Bagel Time

Recently a friend asked for a copy of the recipe I have been using to make bagels. Her request placed the idea in my head and since it has been a while since I made them myself, I decided to make some this week. Yes, the irony of my choosing to make bagels at Passover is not lost on me, but I'm not Jewish and I like bagels, so I'm at peace with it.

Of course I can never leave well enough alone so I thought I would try making whole wheat versions this time which threw a bit of a monkey wrench into the process. Suffice it to say I was faced with a few setbacks. First my dough sponge didn't rise properly (maybe it was the Passover thing after all) and after rereading the directions on the package of yeast I decided to start over and make a second batch. Now I had two slow rising sponges! Since this early misstep yielded me twice as much starter, I decided to make one batch of cinnamon raisin and one batch of everything bagels. Making twice as many added more time to the whole equation. When all was said and done, what should have taken 4 - 5 hours from start to finish took twice that. 

At midnight, when I had reached the final "floating" stage of the recipe - the dang stubborn things just didn't want to go there.  So they went into the fridge and I went to bed. Let's just say that after a good night's rest I managed to work it all out and today my bagels floated willingly in their boiling malt bath and baked up nicely. A few chewy, crusty, bagely bites later and all the trouble I had was forgiven.

Lunch

Toasted whole wheat everything bagel topped with tomato & feta bruschetta and a poached egg

Side of fresh fruit