After much hemming and hawing, I settled on the recipe at cdkitchen online. It seemed to be not overly complicated, but not overly simplified either. I substituted brown sugar for the malt powder, since I couldn't find any at our local store. I think you can get it from places like Whole Foods, and I'll keep an eye open for it, but it didn't seem like the end of the world that I didn't have it.
I also used the egg wash, as suggested by one of the reviewers. I went completely plain, no toppings, just so I could test out the basic recipe first and then start experimenting after that, depending on the outcome.
The outcome? Pretty good!
They came out a little dark, but that was mostly because of the egg wash I think - they weren't burnt, and I don't think I would have wanted to cook them for any less (I did the minimum suggested time - 17 minutes). They also all lost their holes - there were still indentations at the top, but when I cut through, it was all solid. I don't really know how that happened - they seemed ok when I put them in the oven. I guess I need to just widen them out a bit right before I put them in.
At first when I cut them open they kind of looked like they were going to taste like every other bread item I've ever baked. (For some reason, no matter what bread recipe I use, it always ends up tasting exactly the same.) But the taste test proved that not quite the case - it definitely tasted like a bagel. Maybe not really really bagelly, but still a real bagel. And the crisp crust from the egg wash on the outside was very nice - a definite improvement over the store bought kind.
All in all, I'd say it was a success, taste-wise, and we'll see how they are tomorrow, toasted. I was amazed at how not-work-intensive they were - probably about 90 minutes from start to finish, if that, and a lot of that was just waiting time while they were rest or rising or baking. The boiling was a bit weird, since it's the first time I've ever boiled bread or dough or anything like that, but it took no time at all. The only thing that took any effort whatsoever was the mixing and kneading. The mixing wasn't bad because I used my electric mixer with a dough hook and the kneading is enjoyable. Not bad at all, and with a bread machine I'm sure they'll be a piece of cake. Bagel.
Taste scores
Mark: 8
Jessica: 7 (I think I can get it closer to bagel nirvana)
Ease of preparation: 7
Do it again? Yes, definitely but with improvements: try to keep the hole, try toppings and/or possibly blueberries, even if it means I get harangued by bagel purists. I may also try this other New York bagel recipe. It is pretty different from all of the other recipes I looked at, and does crazy stuff like use potato water, so it may just be the thing to make a super duper New York bagel rather than just a kind of normal bagel. We'll see. And I will try to find the malt syrup/powder, just in case it actually does make a difference.
Recommend? Yes, definitely. I now firmly believe that everyone should make bagels from scratch, at least once!
6 comments:
nice job - i guess your dad and i will have to try making the new york recipe that u had a link to......
hope u r having a great week-end....mom
Update from the second day - they still taste good and a bit more bagelly. I think we were just a little too impatient yesterday and ate them before they had a chance to cool and rest and let the flavors settle. Or something.
I'll have to try them in the bread machine!
Yea, Jessica!
(My word verification is "baliguie"!!)
Is that when bagels are undercooked?
I see in your DVD list you have Das Boot. I have (or had) a copy of it. I only watched it once - it still haunts me! Don't know if I could watch it again. The scene where they are stuck on the bottom in Dover channel... too intense!
Hope you enjoy it.
(funny aside - the verification word for this comment is "mooll". With reference to your reply to Julie... it sounds like cow slobber.)
Yes, I was going to mention that. I remember Das Boot being the only movie that I remember you buying and owning, but I don't remember your ever watching it, at least not when I was around.
We did enjoy it - it was the "Director's Cut" so there was a lot of time spent at the bottom of the channel, waiting, which was really intense. I don't think I could ever watch it again, even though it is a really well made film! I'd still recommend it to anyone, though.
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