montreal bagels

Directions

1. 1
   First, make the dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment or in a large bowl using a wooden spoon, stir together water, maple syrup, yeast, flour and salt until a firm dough forms. Continue to knead dough in stand mixer on medium speed 6-8 minutes, OR knead by hand on a clean surface 8-10 minutes, until dough is soft, smooth, elastic and only slightly sticky. If necessary, you can knead in up to 1/4 cup more flour if dough seems too sticky.
2. 2
   Shape dough into a ball; transfer to a lightly oiled large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 1/2 hours.
3. 3
   Meanwhile, place a large sheet of parchment paper on an upside-down baking sheet.
4. 4
   Place sesame/poppy/everything bagel seeds into shallow bowls.
5. 5
   Next, shape the bagels: Punch down risen dough to deflate. Divide dough into 8 equal-sized pieces.
6. 6
   Roll each piece into a ball; poke a hole in the center of each ball and gently tug to form a rough bagel shape with a 2-inch circle in the center (see Post above for a link to a video tutorial on how to shape bagels!).
7. 7
   Place bagels on parchment; cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise until slightly puffy, about 20 minutes. In the meantime, heat oven to 475°F. 
8. 8
   Next, boil the bagels: In a large saucepan, bring honey and roughly 3 quarts of water (enough to fill the pan by about 3 inches) to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer.
9. 9
   Using a slotted spoon, transfer 2 to 3 bagels at a time to simmering water; cook on one side for about 1 minute, then flip and cook for another minute. Use slotted spoon to transfer each bagel to one of the bowls with seeds; dip and turn the bagels to coat in the seeds, then return, seed side-up, to parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat with remaining bagels.
10. 10
    Finally, bake the bagels: With bagels still placed on parchment-lined upside-down baking sheet, carefully transfer to oven.
11. 11
    Bake bagels 15 to 20 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking, until bagels are a deep golden brown. Cool bagels completely on a cooling rack before slicing.
12. 12
    Store fresh-baked bagels in a paper bag for up to 1 day; after that, slice each bagel in half and freeze for up to 2 months.