Recipe: Water Bagels (using malted milk powder)

WATER BAGELS

"Malt powder not only gives the bagels a good taste; when used in the water bath it gives them a shiny crust."

1 tablespoon active dry yeast
2 cups warm water
1/4 cup natural-flavored instant malted milk powder*
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon salt
5 3/4 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-purpose Flour
FOR THE WATER BATH:
2 quarts water
2 tablespoons natural-flavored instant malted milk powder
1 tablespoon granulated sugar

In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in the warm water. Stir in the 1/4 cup malted milk powder and 2 tablespoons sugar, then the salt and flour. Knead the dough till smooth (by hand, mixer or machine.) Shape the dough into a ball, place it in a lightly greased bowl covered with lightly greased plastic wrap, and allow it to rise until doubled in bulk, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.

When the dough has risen, punch it down and transfer it to a lightly greased work surface.

To prepare the water bath, put the water into a large, shallow pan, the water should be about 3-inches deep, and add the 2 tablespoons malted milk powder and 1 tablespoon sugar. Bring the water to a boil while you're shaping the bagels.

Divide the dough into 16 pieces. Working with one piece of dough at a time, shape it into a ball, poke a hole through the center with your index finger, and twirl; the dough will form a ring. You can also roll out half the dough into a 9-inch circle and use a doughnut cutter to make 8-10 bagels. Repeat with second half of dough.

Place the bagels on a parchment-lined baking sheet as they're shaped or cut out. Boil them immediately, or let them rise a bit.

To boil the bagels, reduce the boiling water bath to a very gentle simmer. Gently transfer the bagels, 3 or 4 at a time, to the water bath; don't crowd them. Simmer them for about 30 seconds on each side, then return them to the baking sheet.

Bake the bagels in a preheated 425 degree F oven for 20 minutes, or until they're a deep golden brown.

*You can use non-diastatic malt powder in place of the instant malted milk product.

VARIATIONS:
- To make flavored bagels, add ingredients - bits of cooked spinach or fresh chive or garlic, diced onions, cinnamon and raisins are popular - to the dough before kneading.
- After you have boiled the bagels, and before you bake them, you may sprinkle them with sesame seeds, poppy seeds, caraway seeds or coarse salt. Bagels brushed with a bit of beaten egg white before topping will be shinier and hold their topping better.

Makes 16 to 20 bagels, depending on size
Source: King Arthur Flour