The Sun-Dried Tomato and Olive Bagel, Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish: A Whole Brunch of Recipes to Make at Home Hardcover by Cathy Barrow. Photography by Linda Xiao.
A playful-yet-comprehensive cookbook that lets anyone create bagels, schmears, and other deli favorites at home.
Bagel lovers rejoice! This delightful cookbook makes it easy to bake fresh bagels in your own kitchen with just five base ingredients and simple techniques. With advice on mixing the dough, shaping the bagels, proofing, boiling, baking, slicing, and storing, you will be a master bagel-maker in no time.
Recipes include two dozen variations on the New York bagel, with classic and innovative flavors ranging from Sesame to Blueberry to Hatch Chile Jack. You’ll also find recipes for homemade sweet and savory spreads, schmears, pickles, and other deli mainstays like Home-Cured Lox and Chicken Salad.
With suggested menus for fun brunches and gatherings, photos of finished food and step-by-step techniques, and a charming deli aesthetic, this is both a comprehensive baking resource and a playful guide to making one of America’s best-loved foods.
BAGELS ARE EASY BAKING: This book brings bagels to the home baker with step-by-step recipes for making classic New York bagels, even in the smallest kitchen. And it’s not about the water! It’s about just five ingredients and straightforward technique.AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR: Cathy Barrow is an award-winning cookbook author. She’s been recognized by IACP and the James Beard Foundation for her work on Mrs. Wheelbarrow’s Practical Pantry and Pie Squared, respectively.
Perfect for:
• Home bakers and cooks who love bagels
• Bread enthusiasts looking for a new project
• New Yorkers who live elsewhere and want to make a classic NY bagel at home
Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish: A Whole Brunch of Recipes to Make at Home is available at Amazon.com and Indigo.ca.
The Sun-Dried Tomato and Olive Bagel
Makes 6
The addItion of umami-loaded kalamata olives and sun-dried tomatoes in this recipe results in a sandwich-worthy bagel. I like to slice this bagel, slather with a thick application of fresh ricotta cheese, and slide it under the broiler.
To ensure the olives and tomatoes disperse evenly throughout the dough, chop them into small bits. Sprinkle a little Parm over the bagels before baking to get that deliciously craggy, cheesy top.
3 TBSP CORNMEAL, FOR DUSTING
420 G [3½ CUPS] HIGH-GLUTEN FLOUR (SEE FLOUR, PAGE 19, FOR SUBSTITUTIONS)
225 G [1 CUP] WATER
21 G [1 TBSP] HONEY
1½ TSP KOSHER SALT
1 TSP INSTANT YEAST
56 G [½ CUP] SUN-DRIED TOMATOES IN OLIVE OIL, DRAINED AND CHOPPED SMALL
28 G [¼ CUP] PITTED KALAMATA OLIVES, DRAINED, PATTED DRY, AND CHOPPED SMALL
25 G [¼ CUP] GRATED PARMIGIANO- REGGIANO, PLUS MORE FOR GARNISH
- Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and scatter the cornmeal evenly across the paper. Set aside.
- Place the bowl of a stand mixer on a kitchen scale and tare the weight to zero. Measure in the flour, water, honey, salt, and yeast. Place the bowl back on the mixer and fit it with the dough hook. On low speed, mix the ingredients together until there are no dry patches of flour showing (see Mixing, page 32).
- Stop to scrape down the sides of the bowl and increase the speed to medium. Mix until the sides of the bowl are nearly clean, 2 to 3 minutes. The dough may seem dry. Cover the bowl with a clean tea towel and let the dough rest for 20 minutes to allow the flour to hydrate evenly.
- Toss the tomatoes and olives with the Parmigiano-Reggiano to coat and add them to the bowl. Use a stiff spatula or spoon to fold the dough over itself several times. Turn the mixer speed back to low and mix until the bits are combined.
- Increase the speed to medium and let the mixer run for 7 full minutes until the dough is smooth and satiny and the sides of the bowl are clean. Watch the mixer at all times, as it might hop across the counter; the dough will be stiff and strong.
- Scrape the dough onto a clean, unfloured work surface and give it five or six kneads. Divide the dough into six equal pieces, each weighing 135 g [about 43⁄4 oz]. Shape the bagels and place them on the prepared baking sheet. Cover the baking sheet tightly with plastic wrap lightly coated with cooking spray. Refrigerate overnight, or for at least 8 hours and no more than 14 hours.
- When ready to boil and bake, remove the bagels from the refrigerator and uncover, allowing them to come to room temperature while the oven heats and the water boils (see Timing the Bake, page 38). Place a pizza stone, Baking Steel, or inverted baking sheet on the oven’s center rack and set the oven to its highest temperature, 450°F to 500°F [230°C to 260°C] in most home appliances (see Baking, page 38). Heat the oven for at least 30 minutes.
- In the meantime, fill a 5 qt [4.7 L] or larger pot with water and bring it to a hard boil (see Boiling, page 36). Place a 9 by 13 in [23 by 33 cm] piece of parchment on a pizza peel, large cutting board, or an inverted baking sheet. (You need to be able to easily slide the bagel-laden parchment paper from this surface into your oven.)
- The bagels should be slightly puffed from their overnight rise. Gently lift one at a time, brushing away any excess cornmeal, and drop it into the boiling water. Repeat with another one or two bagels only if they fit in the pot without crowding. Using a slotted spoon or spider, flip the bagels over and over in the water until very slightly puffed and shiny, about 60 seconds and no more than 90 seconds. Small blisters may appear on the surface.
- Remove the bagels one by one and place cornmeal-side down on the parchment paper on the pizza peel. Sprinkle with more Parmigiano- Reggiano while the bagels are still damp. Repeat with the remaining bagels; six bagels will fit snugly on the parchment paper without touching.
- Lower the oven temperature to 450°F [230°C]. Slide the parchment paper with the bagels directly onto the hot surface in the oven and bake until deeply golden brown and shiny, 12 to 16 minutes. To remove the bagels from the oven, slide the parchment paper right onto the peel. Transfer on their paper to a wire rack to cool.
- As tempting as it is to grab the hot bagels immediately, allow them to cool slightly before eating. Eat within 4 hours or store.
Recipe reprinted with permission from Chronicle Books.