MMMM...Bagels...First Up - New York Style

A recent trip to visit my niece and help her overcome a trepidation about yeast led me to consider making bagels.  I have made bread, I have made dinner rolls, aside from the boiling, how different could they be.  Right?  I went searching for a recipe and stumbled on http://bagelrecipes.net/ - I love this site.  I have made the New York and the Egg Bagels.  Below are the New York Bagels - with some slight modifications.  Not because there is anything wrong with the recipe, it is perfect, but I added some steps to allow for baking of one pan while boiling with the other.  The outcome - fantastic - and the egg bagels, coming tomorrow, were even better.

You can use a full cup of the potato water.  Don't throw out the potato - I mashed it and added it to the cheesy potatoes.   Finally, if your baking pan won't hold all 18, boil 9.  Stop there and brush them with egg wash.  Put them in the oven to bake while you boil the remaining bagels.  If you use a large enough pot, you can boil more than one at a time, but you don't want them to be crowded.

  1 Medium Potato, peeled, quartered                                        ¼ Cup olive oil

  2 1/4 Tsp Active Dry Yeast                                                     2 Large Eggs

  4 Cups All Purpose Flour                                                         1 Egg White

  ½ Tbl Kosher Salt                                                                    1 Tsp Water

  1/2 Tbl Sugar                                                                          

Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat; add potato and cook 15 minutes, until softened. Remove from water, reserving 1/3 cup liquid; drain and set aside.

Cool 1/3 cup cooking liquid to about 110 degrees in a small bowl then sprinkle yeast over and stir gently. Set aside for 3 minutes.

Sift flour, salt and tablespoon of sugar together in a large bowl.

Add yeast mixture. Add oil and another 2/3 cup water; stir well.   Add eggs and stir to form a dough ball.

Turn dough out onto a floured surface; knead 10 minutes, until firm. Transfer dough to a medium greased bowl; cover and allow to rise in a warm place 60 minutes.

Punch down the dough to flatten; remove from bowl. Cut dough into 18 equal pieces; shape each into a 6-inch long, ¾-inch thick rope. Bring the ends of each rope together and pinch to a close, using a little water on the end to help secure. 

Cover all rings with a towel; allow to rise 20 minutes.   

Fill a large pot half full of water, add 1 Tbl of salt and put over high heat to begin to boil.

Preheat oven to 450F. Put a silicone mat or non stick foil on a baking sheet.  Drop bagels into boiling water one at a time, cooking each 1 1/2 minutes on each side; remove from water, place on paper towels, and repeat with remaining bagels.

Transfer boiled bagels to prepared baking sheet. Brush tops of bagels with egg white mixture. Bake 15 minutes, until bagels are golden.

Surprise Cupcakes

In honor of national chocolate cake day, I give you these cupcakes.  In honor of a friend's birthday, we enjoyed eating them.  Made with Special Dark Cocoa Powder, they are VERY rich, dark chocolate brownies, with peanut butter filling.  Regular cocoa powder can also be used.

  3/4 Cup Special Dark Cocoa Powder                                       3/4 Cup Sour Milk

  1 1/2 Cup All Purpose Flour                                                    3/4 Cup Water

  1 1/2 Cup Sugar                                                                       3 Tbl Vegetable Oil

  1 1/2 Tsp Baking Soda                                                             8 Tbl Butter

  3/4 Tsp Baking Powder                                                            1 Cup Jif

  3/4 Tsp Salt                                                                              13 Ounce Marshmallow Cream

  2 Large Eggs                                                                           

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly coat muffin cups with baking spray. Set aside.

In a large bowl, sift together cocoa, flour, granulated sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, beat eggs, milk, oil, and 3/4 cup water.  Beat into dry ingredients on medium until smooth.

Fill the muffin cups 2/3 full.  Bake until a toothpick inserted in center of a cake comes out clean, about 20 minutes. Let cool about 5 minutes, then remove cupcakes to a rack and cool completely.

 

In a large bowl, beat room temperature butter and peanut butter and marshmallow fluff on high until fluffy. Transfer 1/2 to a frosting gun.  If you do not have a frosting gun, use a zip-top bag and cut off one corner to make a 1/2-inch opening.  With a melon baller, scoop out center of each cupcake top and put into a small bowl. Fill cavities with peanut butter mixture using the filling in your gun or bag.  Level off the filling to be even with the top of the cakes, returning any excess to the bowl with the reserved peanut butter mixture.

Crumble the cake removed with the melon baller into the reserved frosting.  Mix well and top each cupcake with this mixture.

Next up on local shopping - a little PAZAZZZ

As we were walking into Tastemakers, we could not miss the store next door.  The PAZAZZZ window display was quite catching and seemed right up our alley, so that was our next stop.

PAZAZZZ is a 'home decor and all that jazz' store - gifts for home, baby, pet and yourself.  Fun shirts, great wall art and even some interesting peanut butter.  I found Mighty Tough dog toys there and spoiled Abby a little bit, too.  Stop in for a look - they can be found at State Street Plaza . 829 State Street . Lemoyne PA 17043.

Chili Pepper Bites

If you like stuffed chili peppers or jalapeno bites, you will like these.  Make them a little larger for an appetizer or party food or a little smaller as a nice soup topper.  Diced chilies or jalapenos can be used.

  8 Ounce Low fat Cream Cheese                                               2 Large Egg Yolks

  8 Ounce Parmesan, Grated                                                      2 Cups Panko

  4 Oz Chilies, Diced                                                                 

Combine all ingredients except breadcrumbs in a bowl.  Mix to form a paste and shape into 1/2 OR 1 inch balls, roll in breadcrumbs.  Place on an ungreased baking sheet and bake for 10 to 20 minutes until browned.

Black Bean Soup

You can puree this soup as much, or as little, as you like.  I pureed it almost smooth.  You can use chicken stock, but I was looking for a vegetarian meal.  Great topped with cheddar cheese and/or sour cream.  Makes 12 servings.

  1 Cup Red Bell Pepper                                                            32 Ounce Vegetable Broth

  2 Tbl olive oil                                                                          14.5 Ounce Diced Tomatoes

  2 Tsp Garlic                                                                             8 Ounce Chopped Green Chile

  45 Ounces Black Beans                                                           2 Tsp Cilantro

Dice the peppers, mince the garlic and rinse and drain the beans.

In a large pot oven, sautee the peppers in oil until tender. Add garlic and cook until fragrant.  Stir in the beans, broth, tomatoes and chopped green chilies. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 25 minutes. Add cilantro; cook 5 minutes longer.  Remove from the heat; puree with a stick blender.

Per Serving: 210 Cal (19% from Fat, 20% from Protein, 61% from Carb); 11 g Protein; 5 g Tot Fat; 1 g Sat Fat; 2 g Mono Fat; 33g Carb; 10 g Fiber; 2 g Sugar; 51 mg Calcium; 3 mg Iron; 596 mg Sodium

Slow Cheesy Potatoes

These can be made with shredded or southern style hash browned potatoes.  If you do not thaw them first, add at least an hour of cooking time on high then reduce to low for two hours.  Nutrition information is for 10 servings made with healthy choice cream of chicken soup.

  2 Lb Hash Brown Potatoes                                                      8 Ounce Sour Cream

  4 Cups Low Fat Cheddar                                                         1 Cup 1% Milk

  21.5 Ounce Low Fat Cream Of                                                Pinch Salt

  -Chicken Soup                                                                         1 Tsp Garlic

Thaw the hash brown potatoes.  Shred the cheddar cheese and mince the garlic.  Combine all ingredients and put in a 4 quart slow cooker.  Cook on low, stirring occasionally, for 2 hours.

Per Serving: 176 Cal (23% from Fat, 35% from Protein, 42% from Carb); 16 g Protein; 4 g Tot Fat; 3 g Sat Fat; 1 g Mono Fat; 18 g Carb; 1 g Fiber; 2 g Sugar; 258 mg Calcium; 1 mg Iron; 354 mg Sodium
 

Hamburger or Hot Dog Rolls

Who needs bun sized hamburgers or hot dogs?  Make the rolls to match what size you need.  This recipe makes 24 rolls.  The nutrition information is for all 6 cups of flour.  If you prefer wheat rolls, replace the all purpose flour with wheat flour.

  2 Cups 1% Milk                                                                       4 1/2 Tsp Yeast

  1/4 Cup Unsalted Butter                                                          2 Tsp Salt

  1/4 Cup Warm Water                                                               3 Cups All Purpose Flour

  1/4 Cup Sugar                                                                          3 Cups Bread Flour

Line 2 pans with non stick foil or silicone mats.  Set aside.

Warm milk and combine with melted butter, warm water and sugar.  When mixture is 110 to 115 degrees, stir in yeast and let sit for about 5 minutes.

Mix in salt and all purpose flour.  Gradually add bread flour until a soft dough forms.  Divide into 24 pieces and form into roll shape - hamburger or hot dog.  Let rise for 20 minutes. Preheat oven to 375 degrees while rising.  Bake for 15 minutes.

When I make these, I prepare the first pan into the shape that I want and start the 20 minute timer at that point.  When done, I bake the first pan.  Once I start the timer,  I start forming the second pan.  That way, the second pan is done rising about the time you are taking the first pan from the oven.  If they raise longer than 20 minutes, it is not an issue. 

Per Serving, for AP and Bread flour: 155 Cal (15% from Fat, 12% from Protein, 73% from Carb); 5 g Protein; 3 g Tot Fat; 1 g Sat Fat; 1 g Mono Fat; 28 g Carb; 1 g Fiber; 3 g Sugar; 30 mg Calcium; 2 mg Iron; 207 mg Sodium