This is how you make bagels...

[Presently42]

I recently made Finnish water rings: they were really tasty - but still not a St. Viateur bagel!

All this talk of bagels forced my hand: I made the Finnish ones again. Terrible quality picture - and I'm not a great breadmaker - but they're very tasty indeed!

 

[dlaloum]

Finnish? What are Finnish bagels?

 

[Presently42]

Finnish? What are Finnish bagels?

No idea: the recipe is from a Scandinavian baking book by Beatrice Ojakangas. The recipe is entitled Karelian Water Rings:

"These water-raised rolls resemble bagels. I remember women of my grandmother's era talking about water rolls, but for some reason it wasn't until we were entertained by a Karelian family that I was reminded of them. We enjoyed them every morning for breakfast, freshly baked and split, with butter and jam."

Spoiler: Recipe

2 packages active dry yeast 1 L< cups warm water, 105°F to 115°F 1 teaspoon salt 4 tablespoons melted butter 3 to 3\ cups bread or unbleached all-purpose flour FOR RAISING boiling water 2 tablespoons salt 1 teaspoon baking soda In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Let stand 5 minutes. Add the salt, butter, and half the flour, beating until smooth. Blend in flour until dough is stiff. Let rest 15 minutes, covered. Turn dough out onto a floured board and knead until smooth and satiny, 5 to 10 minutes. Clean the bowl, lightly oil it, and add dough to the bowl. Turn over dough to oil the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about i hour. (Dough may also rise in a cool kitchen overnight.) Turn dough onto an oiled board. Divide into 16 parts. Shape each part into a strand 6 to 8 inches long. Turn into a ring and pinch ends together. Place on a sheet of lightly oiled waxed paper and let rise 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400°?. Cover a baking sheet with parchment paper and lightly spray with nonstick spray. Or, grease and flour a baking sheet. Bring a wide pan (I use a 14-inch deep-frying pan) half-full of water to a boil; add the salt and soda. Lower the rings one at a time into the water and cook 30 seconds. Remove from water with pancake turner and place on prepared baking sheets. Bake for 15 to 2.0 minutes until golden.

 

[dlaloum]

Found them on a Scandinavian Wiki site .... the humble Bagel travelled from Poland into scandinavia too - and developed into a scandinavian variation on the theme!

Cool!

 

[pocoloco]

Ouch, $49 for a dozen???

It is pricey for sure! But $3.77 a bagel seems acceptable if you really want to try a NY bagel without flying there.

 

[Audiovideophile]

Utopia's frozen bagels are unbelievable. They sustained my bagel-obsessed relatives through much of the pandemic.

Not the same as Ess-a-Bagel but still very good.

Did I mention I haven't had a pastrami sandwich in over two years?

Well, I’m a big fan of Ess-a bagels having eaten them in NYC and through Goldbelly delivery. I often order a dozen around valentines as a treat for the family. I was really intrigued by the video, and the passion of the folks at Utopia. So this year I tried those bagels through Goldbelly. Yes, I know the price is crazy, but it’s convenient and cheaper than visiting in person. Long story short, while I like the Utopia bagels, Ess-a bagels are still my favorite. They have a chewy quality that’s hard to describe.