Slate's got my (bagel's) back.

Still not about the toaster, which is still coming, and will totally be worth it, but...

I had one of those "hey, that's me" moments while reading Slate today. I was flipping through their headline articles and came across an article about the cost effectiveness about home baking. It's quite a good article, and quite interesting - the author, Jennifer Reese, actually did a fairly comprehensive cost comparison of six different foods she regularly eats. But the best bit is this:

Bagels
There's so much mystique surrounding bagels (water vs. egg? How should you shape them? etc.), I doubted my attempts to bake them would amount to much. But aside from shaping the dough into tidy rings, which I find unaccountably impossible, bagels are one of the quickest, easiest breads you can make. I tried five different recipes, from Jewish cooking guru Joan Nathan's to the fabled Montreal bagels, which are heavier and sweeter. But the one I fell for, and have now baked a half-dozen times, is from Bernard Clayton's New Book of Breads. These are "Jo Goldenberg's bagels," named for a restaurant-deli in Paris (figures) where they were once sold. You can start these chewy, flavorful bagels at 8 on a Sunday morning and serve them to brunch guests at 11. They will be awestruck.

Cheaper than store-bought? Dramatically. If you break down the cost of Clayton's recipe, it works out to 23 cents per bagel. Moreover, if you use bulk yeast, which you should if you do much baking, the price drops to 15 cents. By comparison, one of Thomas' so-called "bagels" is 45 cents. A fresh bagel from Noah's in San Francisco: 75 cents. At H&H Bagels in New York City: $1.20!

Better than store-bought? These are by far the best bagels I've ever eaten.

Make or buy? Make.

I have two main thoughts about this.

Number one, I have actual acknowledgement that it is impossible to get smooth rings, which no one ever mentions in recipes. I've never been able to do it, so I've felt somewhat inadequate in that I've never been able to do it. So at least someone has come out and said it. Phew.

Number two, she's totally backing up my feeling that bagels are way easier to make than commonly thought and are way better than buying. 

So don't just take my word for it - take Jennifer Reese's too. 

(I've now even added it as a "thing to go" when we all get together! Yay, I'm now officially obsessed. Woo hoo!)

Rats.

I was planning to do a proper post today - but got wrapped up with other things (including cooking my first ever ham) and now bedtime is rapidly approaching and I don't feel like blogging. But I said I was going to post something today, so I felt like I had to say something.

But I did at least move towards being able to blog about our toaster - I recorded a video during the toasting of my english muffin this morning, and Mark has uploaded the file, so I'm one step closer to being able to spread the word on toaster technology. Soon. Ish.

Recipe number six: Cauliflower tortellini cheese.

Another really easy one - it's definitely a theme I have going when it comes to cooking in the middle of the week. This may look a bit familiar, since it uses a lot of the same ingredients as recipe number five. I'm assuming that the fresh stuffed pasta and sauce are as common over in the US as they are here - they're really easy to pick up, which makes this dish even easier to make.

Preheat the broiler.

Bring a large pan of salted water to a boil. Add 1 large head of cauliflower, trimmed and cut into small florets.

Cook for 3 minutes and then add a pack (300g/11 ounce) package of fresh cheese tortellini (or other stuffed pasta). Cook for a further 3-5 minutes - whenever the cauliflower is tender.

Drain well, reserving 100ml/1/3 cup of the cooking liquid, and tip into a large gratin dish.

Heat 500g/2 cups(??) of cheese pasta sauce in a pan.

Add a pack of fresh baby spinach leaves and the reserved cooking liquid and stir until the spinach wilts.

Pour the sauce over the pasta and cauliflower and scatter with about 1 cup of halved cherry tomatoes.

Tear/grate about 150g/1 cup of mozzarella cheese and scatter over the top.

Broil for 5 minutes or until golden and bubbling.

Taste scores

Mark: 7

Jessica: 8

Ease of preparation: 10

Do it again? Yes.

Recommend? Yes, and I think I like this one better than recipe five - it's really similar, but the cauliflower - pasta mix is interesting, and yummy. Not exactly healthy, since it's heavy on the cheese, but the spinach helps...

Recipe number five: Cheese and tuna pasta bake.

This one is not very exciting, but it's quick and easy, which is something we like! I've adjusted it a bit from the original version - we've had it twice and the second time I added more tomato and cheese, which I think made it better - the approximate measurements from the second time are below.

Preheat oven to 375.

Cook 3 cups of fusilli pasta (or whatever noodle you like).

Meanwhile, heat 1 TB olive oil in a pan. Add 2 finely chopped red onions, and saute until soft.

Add a bag of spinach (300 grams - I have no idea what this is in cups or ounces!) and cook until wilted.

Drain the cooked pasta and add to the onion and spinach.

Stir in 2 cans of chopped tomatoes and two cans of tuna chunks. Season with salt and pepper.

Transfer the mixture to an oven proof dish. Top with about 8 ounces of mozzarella cheese (grated or sliced, depending on what kind of mozzarella you use).

Sprinkle with breadcrumbs.

Bake about 20 minutes until piping hot and bread crumbs have browned.

Taste scores

Mark: 6

Jessica: 6 (like I said, not very exciting!)

Ease of preparation: 10 (the only thing easier is picking up the phone and ordering pizza).

Do it again? Yes, and we already have...

Recommend? I would - but be warned, it isn't bland, but it's only a couple of steps away...