Cheddar and jalapeno sandwich bagels
Ingredients:
Bagel dough- 420 grams all-purpose flour (3.5 cups)
- 11 grams salt (2 teaspoons)
- 6 grams instant yeast ( 2 teaspoons)
- 13 grams dark brown sugar (1 tablespoon - or regular brown sugar)
- 30 grams cheddar cheese, shredded (1/4 cup)
- 20 grams jalapeno, seeded and finely diced (about 1 jalapeno, optional)
- 245 grams lukewarm water (1 cup + 1 tablespoon)
- cornmeal or semolina flour (for dusting)
Boiling process
- 6 cups water
- 2 tablespoons honey
Cheddar and jalapeno topping
- 1 whole egg
- 1 tablespoon water
- 1 jalapeno, thinly sliced
- 40 to 60 grams cheddar cheese, shredded (1/4 to 1/3 cup)
Directions:
Dough: mix and then knead all bagel dough ingredients (except for the cornmeal/semolina) on medium in a stand mixer for 8 minutes. If you are kneading by hand, you're going to need to mix ingredients in a bowl and then knead for about 15 minutes until you get a smooth dough.
Form the dough into a ball and place it in a covered bowl in a warm place until it doubles in size, which should be around 1 to 1.5 hours.
After the dough has doubled, remove it from the bowl and shape it into 8 equal pieces. I usually weigh each dough ball to keep them all a similar size.
Shape all eight dough pieces into balls and allow them to rest under a clean kitchen towel for 15 minutes.
While the dough balls are resting, prepare a baking sheet with a piece of parchment that you have dusted with cornmeal or semolina flour.
After 15 minutes, carefully poke a hole directly in the middle of each ball and stretch that hole out until the hole is about 2 inches across. Place each bagel-shaped dough on the dusted sheet pan. You should be able to get 8 bagels on a sheet pan in a 3-2-3 pattern based on the long side of a traditional sheet pan.
BAKE OR REFRIGERATE TIME. Check notes below if you want to store the dough in the fridge for an overnight rise. Otherwise, continue.
Cover the sheet pan containing all your shaped bagel dough with plastic wrap and allow the bagel dough to rise for 30 to 45 minutes.
Preheat your oven to 450 degrees F (232 C).
Boiling: in a large skillet or pot, add 6 cups of water and 2 tablespoons of honey. Bring to a boil.
Once the honey water is boiling, boil bagels 2 or 3 at a time for one minute per side, flip and boil for 1 minute on the second side, and then place back in its spot on the parchment-lined and dusted pan. Boil the rest of the bagels until they have all been through the boiling process.
Cheddar and jalapeno topping: whisk together 1 whole egg and 1 tablespoon of water. This is your egg wash. Paint each bagel dough that has already been boiled with the egg wash, and then place 2 or 3 jalapeno slices on top of each bagel. Top the jalapeno slices with a small pile of shredded cheddar cheese. Continue with all the bagels that you wish to top.
Bake the bagels for 18 to 25 minutes or until you have achieved the level of browning that you desire.
Remove bagels from the pan to a cooling rack and allow them to fully cool before slicing.
Notes:
If you would prefer an overnight rise in the refrigerator, which should give your dough a bit more flavor, proceed with the recipe until you get to the BAKE OR REFRIGERATE section. At that point, once the bagel dough is shaped, cover everything loosely with plastic wrap, and you can immediately refrigerate the dough for 8 to 12 hours (or even longer if needed).
If you're refrigerating the dough, bring it out and let it warm up on the counter for 30 minutes, then preheat the oven, and then proceed with the boiling process, topping, and then baking.