It started with sourdough a few years ago. Keeping a starter alive, and baking one to three sourdough loaves per week somehow turned into a full kitchen revolution. It was a slippery slope, and now I find that nearly every bread product we consume as a family is homemade from my kitchen. Sourdough loaves, sandwich bread, tortillas, muffins, pancakes, biscuits, pie dough, cookies, cakes, and now… bagels. I’m thrilled to share this recipe with you, it’s become a go-to for my big kids packed lunches on Mondays and Tuesday.
Here’s a quick peak at what my two older kids packed lunches look like these days, and the system I follow to keep everything easy:
Weekly Flow
Sunday Morning – Make four lunches (one per child), for Monday and Tuesday.
Tuesday Afternoon – Repeat the process, prep four lunches, for Wednesday and Thursday.
Fridays – treat them (and myself) to a hot pizza lunch. Currently $6 per kid, per Friday = $48 monthly 🍕
Daily Flow
When they get home from school, I rotate out the used tray, place it in the dishwasher, and pop in an already-packed tray from the fridge. I wipe down the inside of the lunchboxes as needed.
On Thursdays, since they’re finished with their lunchboxes for the week, I run both the boxes and the trays through the dishwasher.
What We Own for this System
- Each kid has their own lunchbox
- An additional six trays with lids, which helps keep it fresh in the fridge and the rotation runs seamlessly
This homemade bagel recipe is surprisingly easy, and becomes second nature by the time you get around to doing it a second or third time. At this point, I feel confident making homemade bagels and I bet you will too. As most bread products, these freeze really well.
Homemade Bagels
Equipment
- stand mixer with dough hook
- medium bowl for rising
- medium pot for boiling
- baking sheet
- slotted spatula
Ingredients
- 1½ cups warm water
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar or brown sugar
- 2¾ teaspoons instant or active dry yeast
- 4 cups bread flour
- 2 teaspoons salt
- butter or olive oil for coating bowl
Boiling & Toppings
- 2 quarts water
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 1 egg white beaten with water
- toppings of choice
Instructions
Prepare the Dough
- In the bowl of your stand mixer, whisk warm water, sugar, and yeast together. Allow to sit for 5-10 minutes.
- Add the flour and salt, and beat on medium speed until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl, 3-5 minutes. Adjust with more water or more flour, if needed.
- Knead the dough for an additional 5-10 minutes, either by hand or with your mixer. Kneed until dough feels smooth and elastic.
- Lightly grease a medium bowl with butter or oil. Place dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides. Cover and allow dough to rise for 1-2 hours, or until has doubled in size.
Shape the Bagels
- Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces. Shape each into a ball, press your index finger through the center to make a hole about 1½-2-inches. Arrange the shaped bagels on a lined baking sheet. Allow to rest while you prepare the water bath.
- Preheat oven to 425 °F
Water Bath
- Whisk honey into a medium pot of water, bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Drop 2-3 bagels in at time, boil for 1 minute, then use a spatula to flip each bagel over and boil for 1 more minute. Life bagels out of the letter, drain, and place bagels back on lined baking sheet. Repeat with remaining bagels.
- Using a pastry brush, brush egg was on top and around the sides of each bagel. If you're adding toppings, dip the tops of the bagels into the toppings right after applying the egg wash.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes. Allow the bagels to cool on the baking sheets for 20 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack.