CZECH ON THE ROAD: HOMEMADE BAGELS

While the farmer's markets are rising, so does homemade pastries. For over a year, I enjoy to make homemade bagels. And which is the best? Surely bagel from New York!

School of master baking

If you are not baking often, you can try a bagel from Bakeshop or Bohemia Bagel in Prague. Both shops are in the center. Especially Bakeshop has delicious onion bagel or the one with poppy seeds.

But if you have a little time, try to make homemade bagels. Although the preparation seems time consuming, it is done quickly. The only extra effort is that the bagels are boiled in water before baking. But the whole preparation can handle with ease even a newcomer to baking. Rarely something goes wrong. As the reward, you get warm and crispy bagel, which you cannot buy in a store.

In addition to simple preparation, I like that you do not need any special ingredients. However, you can play with flour, in addition to plain flour, you can use also wholegrain or spelled, which is characteristic for its nutty flavor. Another variant is bread flour. The main thing is that you enjoy it and find the combination that suits you.

Where do they come from?

Interesting is the origin of the bagel. New York can boast the right recipe for bagels, but originally, bagels are from the Poland (1700s). Jews from Eastern Europe brought bagels to America almost 200 years later.

Ingredients:

3 cups plain flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 ¼ cup of water

package of dry yeast

1 ½ spoon of sugar

Spoon of salt

1 beaten egg with a pinch of salt for brushing

On the top: poppy seeds, sesame seeds, mixed nuts, but also fruits such as raspberries, blueberries and other fruits of the garden

Preparation:

Prepare a dough of flour, water, yeast, sugar and salt. Using hands, knead the dough and let rise for 45-60 minutes.

Then, boil the water in a pot and create approximately 10 bagels. Cut the wheel in the middle. Let it rise for another 10 minutes. Put bagels into boiling water and boil each side for one minute. Put bagels immediately on a baking sheet and spread them with beaten egg and sprinkle with a mixture of nuts (or anything you want).

Bake in the hot air oven at 200 degrees, in the classic 220 degrees for about 20-25 minutes.

Bagels were first produced in only four flavors: salted, poppy seeds, sesame and plain. Traditional bagel is served with fresh cheese (or cheese Philadelphia) and smoked salmon. Now, the imagination is really unlimited. In addition to savory bagels, the most popular are fruit. For example a popular blueberry bagel, which fits with a thin layer of butter and you will be in heaven!

New York and bagels

Americans like to include bagels in their movies. In the Sex and the City, Carrie brought her friend Miranda bagels from H & H Bagels, which is one of the largest manufacturers of bagels in the world. Furthermore, these bagels appeared on the show The Office and in the movie You've Got Mail.