Here's A Bagel Recipe

* Exported from MasterCook *

HERE'S A BAGEL RECIPE

Recipe By :
Serving Size : 4 Preparation Time :0:00
Categories : Breads

Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method
-------- ------------ --------------------------------
6 c (to 8c) bread (high-gluten)
-flour
4 tb Dry baking yeast
6 tb Granulated white sugar or
-light honey (clover honey
-is good)
2 ts Salt
3 c Hot water
A bit of vegetable oil
1 Gallon water
5 tb Malt syrup or sugar
A few handfuls of cornmeal
Large mixing bowl
Wire whisk
Measuring cups and spoons
Wooden mixing spoon
Butter knife or baker's
-dough blade
Clean, dry surface for
-kneading
3 clean, dry kitchen towels
Warm, but not hot, place to
-set dough to rise
Large stockpot
Slotted spoon
2 baking sheets

First, pour three cups of hot water into the mixing
bowl. The water should be hot, but not so hot that
you can't bear to put your fingers in it for several
seconds at a time. Add the sugar or honey and stir it
with your fingers (a good way to make sure the water
is not too hot) or with a wire whisk to dissolve.
Sprinkle the yeast over the surface of the water, and
stir to dissolve.

Wait about ten minutes for the yeast to begin to
revive and grow. This is known as "proofing" the
yeast, which simply means that you're checking to make
sure your yeast is viable. Skipping this step could
result in your trying to make bagels with dead yeast,
which results in bagels so hard and potentially
dangerous that they are banned under the terms of the
Geneva Convention. You will know that the yeast is
okay if it begins to foam and exude a sweetish,
slightly beery smell.

At this point, add about three cups of flour as well
as the 2 tsp of salt to the water and yeast and begin
mixing it in. Some people subscribe to the theory
that it is easier to tell what's going on with the
dough if you use your hands rather than a spoon to mix
things into the dough, but others prefer the less
physically direct spoon. As an advocate of the
bare-knuckles school of baking, I proffer the
following advice: clip your fingernails, take off your
rings and wristwatch, and wash your hands thoroughly
to the elbows, like a surgeon. Then you may dive into
the dough with impunity. I generally use my right
hand to mix, so that my left is free to add flour and
other ingredients and to hold the bowl steady.
Left-handed people might find that the reverse works
better for them. Having one hand clean and free to
perform various tasks works best.

When you have incorporated the first three cups of
flour, the dough should begin to become thick-ish.
Add more flour, a half-cup or so at a time, and mix
each addition thoroughly before adding more flour. As
the dough gets thicker, add less and less flour at a
time. Soon you will begin to knead it by hand (if
you're using your hands to mix the dough in the first
place, this segue is hardly noticeable). If you have
a big enough and shallow enough bowl, use it as the
kneading bowl, otherwise use that clean, dry, flat
countertop or tabletop mentioned in the "Equipment"
list above. Sprinkle your work surface or bowl with a
handful of flour, put your dough on top, and start
kneading. Add bits of flour if necessary to keep the
dough from sticking (to your hands, to the bowl or
countertop, etc....). Soon you should have a nice
stiff dough. It will be quite elastic, but heavy and
stiffer than a normal bread dough. Do not make it too
dry, however... it should still give easily and
stretch easily without tearing.

Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, and cover
with one of your clean kitchen towels, dampened
somewhat by getting it wet and then wringing it out
thoroughly. If you swish the dough around in the
bowl, you can get the whole ball of dough covered with
a very thin fil of oil, which will keep it from drying
out.

Place the bowl with the dough in it in a dry, warm
(but not hot)pace, free from drafts. Allow it to rise
until doubled in volume. Some people try to
accelerate rising by putting the dough in the oven,
where the pilot lights keep the temperature slightly
elevated. If it's cold in your kitchen, you can try
this, but remember to leave the oven door open or it
may become too hot and begin to kill the yeast and
cook the dough. An ambient temperature of about 80
degrees Farenheit (25 centigrades) is ideal for rising
dough.

While the dough is rising, fill your stockpot with
about a gallon of water and set it on the fire to
boil. When it reaches a boil, add the malt syrup or
sugar and reduce the heat so that the water just
barely simmers; the surface of the water should hardly
move. Submitted By HUNT@AUSTIN.METROWERKS.COM (ERIC
HUNT) On 15 MAR 1995 064641 -0700



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