Sesame Seed Bagel + Date Cinnamon Bagel

"Is bagel hard to make?? Can you make it??" My dear hubby asked one day...

Well, I've never made bagel before, but I know that it involves boiling it which gives the chewy texture! I guess it can't be that hard, making bread is always just a matter of time, and I'm sure that I have a recipe somewhere in my collection.

Woke up at 8am on a Saturday morning, had a quick breakfast, checked email... then started the bagel making process at 9.... Yeah... needed to start this early so that we can have the bagel in time for lunch.

Makes 4

Ingredients:

200g bread flour

10g butter, melted

1 tbsp sugar

1 tsp instant yeast

170ml water

1.5 tsp salt

1 tbsp honey (optional)

Egg, beatened

1. Place the flour in a large bowl, add in melted butter, then sugar and yeast.

2. Heat up the water just slightly warmer than body temperature. Add half of the water into the yeast, then knead the flour together with the water. Add in the rest of the water and knead into a dough. Add in salt and continue to knead until the dough is smooth.

3. Wrap the bowl with glad wrap, and leave in a warm place to rise for about 50 min or double in size.

4. Knead the dough on a lightly floured surface and punch out all the air.

5. Divide the dough into 4 portions, and cover with a wet towel and rest for 15 min.

6. Knead each portion to remove air, and roll into a long tube, then form in a donut shape.

7. Place each bagel onto a baking tray lined with baking paper. Then cover with wet towel and rest for 20 minutes in a warm place for second rising.

8. Fill half the pan with water and 1 tbsp of honey (optional). Heat up the water, and just before it boils, place the bagel into the water and cook for 1 min on either side.

9. Dry the bagel with paper towel, and return to baking tray. Brush with beatened egg, and bake for 20 min at 220C.

I just love the smell of freshly baked bread!!!! Yummmmm.... my bread turned out to be a bit burnt... only slightly though... hahaha... maybe because I added a hint of honey in there to give it a bit of a sweet taste! Also I sprinkled two of the bagels with sesame seeds, which hubby absolutely loved! And the other two I knead them with some cinnamon and chopped dates in step 6 - just to give it a bit more variety! Feel free to add in your own creative flare!

Although the surface of my bagel looked a bit burnt, but it actually didn't have any burnt taste at all! These freshly made bagels have a soft outer shell, and the inside texture is nice and chewy - just like a perfect bagel!