About Bagels -- General Directions 1 B Recipe

Recipe Ingredients

1 text

STEP 1: MIX, KNEAD AND FIRST RISE:

The Bread Machine:

The bread machine yields excellent results every time when you use
fresh ingredients and follow directions. Set the machine on "dough
cycle", and let it produce a dough with the texture of velvet and the
stiff consistency required.

When using a bread machine, add ingredients in the order recommended
in your manufacturer's instructions. The recipes in this series have
ingredients listed for machines that require adding liquids first and
dry components last.

Reverse the order for those that add dry ingredients first and wet
ones last. Process on the "dough mode," or "program", or "mix bread
cycle" or whatever it is termed by your machine's instructions. Allow
the dough to rise through the full first rise period after the
kneading phase, between 35 minutes and 1 hour.

On shorter cycles, and depending on the weather and moisture of the
ingredients, you may have to leave it in the machine for 10 or 15
minutes longer, or until the dough fills about 2/3 of the pan. Whole
grain flours may require up to 1 to 2 hours for the first rise. Do
not allow the dough to bake in the machine.

Dry ingredients such as spices, cinnamon, nutmeg and finely chopped
nuts are added with the fours at the beginning. Wet ingredients such
as mashed bananas, applesauce, pumpkin, grated carrots and frozen
berries are added with the liquids, but if you add more wet
ingredients to the recipes in this series, their liquid content must
replace an equal amount of liquid. Adding raisins and other dried
fruits at the beginning is not recommended; most bread machines
pulverize them so they're hardly visible in the finished bagel.

Check dough about 5 minutes after you have started the machine. The
dough should form a nice round ball. If a ball doesn't form, and the
mixture appears crumbly, add water, a tablespoon or less at a time,
until the correct consistency is achieved. If dough looks too wet or
formless, add flour, a tablespoon or less at a time, until the dough
forms a ball.

Add ingredients such as raisins, dates, chocolate chips and apple
pieces about 5 to 8 minutes before the end of the kneading phase.
Some machine beep to indicate the optimum time to add nuts or
raisins. Check your manufacturers instructions for the time required
for each process in the dough cycle. If your machine does not provide
this timed signal, determine the length of the kneading phase and set
a timer for 5 minutes before the end; then open the machine and
carefully add the ingredients, being sure that they do not spill onto
the heating elements. Ingredients can also be kneaded into the dough
by hand after it is removed from the machine.

NOTE: When adding reconstituted dried foods to the dough in a bread
machine (5 to 10 minutes before the end of the kneading phase), foods
should be blotted very dry with a paper towel so that any retained
moisture does not change the texture of the dough and inhibit it from
rising properly.

A 60 minute rise period is ideal. It's ok to open the machine and
quickly test the dough during the rise period. Gently push your
finger into the dough, and if the dent remains, dough is ready. If
the impression bounces back, let dough rise a few minutes longer and
retest. Dough can become slack if allowed to rise too long. White
flour rises highest. White flour combined with whole wheat, rye and
oats will not rise as high. Generally, the darker the dough, the
lower the rise and the longer it takes.

When ready, remove dough form the pan and proceed to step 2: Shape
Bagels.

CONTINUED IN ABOUT BAGELS -- GENERAL DIRECTIONS 2

The Best Bagels are made at home by Dona Z. Meilach

ISBN 1-55867-131-5

Carolyn Shaw April 1996 From: Homenet Cook

Servings: 1

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