Lorraine Pascale’s bagels | Easy bread recipes (2024)

FAQs

Lorraine Pascale’s bagels | Easy bread recipes? ›

Bagels are usually made from a stiff, dry dough, with hydrations in the range of 55 to 65% (compared to soft sandwich or crusty artisan breads, which are usually 65% hydration and higher). This helps give them their signature tight crumb structure and their chew.

Bagels are usually made from a stiff, dry dough, with hydrations in the range of 55 to 65% (compared to soft sandwich or crusty artisan breads, which are usually 65% hydration and higher). This helps give them their signature tight crumb structure and their chew.

The boiling before baking step is crucial to get that firm, crisp crust and a chewy interior. Using a spider or spatula, gently place your bagels in simmering water (not a rolling boil) for twenty seconds and remove to a lightly oiled sheet pan.

So in the case of bagels, imagine a ringed pretzel situation but that are boiled in a lighter lye bath, then baked. For making bagels as with any recipe it is up to your preference. Typically I'll add either a cup of ash-made lye water to 2 quarts of boiling water or a teaspoon of granulated lye.

Bread flour – Because of its high protein content, bread flour makes these homemade bagels delightfully chewy. This recipe also works with all-purpose flour, they're just a bit less chewy than bagels made with bread flour. Maple syrup – It activates the yeast and gives the bagels a hint of sweetness.

Unfortunately there's no simple answer to this question. In terms of calories, on average one bagel has more calories than one slice of bread. However, if you choose to have a bagel with more fibre, this may help you feel fuller for longer and potentially reduce your snacking throughout the day.

If your dough is too wet, it'll create large holes in the crumb of the dough and your bagels will be more like French bread, with a fluffy interior (see top photo). When too much flour is kneaded in, bagels become dense, hard and tough, instead of crisp and chewy.

The best way to brown and crisp your bread's bottom crust – as well as enhance its rise – is to bake it on a preheated pizza stone or baking steel. The stone or steel, super-hot from your oven's heat, delivers a jolt of that heat to the loaf, causing it to rise quickly.

CREATE STEAM IN OVEN

Close the oven door immediately. You've just created a "steam bath" in your oven. Steam hitting the bread surface will facilitate the process of creating crust, especially during the first part of the baking process.

You can attach the toppings in two ways: with or without an egg wash. I think the egg wash adds an extra-delicious chew, and it helps the topping adhere better to the baked bagels. However, you can also dip the boiled bagels directly into the topping. Without an egg wash, this bagel recipe is vegan.

Is baking soda or baking powder better for bagels? ›

To make bagels properly you need to give them a bath. Make sure you use only baking soda and not baking powder. The baking soda helps the bagels form that beautiful golden crust and give them the distinct bagels taste.

Bialys (without holes) and bagels (with) A chewy yeast roll bearing similarity to the bagel, the bialy has a diameter of up to 15 centimetres (6 in). Unlike a bagel, which is boiled before baking, a bialy is simply baked, and instead of a hole in the middle it has a depression.

The boiling sets the crust of the bagel to get the signature thin crunchy crust. It also affects the texture of the bread inside. No boil, it's not a bagel, just a roll-with-a-hole!

Ever wondered why bagels have holes in the middle? The basic shape is hundreds of years old and serves lots of practical advantages besides an even cooking and baking of the dough. The hole also allowed them to be threaded or piled high on a dowel which made them easier to transport and display.

Yep. The thing about pizza dough is that it is actually very similar to bagel dough. It uses high gluten flour for that great stretchy quality, so you will get something that tastes like a bagel and not just round bread. And these days, terrific quality fresh pizza dough is readily available to everyone!

But what sets it apart from other bread is its unique texture and flavor, which comes from its special preparation process. Bagels are first boiled in water (sometimes with malt syrup or honey added) before being baked, resulting in a crisp and shiny crust that encases a dense and chewy interior.

They both use flour as their main ingredient along with leavening agents and water. Bagel dough typically uses high-gluten flour while doughnut dough is generally made with all-purpose flour. The different flours result in bagels' chewiness versus doughnuts fluffiness.