I’ve always wanted to try making my own bagels, and it seemed easy enough, but turns out they are a bit time consuming! Mostly because you need to let the dough rise for 2+ hours throughout the process. But I will say that they are SO WORTH the 700 hours it takes to make them! I immediately ate two for “dinner” when they came out of the oven, then had another one for breakfast as soon as I woke up. This led me to the obvious choice of bringing the rest of them into the office as to avoid eating all 12 bagels over the weekend. I tried a few toppings (plain, everything, cinnamon sugar, and poppy seed) but the options are endless, so it’s fun to play around. I highly recommend making your own bagels if you have a rainy Sunday afternoon in your future!

Ingredients: (makes 12)
Adapted from Food Network

1 medium Yukon gold potato, chopped into large chunks
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons honey
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 (1/4 ounce) packet active dry yeast
2 garlic scapes
Cream cheese
1 egg

Start by making the dough. In a pot of water, boil the potatoes until fork tender and reserve the water. Mash the potato in a bowl until smooth, adding bits of the reserved water as needed. Next add the honey and olive oil and mix well.

In a standing mixer with the paddle attachment, combine the flour, salt, and yeast. Add the potato mixture and mix on medium until the dough forms and is stiff but malleable, about 8-10 minutes. You can add bits of the reserved water here as well if the dough is too dry. Turn the dough out on a floured surface and knead by hand until the dough is smooth and bounces back when you give it a press. Add a little olive oil to a large bowl and toss the dough in it until coated with oil. Cover with a damp dish towel and set aside in a warm area until the dough has doubled in size, about 1 1/2-2 hours.

When the dough has fully risen, punch it down in the bowl (it will deflate) then roll it out into a log shape on a lightly floured surface. Cut 12 equal pieces and roll them into balls then place them on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Cover with a damp dish towel again and let sit for 20 minutes. Next, create a hole in the center of each bagel with your thumb and index finger, then stretch and turn the ring until you have a 2 inch center. Return them to baking sheet again and let rise for another 20 minutes under the damp cloth. In the meantime, get a large pot of boiling water going and preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

When the dough is ready, drop 1-2 bagels into the boiling water at a time. Let cook for 30 seconds on each side, then transfer to a rack to dry before placing back on the parchment lined baking sheet.

**at times the dough was hard for me to work with and got very sticky, so I simply dipped my hands in a little bit of water as I went to help manage the dough a little better. Not sure if this is a recommended method by the professionals, but it worked for me!

FINALLY, put all the bagels into the oven and cook for 10 minutes. Remove and brush with the egg wash, then top with whatever your little heart desires. Place back in the oven for another 10 minutes or until the tops are golden brown. Let sit for 15 minutes before serving, as they will continue to cook and fluff up on the inside during this time.

I chose to eat mine covered in garlic scape cream cheese, which I made by roasting the garlic scapes in the oven, then mixing them with the cream cheese in my food processor. For the cinnamon sugar bagel, I think my plan will be to muddle some fresh strawberries into the cream cheese! I LOVE CREAM CHEESE ANYTHING.