Sesame and Sea Salt BAGELS

Now, to me a fresh loaf with better on is just one of life’s biggest pleasures. So I love to make bread and it’s a weekly tradition of mine. There’s something SO satisfying about the processing of combining, kneading, proving and baking dough to make your own bread. It gives a real sense of of achievement.

Now, these bagels aren’t quite as simple as a traditional loaf of bread, but they’re SO worth it. Bagels have the most delicious chewy shiny outside with a soft doughy middle I meaaaaan does it get any better. This unique texture is created by the specific way you make them to pay attention to the surprise step!

Your family and friends are sure to be impressed when you whip these up for a weekend breakfast, or any day, at anytime.

Enjoy and happy baking! Claudia x

INGREDIENTS

7g fast action yeast

500g strong white bread flour

2tbsp light brown sugar

1tbsp bicarbonate

1 egg to glaze

Black sesame seeds and sea salt to top – but top with whatever seeds or toppings you want, these are yours to make your own of!

⁃ Combined the yeast with 350ml of lukewarm water and leave for 5 minutes or so until bubbling on top.

⁃ Put the flour, sugar and a pinch of salt in a large bowl and mix together. Then pour the yeasty water over and mix until a dough is beginning to come together.

⁃ Tip the dough out and knead until the dough is smooth, elastic and not sticky to touch. Roughly 10 minutes

⁃ (You can do the above steps by hand or using a stand mixer with a dough hook, whatever works best for you)

⁃ Lightly oil a bowl and put the dough in and cover with a tea towel. Leave in a warm place to prove for about 1-1.5 hours or until doubled in size.

⁃ Pour the dough back on the surface and divide into 10 equal balls (weigh the dough after proving and divide by 10 for extra precision!)

⁃ Line 2 baking trays with baking parchment and lay the balls out on them, giving them enough room to rise. Cover and leave again for 30 mins to prove.

⁃ To make a hole in each of the bagels, simply flour one of your fingers, poke it through the centre of the ball and “swizzle” it around your finger to create the hole. Be gentle as you don’t want to knock out any air or make the hole too big.

⁃ Pre heat your oven to 180C fan & bring a large saucepan to the boil. Once boiling, add the bicarbonate of soda to it, this will alkalise the water. Place 1-2 bagels in the water at a time and boil for 2 minutes, turning half way. (2 minutes will give you a chewier bagel which is how I like it, if you want less chew, boil for 1 minute instead)

⁃ Using a spoon with slots, remove the bagels and let them drain properly before putting back on the lined baking trays.

⁃ Brush the bagels with egg wash then cover with your choice of toppings. (They look a little wrinkly and weird at this point but I promiseeeeeee they turn out so good. Bake for 20-25 minutes until golden and gorgeous. They keep for 3-4 days or they freeze very well too. Enjoy!


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