Ever since returning back from Europe I can't seem to be able to kick the baking habit, maybe because I'm so use to eating pastries every morning and dessert after every meal or simply because I refuse to admit that I'm back in Calgary. Either way it hasn't stopped my oven from working overtime every weekend loading up my countertops and refrigerator with little bites of joy.
Unfortunately all that baking isn't the best for my health (as delicious as they are) and as much as I try to make them healthier, butter is still saturated fats and sugar is still fat in disguise. So it took me a while to figure out what I can bake that can be incorporated in to a healthy meal. Enter in bagels.
Ever since high school I’ve been hooked on these things and have never been able to kick the habit. I eat them with cream cheese or peanut butter, as a sandwich or just alone and all by themselves. The dense dough of the bagels gives me that satisfying chew and if eaten in moderation, it can most definitely qualify as being a part of a healthy diet.
Here is a yummy bagel recipe I found that I wanted to share with those who love baked goods since to me anything that goes in my oven is considered as such.
Ingredients:1 1/2 cup lukewarm water
3 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1 tbsp sugar
1 tbsp canola oil
1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
2 1/2 cup all purpose flour a bit more for rolling dough
3/4 tbsp salt
Sesame seeds, poppy seeds or any other topping for the bagels
Preparation:Place the yeast in a bowl with the sugar, oil and lukewarm water. Stir until the yeast dissolves.
Add in the while wheat flour and mix together with the yeast.
Stir in the salt followed by 1 cup if the all purpose flour. Keep adding a bit if flour at a time until you get a soft dough.
Lightly flour your kneading surface and turn dough out.
Slowly add flour and knead the dough until it becomes smooth and firm (not so sticky). Place the dough back in the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let sit for 10 mins.
Divide dough in to 12 portions (or 24 for smaller bagels, which I prefer).
Roll each portion in to a log and fold the ends over to form a loop. Let bagels sit for 20 mins.
Meanwhile, preheat your oven to 450 and start a pot of water boiling with 1 tsp salt. Prepare a baking sheet with parchment.
Once the bagels are ready, place them in the water for 1 minute and then flip for another minute. Remove from water and place on parchment.
Top bagels with seeds and place in oven for 15 mins. You might have to turn the bagels over and bake for another 5 minutes at 425 dependent on your oven.
Remove and let cool. Bagels best eaten fresh but you can freeze any bagels that you're not going to be eating right away, which will help them keep longer.
Makes 12 big or 24 small bagels.
Alternatively: you can add in herbs, garlic or onions in to the dough before rolling them out to make herbed bagels or garlic bagels.
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