baked goods, ah, baked goods. how i love thee. Let me count the ways. Cinnamon raisin bagels may be my new favorite thing in the world. They are soft and pliable with swirls of delicious sugar and cinnamon wafting their way through the gently scented dough. I love bagels. Now I don't love cream cheese. I do, however, love yogurt. It is tart and tangy and gloops deliciously over my baked good of choice. I was inspired by the website www.thepioneerwoman.com to make these wonderful bagels. They are chewy where most are soft, dense where most are springy, and un-freaking-believable when toasted. Yes, it's a fair bit of work. But they yield anywhere from 12 gigantic bagels to well over 20 miniature bagels. The first time I made them I went with a plain variety. They were alright. This time, I upped the sugar and with the addition of cinnamon and raisins they became out of this world.
This is a picture of the fully formed and risen bagels about to take their dip in a steamy wet bath. I added baking soda and honey to the water to simulate malted syrup which is what gives the outside that special extra something-something.
The next pic is the actual bath. I found that my large saute pan worked extremely well for the shallow bath and I flipped the bagels with chop sticks. Cooking them the full 2 minutes on each side for chewyness was excruciating but I did it. It was worth it.
The last picture is of the finished product. I have yet to find another store bought bagel to match the amazing lure of these bad boys. Enjoy and try not to drool. Well, you can drool a little.