I thought it would be helpful to write about something a little more lighthearted than stress or current events - bagels.
I'd say about 9 out of 10 school days, I bring a bagel with cream cheese and sometimes lox to first period for breakfast. I am a bagel fanatic. Whenever we would visit my mother's family in NYC when I was younger, the only thing that would get me through the seemingly everlasting flight was the promise of East Coast bagels. So I was personally thrilled when I saw that NPR's Maria Godoy had reported a story on what makes New York bagels so good.
The secret? It's in the boiling. The American Chemical Society found that the idea that New York bagels are so delicious because of their water is actually largely untrue. What makes a NY bagel so good is first the refrigeration that slows the yeast in the dough, which allows for fermentation that results in more delicious bagels. The boiling process then contributes its own effects to the taste and texture of the bagels, must like freeze flashing a steak.
So, if you ever want to make your own bagels, be sure to stick them in the fridge and then boil them. It'll feel like you're in New York!
I love bagels too! Most of the recipes I've used called to boil them after you let them rise. I didnt know that you should refrigerate it before boiling. That is quite interesting. I think I will try that out next time.
ReplyDeleteI find it interesting that boiled bagel is a characteristic of American bagels. I always thought that bagels are boiled. It makes me wonder what other ways bagels are made from.
http://www.slate.com/articles/life/food/2008/11/a_short_history_of_the_bagel.html