One of our favorite ways to begin a weekend morning is with a fresh and warm bagel and cream cheese. While we certainly have some favorite local bagel shops, we decided to try to make some of our own. The process itself is a bit time consuming but the results - pillowy soft and airy bagels - are well worth the effort. This is a fun project for a calm weekend morning and freezing the bagels will allow you to enjoy them for weeks or months to come. These bagels are relatively small, so plan on one and a half or two per person, and you can experiment with toppings of your choice. We used the classic "everything" toppings - garlic, sesame seed, poppy seed, and salt - but are looking forward to experimenting with more flavors in the future. To top them off, we made raisin walnut cream cheese which added a wonderful sweetness and crunch. Start off your next weekend with this delicious treat and let us know what toppings you like best!
Whole Wheat Bagels
Adapted from Naturally Ella
1 cup warm water
2 tsp yeast
2 tbs sugar or honey
1 tsp salt
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup bread flour
Toppings of your choice
Combine water, yeast, and half of the sugar or honey. Stir and allow to sit until yeast begins to foam, about 5-10 minutes. Add flours, salt, and olive oil and kneed by hand or in stand mixer for 10 minutes until you have a soft and barely sticky dough. Cut into 8 equal pieces, cover with towel, and rest for 20-30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 425°F and begin bringing a large pot of water to a boil. Roll each ball of dough into a long line, then pinch ends together to create a circle. Be sure to leave about 2 inches open in the middle so that the whole doesn't close up during the rise. Cover with towel and rest for another 20-30 minutes.
Meanwhile, prepare toppings and combine in a wide, shallow bowl. Also bring a large pot of water to a boil and add remaining sweetener once boiled.
Gently place as many bagels as will fit in one layer into the boiling water and boil for 1 minute on each side. Remove from water and dip into toppings. Bake bagels on a cooling rack for 10 minutes on each side.
Serve warm with cream cheese or your preferred spread. Makes 8 small bagels.
