Hole-y Baking Batman!

I think it is an unwritten law somewhere that if you are Jewish, you are required to love bagels. If so, that is one law I would never break. I have rarely met a bagel that I did not love, but making my own at home? That is something I never thought I would be doing. Truth be told, baking has never been my forte but if you look at this picture, maybe you will agree I am improving? Homemade Bagels are way easier to make than you would think. Poppy, Sesame, Garlic Parmesan, and Everything!

In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook, I started by combining two and a half teaspoons of dry yeast, one tablespoon of brown sugar (to feed the yeast, not to make the bagels sweet), and two cups of warm water to activate the yeast.

After a few minutes, the yeast had bloomed and I was ready to move to the next step which was the addition of kosher salt, and four cups of bread flour, added gradually. Bread flour gives the bagels their notorious chewy texture as opposed to all=purpose flour which would make them more "cakey".

I gradually added the flour with the mixer on slow speed, and then once incorporated, I increased the speed to medium, and let the mixer do the kneading for me. After ten minutes, the dough was smooth so I transferred it to a bowl that was greased with olive oil. I covered it with a clean towel and let the dough rest at room temperature for about ninety minutes, or until the dough had doubled in size.

I cut the dough into eight equal portions, rolled each into a ball, and then used my fingers to make the holes. The parchment paper prevents them from sticking to the baking sheet.

Prior to baking, I brought a pot of water to a boil and added a teaspoon of baking soda. I boiled the bagels for a minute or two per side, and then used a slotted spoon to remove them, letting as much water drip off as possible.

From there, I brushed the tops with egg wash, and sprinkled on my toppings of choice - clockwise from top right - poppy seeds, sesame seeds, everything, and garlic parmesan. I baked them at 420 degrees for thirty minutes. (If your oven does not fit two sheet pans side by side, then be sure to rotate the pans halfway through the baking process.) I let them cool on a rack, and then the only remaining dilemma - what to eat with them...not that they would not be fabulous right out of the oven by themselves!

Tuna Melt Bagels!

I am not a fan of bland tuna (AKA mayonnaise only) so I always make sure that mine has great flavor, crunch, and is super creamy. I prefer canned tuna in olive oil because it is more moist than tuna packed in water. I used salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, Dijon mustard, white BBQ sauce (also for a hint of sweetness), chopped fresh parsley, and a spoonful of chopped Calabrian peppers (also for a tiny bit of heat) for great flavor, chopped celery for crunch, and mayonnaise for creaminess. You can leave out the peppers if you do not want any heat, and you can use sweet relish if you do not have white BBQ sauce.

If it has color, it probably has flavor!

You cannot have a tuna melt without lots of good cheese such as Cheddar, Colby Jack, and Provolone.

Yes please!

Add some chips and a few kelp pickles from our recent Alaska trip, and this is a lunch I could handle any day of the year!