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Submitted by stickyfingers on November 9, 2009 - 9:55am Greetings from the Las VegasHi everyone. I joined this site a month or more ago and have been enjoying it very much. I bought a bread machine about 4 months ago and have been baking bread literally every other day since. I no longer buy bread in any of the stores around here as I like mine far better. I bought a hearth kit about a month and a half ago along with PRs books BBA and American Pie. I am also an avid coffee roaster and have been making coffee at home on a Rancillio Silvia espresso machine for years. Nothing beats espresso from a fresh and wonderfully roasted bean along with a home made french or italian bread! The strange thing is that my partner and I are now eating FAR more bread than ever before and for some reason she and I have both lost weight. Go and figure. I am very happy to be connected to this community and the website is great. One of my goals is to make a bagel that satisfies my craving of New York bagels. So far I have not succeeded but am continuing my quest. I was born and raised in New York and as many of you know, the New York bagel is in a class of its own. Unfortunately in recent visits to NY I have been disappointed by some of the bagels being offered but nothing can be worse than what I have found on the West Coast since having moved here many years ago. I do have a question maybe someone can answer: I have read repeatedly that one of the best ways to test the readiness of the bread is by poking a thermometer into the center and taking it's temp. In doing so I end up putting a hole (albeit small) in the loaf. In reading the PR book he writes about the importance of the cooling off period and what takes place inside the loaf during that time and why you shouldn't cut the bread. I'm wondering if by taking the temp of the bread and creating that hole if I am losing too much heat within the bread during the cooling off period. When I put my finger just above the hole there is no doubt that heat is escaping. Sticky Fingers- AKA Ira
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Welcome!
Hi, Ira.
Welcome to TFL!
There are many good bagel recipes, including the one in BBA, which you say you have already. Have you tried it yet?
I do recommend testing your loaves doneness by measureing the internal temperature with an instant-read thermometer. If you are concerned about the cosmetic effect of poking a hole in the loaf, just poke it in the bottom rather than the top. I wouldn't worry about heat escaping through the hole.
Completely cooling loaves before slicing is important. Do it! In fact, with some breads - ryes in particular - the crumb texture will improve over 12-24 hours and deferring slicing until then is very worthwhile.
David
Welcome, Sticky (Ira)
Try Jeffrey Hamelman's bagel receipe from his book, "Bread, a Baker's Book of Techniques and Recipes.."
If you follow it precisely, your bagels will be as good as any bagel you'll find in Manhattan. Maybe even better, since they'll be fresher.
I used to live on 86th and First and while it's been a few years since I've been back for a visit, my bagel cravings have been fulfilled by Hamelman's formula.
Wish I could say the same for Carnegie Deli's cheesecake!
Thanks, will definitely try Peter's recipe
...but most importantly, even if it is a good right recipe I hope I can execute it well. I bought Peter's book BBA early last week but have spent my time reading American Pie and am just at the beginning of BBA. I happened to see the bagel recipe as I was leafing through the recipes and I was excited to see that he strove to recreate a memorable bagel. He says he nailed it and even improved it a bit, so I'm game. I'm getting ready to try it this coming weekend. Jeff Hamelman is a new name for me and I will look for his book on techniques and recipes.
Lindy, when I was living in the city back in the 80's I used to go to a shop on First Avenue in the 80's on the East side of the street that had really good bagels. It was a little shop with a picture of Jake LaMotta and Rocky Graciano together each holding bagels from the shop. Can't remember the name of the place though.
Hello and Welcome!
Hello Ira, Welcome to TFL! I lived in Vegas from 1954 to 2001 before my husband and I moved to CA. We still have ties and family living in Vegas. I never did eat a lot of bagels..but the ones I did in Vegas is probably why I don't care much for them...you'll have fun learning to make a good one here! You have two of my favorite books.
Sylvia