Bagels

This recepie makes 24 mini Bagels,

Sponge
1 tsp (0.11oz) instant yeast
4 cups (18oz) flour
2 1/2 cups (20oz) water (at room temp)

Dough
1/2 tsp (0.055oz) instant yeast
3 3/4 cups (17oz) flour
2 3/4 tsp (0.7oz)  salt
2 tsp (0.33oz) or 1 tbsp (0.5oz) Malt powder (honey or brown sugar)

To Finish
1 tbsp (0.5oz) baking soda
Semolina for dusting
Sesame seeds, poppy seeds ect. for topping

To make the sponge; stir the yeast into the flour in a 4-quart mixing bowl. Add the water whisking or stirring only until it forms a smooth, sticky batter (like pancake batter). Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and leave at room tem. for apx. 2 hours, or until the mixture becomes very foamy and bubbly. it should swell to nearly double in size and collapse when the bowl is tapped on the counter top.

To make the dough; in the same mixing bowl, add the additional yeast to the sponge and stir. Then add 3 cups of the flour and all of the salt and malt. Stir until the ingredients from a ball, slowly working in the remaining 3/4 cup flour to stiffer the dough.

  • Transfer the dough to the counter and knead for at least 10 min.
  • Immediately divide the dough into 4 1/2 oz pieces
  • Cover the rolls with a damp towel and allow them to rest for apx. 20min.
  • Line 2 sheet pans with baking parchment and mist lightly with spray oil. roll out the dough bagel shape.
  • Place each of the shaped pieces 2 inc apart on the pans. Cover loosely with plastic wrap. Let the pans sit at room tem.for about 20min.
  • Check to see if the bagels are ready to be retarded in the refrigerator by using the "float test" (fill a small bowl with water, the bagels are ready to be retarded when they float within 10 seconds of being dropped into water). if it floats let them retarded in the refrigerator for overnight (up to 2 days).
  • When you are ready to bake the bagels, preheat the oven to 500F, bring a large pot of water to a boil and add to baking soda.
  • Remove the bagels from the refrigerator and gently drop them into water, boiling only as many as comfortably fit (they should float within 10 seconds). After 1 min flip them over and boil for another min. if you like chewy bagels you can extend the boiling to 2 min per side.
  • Sprinkle the semolina flour to sheet pan. if you want to top the bagels do so as soon as they come out the water.
  • Bake bagels apx. 5 min. rotate the pans and lover the oven to 450F and bake another 5 min. or until the bagels turn light golden brown.