Daring Bakers: Real Honest Jewish Purist's Bagels

Wow! Always challenging our daring bakers contests!!! I made bagels just once in my life, few month ago, and I was ready to try a new recipe and give it another chance to improve!
And this recipe, even if in mammoth proportions, is wonderful! Luckily I made them for friends coming over, so they were just enough!
How did it go?
First of all, as the rules weren't allowing the use of a mixer, I knead by hand the dough.
So, let's think, since how many years I haven't knead by hand??? To many for sure! Kneading is a wonderful exercise, for mind, muscle and soul. When I'm stressed, or sad, or I don't fill all my self, I make something yeasty and fluffy, but I don't knead any more... Mainly because three years a go I kneaded so hard a bread that my wrists began to hurt, so I began to use the mixer. But now, years later and old stress free, I knead again, and I'm so happy!!!
Remember, when life is hard and you don't know what to do, KNEAD AND BAKE!!! (this could be the opening line of the Daring Bakers hymn, what you think???)...
The rest of the execution when smooth as a sailing boat on a sunny, light wind day! I enjoyed every single step, every single ironic line written by our hosts...
I had just one tiny problem: they are so ugly, but so so so ugly that I'm a bit ashamed to let you see pictures of them, but they tasted much much better then Nigella's...
But, you know, life too isn't always beautiful! But always tasty, that' a given!!! ;-)
Bagels for ever and ever!

Daring bakers rock, rule and we are cool!!! (Does it work enough as a rhyme? Maybe no...)

Una nave piena piena di...

A ship loaded with... And my answer to this childish game was always: POTATOES!!!
But not in this case!
Here how I filled my bagels: ricotta mixed with stracchino (just because I hate average cream cheese and I prefer to make my own personal idea of it!) and grilled vegetables marinated in balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil and a squeeze of lemon juice...

Enjoy, have a good Easter and Easter Monday (those bagels are of course perfect for Easter Monday picnic!!!)!

Bagels, please!

I'm Italian and I've almost ever lived in Italy (if you take off some month in France and some others in England...). And that should be enough to explain you which kind of relationship I can have with bagels: none! I've seen them in movies, on tv, but I've never ate a REAL one in my life. Once I ate a very expensive one from this chain, but I don't know if they were the real thing... So, now that I gave you the background of what I can know about bagels (rather nothing...), I can explain you why I came up making them!
Monday night we went to the movies early, so I decided I had to fill my afternoon making something handy we could eat in the theatre. Searching searching, I thought, well, bagels! I've never make them and they always seemed so nice! I took the only possible book I could trust in the matters of baking and I began.

15 g fresh yeast
250 ml warm water
1 tablespoon sugar
350 g flour + more if needed
1/2 tablespoon salt
1/2 tablespoon oil (I've used extra virgin olive oil)
1 tablespoon of black treacle

In the kneader bowl (or any bowl if you are so crazy to knead this by hand: your choice, not mine!) crumble yeast, add sugar, then water, mix and let rest for 20 minute, until it foams.
Add the rest of the ingredients except the black treacle, and begin to knead on medium low speed. After 5 minutes (with the kneader, at least 10-15 by hand) touch the dough and if it's too wet or vaguely sticky, add flour: drier the better. Knead for 5 minutes more.
Oil a glass bowl, form a ball with the dough, then coat it with little oil and let it rest in the bowl, covered with plastic, for 1 hour. the dough will be ready when pressing your thumb the imprint will remain.
Punch the dough (thinking of the face of someone you hate: it always works!) then divide it in two, roll each piece in a big sausage, divide each in four. Take each of your piece, make a little ball, then begin to roll it in a long sausage. Form a circle, close it well and leave to rest on a floured surface, covered with a tea towel, for 20-30 minutes.
In the meanwhile, preheat the oven at maximum and bring to the boil a large pan full of water ( you won't need it too deep, just 5 centimetres). When the water is boiling, dissolve the black treacle. When the bagels are puffed, and the water is boiling, add each bagel to the water, two at the time, and cook for 30 seconds each side. Lay them, well distanced, on a oiled baking sheet and cook in the oven for 10-15 minutes, until shiny and golden.

Tomorrow, before leaving for my Easter vacation (Strasbourg, Rhone Valley and Camargue), I will tell with what I've filled them!