Sourdough Bagels From Scratch

These round little baked goods have a special place in my heart, and not because I love New York bagels or have strong opinions about what a bagel “should" be. Instead, it’s because they are a token from my high school years, when I would get home from class and set to work mixing flour, salt, water and yeast. My dad loved (and still loves) telling people that this was how his teenage daughter chose to spend her free time. I haven't outgrown the phase, apparently—only matured it, taking the last year to research and test a sourdough version. These naturally leavened bagels are my new go-to, with a chewy crust, great rise, and complex flavor.

Sourdough Bagels from Scratch

Published February 9, 2021 by Caitlin Sherwood

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Serves: 12   |    Active Time: 2 hours active cooking time; 25 total hours (including rising)

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Ingredients:

For the Levain:

500g bread flour

500g warm water

250g ripe sourdough starter (100% hydration) (For me, this is typically my entire jar of starter — that’s good, you will put some back in the jar after the first ferment. I’ve found this is a great way to reinvigorate my starter, too!)

For the Dough:

1000g levain (above)

360-480g bread flour

6g diastatic malt powder (optional, provides improved rise and golden crust) (affiliate link)

17g salt

3g instant dry yeast

For Cooking & Topping:

Large stock pot of water

2 tablespoons honey (optional, gives bagels golden crust)

1 cup of toppings, such as: sesame seeds, poppy seeds, everything bagel topping, shredded cheese, cinnamon sugar, etc.

Directions:

1. This recipe includes a suggested baking schedule to help you plan, but you can adjust the schedule to fit your calendar. Feed your starter the night (or ~8hours) before making the levain.
2. 8 am: Make levain by combining bread flour, warm water and 250g of ripe starter in the bowl of stand mixer. Cover, and set in a warm place to ferment, 8 hours (if it’s a very warm day, cut this to 6 hours).
3. 4 pm: Move 250g of the levain back into your starter jar, leaving 1000g of active levain in the mixing bowl. Add 360g flour, malt powder, salt, and yeast to bowl. Place the dough hook attachment on your stand mixer, and mix until roughly combined. Turn mixer to speed 3 and knead, adding the additional 120g of flour in batches. The dough should be tough, smooth an elastic. If you notice the dough tearing, add a few small drops of water and stop adding flour. Knead for an additional 5-7 minutes.
4. 4:15 pm: Line a baking sheet with parchment (or a Silpat (affiliate link)). Divide the dough in 12 equal sized pieces, about 120-130g each. Shape each piece into a ball, and place on baking sheet. Cover with a damp towel and set in a warm place for 20 minutes.
5. 4:40 pm: Shape the bagels: working one at a time, use your thumb to poke a hole through the middle of each roll, and gently stretch to form a bagel shape. (Tip: once the initial hole is formed, I like to spin the loop around my finger and let gravitational pull do the stretching.) As the bagels rise and bake, the dough will puff, shrinking the hole in the middle, so make the hole a tad bigger than you want it to be in the finished product. Place shaped bagels back on baking sheet. Cover again with a damp towel, and rise for 20 minutes.
6. 5:05 pm: The bagels should be puffy. Test their rise by dropping one in a bowl of water: it should float. If it does not, allow to rise longer. Cover entire tray of bagels loosely with a plastic bag (or two), and place in fridge overnight (or up to 36 hours - the longer you wait the more sour they will taste).
7. 8 am (the next day): Prepare to cook bagels: Preheat oven to 475°F. As oven heats, bring a stock pot of water to a boil. Add honey. Prepare your toppings, by placing each topping in a wide bowl or on a plate that you can easily dip a bagel into.
8. 8:05 am: Boil bagels: Remove bagels from fridge. Gently lower 3 bagels into pot. Cook for 30 seconds, then flip, and cook for 30 seconds on second side (Tip: I set a stopwatch next to the stove so I can watch the clock). Using a slotted spoon, remove bagels from water, allowing excess water to drain back into the pot. Dip top of bagel into bowl of toppings, then set, topping-side up, on the sheet pan. Repeat until all bagels are boiled. Note: Boiling will slow with the addition of the cold bagels — keep the water warm enough to maintain a gentle boil.
9. 8:15 am: Bake bagels: Bake for 20-25 minutes, until golden brown on all sides.
10. 8:35 am: Transfer to cooling rack and allow to cool at least 10 minutes before slicing.
11. Serve to taste with butter, cream cheese, lox, capers, etc. Bagels are best fresh, but will last the week if stored well: Allow bagels to cool completely before storing. Once cooled, wrap tightly in plastic or place in an airtight container. Store at room temperature for up to 7 days.

Potato Galette with Lox (AKA Giant Latke)

It's hard not to immediately fall in love with a dish that is crispy, fried potatoes topped with crème fraiche and lox. Virtually impossible, really. But with a fancy name like "Potato Galette" it would be easy to be scared off by this one, because it sounds hard to make. Which is why, after explaining this dish to several people as "a giant latke," I thought it should be included in the title. 

The word galette cues visions of beautifully free-form pies in my mind's eye, but according to wiki it's a lot less specific than that. Galettes are various types of flat round or freeform crusty cakes, and this crispy potato cake a perfect fit to that description. 

Call it whatever you want. In my book, crispy potatoes = winning, and lox for breakfast (or brinner) = winning, no matter what name you give it. 

I admit, the first time I made a potato galette I was nervous it wouldn't flip out of the pan. For one, I was making it for a party -- a potato themed party, thanks for asking - and didn't want to screw it up. But also, I used a cast iron pan while most recipes recommend a non-stick. I don't own any non-stick pans though (probably hard to believe when you see how full our cupboards are), so I made do with what I had. 

On that note, no matter the pan you use, please don't hold back on the oil/butter here, even though I know it's tempting. It's what makes the potatoes crispy, and will allow you to flip the galette out the pan in one fell swoop. 

Potato Galette with Lox

Published May 15, 2018 by Caitlin Sherwood

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Serves: 6-8   |    Total Time: 20 minutes

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Ingredients:

For the Lamb:
• 2 Russet or Yukon Gold potatoes
• 1/4 cup avocado oil or melted butter, divided
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 4 ounces lox
• 1/4 cup creme fraiche, sour cream or plain greek yogurt
• Optional, for serving: minced chives, capers

Directions:

1. Wash potatoes, and peel. Then, shred (I use a food processor (affiliate link!) for this step).
2. Heat 3 tablespoons oil or butter in a 10-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat until oil glistens. Tilt the skillet back and forth to cover the entire bottom.
3. When the oil is hot, sprinkle have of the shredded potato into the pan. It should sizzle a little bit as it hits — if it does not, the oil is not hot enough yet. Ensure the potato is in an even layer, and sprinkle with half of the salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Using a metal spatula, press the potatoes down. Then, continue with the second half of the shredded potatoes, sprinkling them in an even layer. Top with remaining salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Again, press down with the spatula. Now, drizzle remaining 1 tablespoon melted butter or oil around the edge of the pan to help ensure it flips out easily.
4. Cover pan with lid and turn heat down to medium-low. Cook for 10-13 minutes. Potatoes should be cooked through, and browning on the bottom. Now, use the metal spatula to loosen the potato galette from the pan, working your way around the edge and under the galette. Once the galette is loose, get a plate, and flip the galette over onto the plate so that it sites browned-side-up on the plate.
5. To serve: slice into wedges, and top with a dollop of crème fraiche, minced chives, a slice of lox, and a few capers. Enjoy!

Hearty Eggs Benedict

Despite my immediate desire to eat chocolate in the morning, I tend to feel better if I eat a real breakfast (go figure). As a kid I was a no-breakfast type, preferring a cup of hot chocolate and nothing else. But my dad always ensured I ate something of breakfast-- grapefruit, toast with almond butter, cereal, and on the special days oven roasted hash browns or even Eggs Benedict. 

Now I love eggs for breakfast, and Eggs Benedict feels like a holiday to me because you have to get more than one pot dirty to make it, but it's always worth it. This particular Eggs Benedict recipes includes more than just Hollandaise sauce: with a bed of hash browns and a layer of lox, it's pretty hearty, in the best of ways. 

Just got home from a really long trip? Make this. 

Finished a tough work out? This. 

It's Saturday and you just need some time to yourself after the work week? Yup. 

I'll use any of those excuses (and more) to complicate breakfast with hollandaise sauce, because a fancy breakfast feels like I'm treating myself to something extraordinary. And we all deserve that, don't we? 

Hearty Eggs Benedict

Primal, Gluten-Free, Grain-Free    |   Caitlin Sherwood    |    Print This Recipe

Served over hash and lox, a poached egg is dressed with hollandaise sauce.

Serves: 2   |    Total Time: 30 minutes

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Ingredients:

• 2 egg yolks
• Juice from 1/2 lemon
• 4 tablespoons butter, melted
• Dash cayenne
• Dash salt
• Parsley, for garnish
• Pepper, to taste
• 2 eggs, poached or fried
• Hash browns of choice
• 2 servings lox

Directions:

1. Before making the sauce, prepare your hash browns to your liking, and cook your eggs (I prefer to leave the yolks runny).
2. Whisk together egg yolks with lemon until they become slightly lighter yellow. Place in small pot and heat over low, whisking continuously (or in a double boiler if you have one). After 3 minutes, pour in melted butter continuing to whisk the entire time. Continue to whisk until sauce thickens. Remove from heat. Add a dash of cayenne and salt to taste.
3. Serve: Make a layer of hash brown on each plate, and top with lox. Then place a fried or poached egg on top, before drizzling with sauce. Top with parsley leaves for garnish, a sprinkle of pepper and/or more cayenne to taste. Serve immediately.