The bagels are fantastic! Bagels are denser than loaf bread by design, and these are dense, soft, and perfectly chewy and flavorful, with just a little hint of sour. The crust has tiny blisters all over, characteristic of barmy breads, a perfect crusty contrast to the chewy inside.
While the dough is pretty stiff, it’s still really easy to handle. Even using my giant mixer, I wasn’t able to get my dough to the recommended temperature after kneading (my dough reached 70F instead of the recommended 80F), but after forming they rose well in a controlled 70F environment and baked off beautifully after poaching.
Before baking, I sprinkled some with sesame and a sesame-aleppo mix, others with dukkah, but left a good number plain, for the purist in me. The flavor of the bagel was so good, it didn’t need much else (except butter, always butter).
The magnificent bagels were shipped off to my husband’s office this morning, thank goodness, because I would have eaten them all. I made a batch of Green Olive Rosemary Cream Cheese Schmear to go with. Yum!
Green Olive Rosemary Cream Cheese

- 8 oz cream cheese
- 3-4 oz butter, softened
- 1/2 cup coarsely chopped stuffed manzanilla olives
- 1 T olive brine (or to taste)
- 2 t finely chopped fresh rosemary
- 1/2 c chopped toasted pecans (optional)
Cream together the butter and cheese. Stir in remaining ingredients and enjoy!
For cocktail hour, wouldn’t this be delicious on tiny bagels with a martini in hand?