Homemade Bagel

I looked at many recipes and videos before picking this recipe. The original recipe is by Emeril Lagasse, the famous chef. It's very easy and the bagel turns out to be great. I have changed the quantity to suit my needs. You can even freeze the dough and use it another time in the future.

Ingredients

* 1.5 cups warm water
* 2 tbsp active dry yeast
* 3 tablespoons granulated sugar
* 4 cups all-purpose flour
* 1.5 teaspoon salt
* 2 teaspoons vegetable oil
* 1.5 tablespoons yellow cornmeal

Optional Toppings:

* 1/2 cup lightly toasted chopped onions (2 teaspoons each)
* 2 tablespoons poppy seeds (about 1/2 teaspoon each)
* 2 tablespoons sesame seeds (about 1/2 teaspoon each)


Directions

Combine the water, yeast, and 2 tablespoons of the sugar in the bowl. Stir and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Gradually add 4 cups of the flour, salt, oil and cornmeal and mix until the mixture comes together.

Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and no longer sticky, about 5 minutes, adding just as much flour as needed.

Remove from the bowl and punch down the dough. Divide into 12 equal pieces, about 2 to 3 ounces each, measuring about 4 inches across. Form each piece of dough into a ball. Roll each ball into a 4 to 6-inch log. Join the ends and place fingers through the hole and roll the ends together. (I used a huge cookie cutter/bagel cutter for this part)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Grease a baking sheet with the remaining teaspoon of oil.

In a large, heavy pot, bring 6 cups of water and the remaining tablespoon of sugar to a boil. In batches, add the bagels to the water and boil, turning, for 30 seconds to 1 minute. Flip bagels onto the prepared sheet pan. Bake until done.

Enjoy the bagel with cream cheese or jam.