Breakfast Bagels

I once again tried to fight the urge not to bake on my rest days...and once again I failed. However my urge was spurred on by the fact I reeeeally wanted to use my new KMix with the dough handles and I must admit, I was very impressed! I have NEVER made bread before or used yeast so im pretty happy with the results! Ever since I bought Lorraine Pascale's: A Lighter Way To Bake, I have always wanted to bake the second recipe in the book 'Beautiful Boiled Then Baked Breakfast Bagels'.

Makes 8 Bagels - 229 KCAL Each

Ingredients

200g Strong-Wholemeal Bread Flour

300g Strong White Bread Flour

7g Sacheet of Fast Action Yeast

1 Heaped Tsp Salt

325ml Warm Water 

Spray Oil

3 Tbsp Honey (Optional)

1 Egg, Lightly Beaten

2 Tbsp Toppings e.g Sesame Seeds, Poppy Seeds

Recipe

1. Sieve the wholemeal flour into a large bowl. Put three quarters of the bran the remains in the sieve back into the flour and save the remainder for later. Add the white flour and then add the yeast and salt. Toss everything together and make a well in the centre. Pour in the warm water and mix together to form a soft but not sticky dough.
2.  Knead the dough for 10 mins by hand or 5 mins by machine. To test if the dough is kneaded enough, form it into a ball with a nice taut top. Put some flour onto your finger and prod the top of the bread, making an indent of about 1/2cm. The dough should spring back all the way if it is kneaded and be stretchy. If necessary, knead it  bit more.
3. Weigh the dough  and divide the weight of the dough by eight, then separate the dough into eight equal-size portions weighing the amount you came up with. Place seven of the pieces under a tea towel so they don't dry out. Take one piece and roll it into a ball with a nice taut top, then dip your index finger in a little flour to coat and push it through the centre of the dough ball until it touches the work surface. With your finger still in the hole,pick it up and spin it around to make the hole bigger - about 4cm wide is ideal as the hole will close up quite a bit as the dough rises. Place the bagel onto a baking sheet lined with baking parchment and repeat with the rest of the dough balls. Space the bagels quite far apart on the baking sheet as they will expand quite a bit.
4. Spray the bagels with some oil and then cover them with cling-film. The cling-film should be loose enough for the bagels to increase in size, but still airtight.
5. Leave the bagels in a warm place for 40 mins or until they have increased in size by about a third. To test if they are ready, put some flour on your finger and prod the side of the bagel, making an indent of about 5mm. The indent should bring back about halfway.
6. When they are ready,cover them back up and preheat the oven to 200c/fan 180c/400f/gas mark 6.
7. Pour 2 litres of water into a wide pan and bring to the boil. Once boiling, stir the honey through. This will add shine and flavour to the finished bagels. Working in batches of 2 at a time, drop the bagels into the boiling water. They will be a bit squidgy to pick up, so the trick is to do so without misshaping them too much. Leave to boil for 15 seconds each side. Remove them from the water with a slotted spoon and place them back onto the baking sheet as you go.
8. Once they have all been boiled, brush the bagels really well with the beaten egg so they are nicely covered. Then, scatter over your choice of toppings. Each bagel will take about 3/4 of a tablespoon of topping in total, whether individual or mixed. I used the remaining bran saved from sieving the wholemeal flour.
9. Finally bake the bagels in the over for 25-30 mins or until they are golden brown and sound hollow when tapped underneath.

If I had to sum this recipe up in one word it would be: sticky. Despite the stickiness and the time donated, this is totally worth baking. They are delicious and perfect for any breakfast or lunch! As I said at the beginning, I have never made any kind of bread product before so im very pleased with the results. As long as you are organised and have read the recipe a few times you shouldn't go wrong. I found using the KMix was a workout in itself, let alone kneading the bread by hand. I have definitely learnt one thing, bread dough REALLY sticks to greaseproof paper! I certainly wont be using it as much next time, I would suggest just using a floured surface for every stage of the recipe. I also found it much easier to boil one bagel at a time. I tried one bagel this morning for breakfast, I had it slightly toasted with cream cheese and smoke salmon. It was delicious and surprisingly filling!!