OUR FAVORITE BAGELS

Ingredients
1½ cups warm water

2 ¼ cups whole wheat flour

2 ¼ cups white flour (I use straight whole wheat flour in these)

1 tsp. salt

2 ½Tbsp.honey   (3 Tbsp sugar)

2 tsp. dough enhancer (optional)

2 Tbsp. vital gluten    (You can use bread flour rather than, white flour and gluten flour)

1Tbsp. yeast

Directions   

Combine warm water and the whole wheat flour with your yeast in Bosch bowl with dough hook.   Let stand for 15 minutes. Then add your other ingredients.  Knead 8 to 10 minutes if whole wheat if not you can knead for 7 minutes until dough is smooth and elastic.  Remove dough and divide into 12 pieces of rolled dough. You can roll each piece between your hands to look like a ball.  Cover the pieces of dough and let stand for 12 minutes. Then shape bagels by taking the ball in your hands, then push through the middle with your thumbs and pull out to form about a 1½ inch hole in the center, place each bagel on greased baking sheet to rise for 20 minutes. While bagels are rising preheat your oven to broil.  Then prepare a pan to which 6 cups of water has been added.  Bring this water to a boil. When the bagels have risen put your bagels in your oven about 8 inches from the top.  Broil bagels about 2 minutes on each side, but do not let them get brown. After they have broiled put your oven on 375 degrees.  Place the bagels in your boiling water, about 3-6 at a time, and then turn your stove top down to simmer.  Cook them 1 minute on each side. Set them in a colander to drain.  After they have drained put them on a floured cookie sheet. (Semolina flour is preferred, but any kind of flour will work, or you can use corn meal.) Bake them for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Enjoy your delicious bagels.     

Variations:

Cinnamon Burst:  These are our favorite.  Just add some cinnamon chips after the dough has kneaded.  I just take a couple of hand fulls and throw them in, watch them knead away.

Sunflower:  2 cups of raw sunflower seeds

Cinnamon Raisin:  Add 2 cups raisins.  Add 1 or 2 tsp. cinnamon along with flour.

Plain: Reduce honey to 2 Tbsp.

Salted: Follow instructions for plain, but sprinkle bagels with coarse kosher salt.

Rye: Substitute 1 cup rye flour for 1 cup whole wheat flour. Add 1-2 tsp. caraway seeds. Reduce honey to 2 Tbsp.