Baron Bagels

Baron Bagels
Craig Lee for The New York Times
Total Time
About 1 hour, plus a 2-hour rise and overnight fermentation
Rating
4(778)
Comments
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Dan Graf, a genetics major who dropped out of Rutgers, founded Baron Baking in Oakland, Calif., after working in a delicatessen. The son of a Bergen County, N.J., contractor, he grew up accompanying his father to jobs on weekends. Stopping for bagels was part of the ritual. After moving to California, he worked for two years at Saul’s Restaurant and Delicatessen in Berkeley, where he became fascinated with baking. He began baking bagels in his apartment and eventually won an account with his former employer. There are all kinds of bagels; Mr. Graf’s has a chewy bite and an almost pretzel-like crust. This is his recipe. —Joan Nathan

Featured in: In Northern California, Bagels Come Full Circle

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Ingredients

Yield:10 bagels
  • 1teaspoon/3 grams active dry yeast
  • 5cups/600 grams bread flour
  • 3tablespoons/54 grams sea salt, divided
  • 1tablespoon/8 grams diastatic malt powder
  • 2tablespoons/40 grams baking soda
  • ¼cup poppy seeds, optional
  • ¼cup sesame seeds, optional
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (10 servings)

257 calories; 4 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 1 gram monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 46 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 0 grams sugars; 9 grams protein; 1098 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Put the yeast in the bowl of a standing mixer. Add 1⅔ cups/ 365 grams lukewarm water and allow the yeast to activate, about 5 minutes. Add flour, 1 tablespoon/18 grams salt and malt powder and mix at low speed for 5 minutes using the dough hook. Cover the dough and allow to rise at room temperature for about 2 hours.

  2. Step 2

    Punch the dough down and shape into a rough rectangle about 1 to 1½ inches thick, and about 2 times longer than it is wide. If you are having trouble forming the dough, stretch it, wait for the gluten to relax and re-form.

  3. Step 3

    Cut the dough into 10 pieces of about 3 ounces each. Roll each into an 8-inch-long snakelike shape, tapering the dough at each end. Circle the dough around your hand, pinching the ends together and rolling under your palm once or twice to seal. Put the bagels on a Silpat or other nonstick baking sheet on top of a jellyroll pan. Cover well with plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 10 hours, or up to 24 hours.

  4. Step 4

    Heat the oven to 425 degrees. If you have a baking stone or brick you use for baking, put it on a rack near the bottom of the oven; it will retain heat and produce a crisper bagel. Bring a large pot of water to boil, add the remaining salt and the baking soda into the boiling water and remove the bagels from the refrigerator.

  5. Step 5

    Carefully place just enough bagels into the pot to cover the surface of the water, making sure that there are no bagels resting on top of one another. Let them float on 1 side for 1 minute before flipping them to the other side for another minute or so. Remove the bagels and drain well on a cooling rack.

  6. Step 6

    Pour poppy or sesame seeds into a bowl wider than the bagels. Working very quickly, remove the bagels one by one and dip them into the topping. Place them back on the Silpat-covered baking sheet, topping side down.

  7. Step 7

    Bake on the second to highest shelf of the oven for 8 to 10 minutes. Then flip the bagels, rotate the pan and continue baking for about 8 minutes, or until they are golden brown.

Tip
  • Diastatic malt powder is available from King Arthur and many Whole Foods stores.

Ratings

4 out of 5
778 user ratings
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Comments

In fairness to the recent article update it the resting period and lye bath.

Why the paddle attachment and not the dough hook attachment?

No, you don't understand diastatic malt powder. It is sprouted grain, usually barley, which is dried and ground. The growing gain contains enzymes which will soften the dough. It is not added for sugar content, even though it has a little.

Where on Earth does one find diastatic malt powder?

Careful with the salt!

I think a big problem with this recipe is that there isn’t a quantity of water to complete the salt/baking soda ratio. Yes, use a large pot or pan but you really need a shallow amount of water to get the intended pH.

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Credits

Adapted from Dan Graf

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