Deep Fried Honey

Add the lukewarm water, yeast, and brown sugar to the bowl of your stand mixer. Make sure the paddle attachment is affixed. Once the yeast has risen to the top and become foamy, add the salt and half of the flour. Mix on low just until a shaggy dough begins to form. 

Stop the mixer, take off the paddle attachment and affix the dough hook. Add the remaining flour to the bowl and mix on low for 3 minutes. After 3 minutes increase the speed to medium and continue mixing for 7-10 minutes, or until a smooth dough has formed. It shouldn’t be sticky to the touch, and it should spring back slowly if you pull on it. If it’s sticky, add a couple of teaspoons more flour, scrape the sies of the bowl down and mix on medium speed for another 2 minutes. 

Oil a large bowl lightly with vegetable oil and transfer the dough to it. Flip the dough to ensure the ball is coated in oil, then place the bowl somewhere warm and cover it with a wet kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise undisturbed until doubled in size, which should take about 2 hours. 

After the dough has doubled in size punch it down and allow it to deflate in the bowl while you prepare your work surface: lightly flour it, then turn the dough out. 

Shape the dough into a tight ball, then use a pastry cutter or knife to cut it in half, right down the center. Cut both halves in half, then cut those pieces in half again: you should end up with 8 rounds of dough. I like to use a scale to ensure they’re all the same size, if you’re good at eyeballing feel free to skip that. 

Form your forefinger and thumb into an O. Take a round of dough and use the index finger on your opposite hand to push the round of dough up through the O you’ve formed with your fingers, keeping your fingertips together. Repeat this process until the round of dough is smooth all on but one side. 

Now form your hand into a C, or a cup. Take the dough ball and put it on the floured countertop and cover it with your cupped hand. Keeping your hand cupped, roll the ball around against the counter until it is completely smoothed. Set the dough round aside and continue with the remaining dough rounds.

Stick the index finger on your dominant hand in the bread flour, then stick that finger straight down in the dead center of a smoothed dough round, all the way to the countertop beneath it, and twirl your finger around a bit to widen the hole. Slip your other index finger into the hole you’ve made and gently stretch the bagel’s opening until it’s just under 1″ wide (it will become smaller while the bagel rests). If the dough resists and you think it’s going to tear, leave the hole smaller. Repeat with the remaining dough rounds. 

Arrange your bagels on a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper or a silicone mat. If you don’t have either just spray the cookie sheet with baking spray. Allow the bagels to rest while you preheat the oven to 425°F and prepare the water bath. They won’t double in size, but they will puff up quite a bit. 

Add your water to a large pot and bring it to a boil. Just before it comes to a rolling boil, stir in the molasses until it’s completely dissolved. While you wait for the water to come to a boil go ahead and make the egg wash by beating the large egg together with a few drops of water. 

Add 3-4 bagels to the boiling water – widen the center opening with your fingers if it’s shrunken too much –  and let boil for 2 minutes, then flip. Continue boiling for another 1-3 minutes (the longer the boil, the chewier the bagel), then transfer back to the cookie sheet. 

Brush the tops of the bagels lightly with egg wash. Top as desired (check the post above the recipe for help with that) and bake for 20-25 minutes – until golden brown and cooked through in the center. Let cool as much as you need to, then enjoy as soon as possible. Dassit!