Pizza Bagels

A delicious recipe we got from our Aunt Miki!

Pizza Bagels
Ingredients:

2 cups warm water

2 packets active dry yeast

2 Tbs honey

3 cups all purpose flour

2 ½ cups bread flour

1 tspn salt

1 Tbs brown sugar (for the water bath)

Cornmeal

Pizza Sauce

Mozzarella Cheese & Italian Seasoning

In the bowl of your electric mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine water, yeast and honey, stir to combine, then let sit until foamy, about 10-15 minutes. Once foamy, gradually add in salt, 2 cups of all-purpose flour and 2 cups bread flour with the mixer on low speed. After 5 minutes or so, if the dough is still sticky, add the remaining bread flour and ½ cup all-purpose flour and mix until combined. Remove the dough from the bowl (it should be thick and stiffer than most yeast breads) and knead a few times with your hands, forming it into a ball. Add the remaining all purpose flour if the dough is still sticky.

Brush a large bowl with oil and place the dough inside, turning to coat. Cover and let rise in a warm place until is double in size-about an hour.

Once doubled, punch down the dough and place it on your counter, using a little more flour if needed to prevent it from sticking. Divide the dough into 12-15 pieces that are 2.5-3 ounces each. Roll the dough into balls, then place on an oiled baking sheet, cover and let rise for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, fill a large pot with water and add brown sugar, letting it come to a boil. While the water is heating up, take each round of dough and poke a hole straight through the middle, twirling it gently on your finger to create the bagel “look.” Place back down on the baking sheet and let rest for 10-15 minutes, while the water comes to a rolling boil.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease another baking sheet and place some cornmeal on a plate.

Once boiling, add 3-4 bagels at a time. Let cook for 2 minutes on one side, then using the end of a wooden spoon, flip the bagel and cook for another 30 seconds.  Remove bagels one at a time and dip bottoms in cornmeal. Transfer to the greased baking sheet. Brush bagels with pizza sauce and sprinkle mozzarella cheese on top. Sprinkle Italian season. Once all the bagels are finished, place in the oven and bake for 28-35 minutes.

Let bagels cool completely before serving, then toast or eat as desired.