Homemade Bagels

Ingredients

• dried yeast7 g
• honey — 2 tbsp55 g
• milk — tepid160 ml
• bread flour450 g
• wholemeal plain flour150 g
• salt — 2 tsp12 g
• egg — whisked1 ea
• sesame seeds50 g

Method

1. Mash the yeast and honey together. Add the milk and stir to dissolve. Cover and rest for 20 minutes or until the surface is foamy.
2. Combine the flours, salt, the yeast-honey-milk mix and only 2/3 of the water (250-330 ml in total). Knead into a pliable dough, adding the remaining water if needed. The dough should knead easily and not stick to the bench even without flour. Cover with a damp tea towel and leave in a warm, draught-free spot until doubled in size.
3. Punch down the dough and cut into 10 even pieces. Roll each piece into a 2 cm wide sausage. Squash down one tip, bring the other tip to sit on the flattened tip to form a ring, and pinch around it to secure. Flip it over and rest on a 10 x 10 cm square of baking paper. Repeat with the remaining pieces.
4. Cover with a damp tea towel and allow to double in size again in a warm, draught-free spot.
5. Preheat the oven to 170°C fan-forced. Boil the bagels in plenty of water, about 30 seconds each side. Rest on a clean tea towel to absorb excess water.
6. Transfer to baking trays lined with baking paper, leaving 2 cm between the bagels. Brush generously with the egg, then sprinkle or dip in sesame seeds (or poppy seeds or sea salt).
7. Bake for about 20 minutes or until golden. Fill with whatever your heart desires. Bagels freeze well in an airtight container or snap lock bag.