Sourdough Bagels

This is a great recipe to try when you have some extra time to play in the kitchen. We love freshly made sourdough bagels with plain cream cheese, but we think any of our hummus recipes would be delicious too. Pair it with this new Turmeric Lentil Soup and eat well for days. 

Sourdough Bagels
yield 1 dozen Bagels

Bagel Dough
220g active sourdough starter
360g warm water (100°F)
630g Flourist Sifted Red Spring Wheat Flour
20g honey
20g molasses
1 Tbsp salt

Boiling Ingredients
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp baking soda

For the dough:
Combine the starter, water, and flour in the bowl of a mixer and mix with a dough hook until combined. Alternatively, mix by hand until a shaggy mass is formed. Let sit for 30 minutes. Add the salt, honey, and molasses, and mix on low speed until a smooth and elastic dough is formed (about 5 minutes). Alternatively, squeeze in the salt, honey, and molasses by hand in a bowl until mostly incorporated then invert onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic.

Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl and cover. Let sit for 30 minutes. Fold the dough, cover, and let sit for 30 minutes. Fold again then let rest for an hour before folding for a third and final time. Let sit for another hour. 

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide the dough into twelve 100g pieces of dough. 

Working with one piece of dough at at time, pinch and roll the dough into a long log, roughly 8" in length. Take the time to make sure that it is uniform in shape. Taking the log in your hand, wrap it around your four fingers, pinching the end between your thumb and index finger. Keeping it wrapped around your hand, roll the piece where the two ends met on the table to stick them together. Transfer to a heavily floured sheet pan and repeat with the remaining 11. Space them about 2 inches apart to leave room for them to proof overnight.

Cover with plastic wrap or a tea towel and let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes before placing in the fridge overnight. 

The next day, remove the bagels from the fridge. Leave them at room temperature while you prepare for baking. Fill a pot that is big enough for 2-3 bagels with water and bring to a boil. Preheat your oven to 450°F. Prepare your toppings and egg wash of 1 egg white. Once the water comes to a boil, reduce to a simmer and add the granulated sugar and baking soda. Prepare a sheet tray with a cooling rack on top for draining the bagels and two more sheet trays with parchment for baking. 

Take a bagel and carefully lay it in the boiling water. It should rise to the top and lie flat on the surface. Add as many as you can fit and are comfortable watching at a time. Cook for 30 seconds then flip the bagels and repeat. Transfer to the cooling rack to drain and dry. Repeat with remaining bagels, working quickly but carefully.

Transfer the bagels from the cooling rack to the parchment lined sheet trays, leaving room for them to expand. Brush with egg wash and top with desired toppings (we did some with salt, sesame seeds, and poppy seeds). Bake until golden brown, about 20 minutes.