #16 scoop onto prepared pan. (I used a medium size cookie scoop.)
4. Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until lightly browned. Cool 10 minutes on cookie sheet. Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Cool completely. About 1 dozen cookies. (I got about two dozen using the smaller scoop.)

Recipe adapted from bag of mini Reese’s Pieces.
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Don’t forget you can still win free butter!

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