Baking Bagels

I used to be scared of yeast. Not in a run screaming sort of way, more in an I'm-too-scared-to-use-it-because-I'm-going-to-kill-the-little-yeasty-beasties-and-ruin-my-bread way. It seemed so difficult to get the liquid to the right temperature, warm enough to make it bubble but not hot enough to kill the yeast. Then I found recipes that called for instant yeast, and they seemed way less complicated.

With instant yeast, you just add it straight to the flour. I love it - one less bowl to wash and no sitting on the edge of my seat waiting to see if the yeast and liquid mixture bubbles. You can find instant yeast in some grocery stores, but if yours doesn't sell it, you can always order it online (KingArthurFlour.com sells it).*

These bagels are so easy to make, they always turn out great, and they don't take long at all (at least they don't take long when compared to other bread recipes). I got the recipe from KingArthurFlour.com

To make them, you combine 4 cups bread flour, 1 tbsp instant yeast, 2 tsp salt, 1 tbsp brown sugar (or non-diastatic malt powder - but I don't know what that is or where to find it in the store, so I use brown sugar), and 1 1/2 cups luke warm water.

Knead the mixture by hand or with a mixer until it's smooth. If you have a stand mixer and a dough hook, just throw everything in the bowl of the mixer, turn in on low, and just let it mix for about 10 minutes.

To knead by hand, first stir ingredients together, then turn out onto a clean surface. Fold dough into thirds, turn 90 degrees and fold into thirds again. Continue about 10 - 15 minutes, or until the dough is smooth. The bread flour keeps it from being as sticky as white sandwich bread, so it's not too messy and doesn't coat your hands, but it does require more effort to knead.

Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover with a clean towel, and let it sit and rise for 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

Separate the dough into 8 sections and form into balls. Cover those and let them sit for about 30 minutes.

While the dough is resting, preheat the oven to 425 degrees and prepare a cookie sheet by covering it with parchment paper or lightly greasing it.

Then, prepare the water bath. Combine 2 quarts of water, 2 tbsp brown sugar, and 1 tbsp granulated sugar in a wide diameter pan. I use a high sided wok. Bring it to a boil.

Poke a hole in each piece of dough with your fingers and gently stretch out the dough. I use the handle of a wooden spoon to transfer the bagels to the water bath.

Boil the bagels for 2 minutes on one side and 1 minute on the other side. Then transfer to the cookie sheet. Put the prettiest side facing up if you care about how they look.

Bake for 20-30 minutes at 425 degrees.

We use these for sandwiches, for breakfast smothered with cream cheese, and just as snacks. They don't last very long here.

They take a total of 2- 3 hours to make, and most of that is just waiting for the dough to rise. I love how easy they are to make and how they always turn out right.

*Rapid rise, or bread machine yeast, is easier to find in stores and I've used it in this recipe with no problem, but it can't be substituted for instant yeast in every recipe. Rapid rise yeast works only for recipes that just have one rise; if the recipe has multiple rises, you need instant yeast