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Homemade Bagels (Variation 1…original recipe)
Homemade Bagels (Variation 2…adjusted recipe)
Homemade Bagels (Variation 3…fast, 2 ingredients)
Amish Apple Fritter Bread (Variation 1…original recipe)
Amish Apple Fritter Bread (Variation 2… less sugar recipe)
Amish Apple Fritter Bread (Variation 3…(adjusted sugar and eggs recipe)
Banana Cake (Variation 1…original recipe with suggested variations)
Banana Cake (Variation 2… original recipe with suggested variations and pictures)
Variation 1 (original recipe)
Topping:
1/3 cup brown sugar Mix these two things and set this mixture aside.
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Batter:
½ cup soft butter Mix these four things and beat until fluffy; set aside.
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 ½ cups flour Combine the flour and baking powder; then add milk. Mix and
2 teaspoons baking powder then add the butter/egg mixture from above.
½ cup milk
Apple Filling:
2 cups apples…peeled, cored, sliced
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 tablespoon sugar
In a greased bread pan, pour half the batter mixture into the pan. Add half the apple mixture on top of the batter mixture. Repeat these layers and press the top layer of apples slightly into the batter. Sprinkle the topping mixture over the top layer of apples.
Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes (or until inserted knife/toothpick comes out clean). Let the bread cool about 30 minutes and then drizzle the glaze on top of the bread.
Glaze:
½ cup powdered sugar
1 tablespoon milk
Variation 3…fast, 2 ingredient
Since our boys eat all the bagels I make, I asked them very detailed questions of their opinions of these bagels the first time I made them. The echoing response was that they were just as good. So, here is a simple and fast recipe for making bagels.
1 ¾ cups self rising flour (I don’t have self-rising flour; but my handy substitution chart told me I
could make a cup of self-rising flour by using 7/8 cup flour, 1 ½ teaspoon baking powder,
and ½ teaspoon salt.)
1 cup Greek yogurt (I just used my homemade yogurt.)
Mix these items together; knead the dough. Then, divide the dough into 8 sections/balls and shape into bagels…leaving really big/wide holes in the center.
Bake at 350 degrees for 10 (or less minutes) or 10 minutes in the air fryer.
You can use 1 tablespoon of melted butter (before or after baking these) to brush on top if desired. You also could add seasonings or toppings into the dough or on top before baking to flavor a batch of bagels as well.
Variation 1 (original recipe)…makes 8 bagels
1 ½ cups warm water
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
2 tablespoons plus ¼ cup barley malt syrup (or honey)
3 ½ cups bread flour, plus additional for shaping
1 tablespoon
Olive oil, for greasing
1 large egg whisked with 1 tablespoon of water
Optional seasonings: sea salt, sesame seeds, onion flakes, garlic flakes, poppy seeds
1. Pour warm water into a small bowl, dusting with yeast and sugar. Let stand until yeast dissolves and begins to foam (about 5 minutes). Stir in 2 tablespoons of barley malt syrup.
2. In a mixer or large bowl, combine flour, salt and yeast mixture. Knead dough until elastic (about 8 minutes). Move the kneaded dough into a greased large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap (or towel) and let it sit for 1 hour…until it has doubled in size.
3. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Move the dough to a floured surface and divide it into 8 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a ball. Using your thumb, middle, and index fingers, create a hole in the center of each dough ball. Spin the dough around your fingertips until you’ve formed a ring. (Keep in mind that the bagel holes will shrink in the oven. So, consider making them larger than you’d think.).
4. Place the bagels on a floured baking sheet; cover with a damp towel. Let them sit 10 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, fill a large stockpot or a wide (3-4” deep) stainless steel pan with 6 quarts of water. Whisk in ¼ cup of barley malt syrup. Bring water to a boil.
6. Then, using a slotted spoon and working in batches, lower the bagels into the water allowing them to boil 1 minute per side. Transfer the bagels to a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and greased with olive oil. Brush each bagel with egg wash and sprinkle with your seasoning(s) of choice. Puncture bagels with a fork. 7. Bake for 10 minutes. Rotate the baking sheets and bake for another 10 minutes. Once the bagels are golden brown, remove from oven and allow to cool . Store in an airtight container.
Variation 2 (adjusted recipe)…makes 8 bagels
1 ½ cups warm water
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
3 ½ cups bread flour, plus additional for shaping
1 tablespoon
Olive oil, for greasing
Optional seasonings: sea salt, sesame seeds, onion flakes, garlic flakes, poppy seeds
1. Pour warm water into a small bowl, dusting with yeast. Let stand until yeast dissolves and begins to foam (about 5 minutes).
2. In a mixer or large bowl, combine flour, salt and yeast mixture. Knead dough until elastic (about 8 minutes). Move the kneaded dough into a greased large bowl. Cover with a towel and let it sit for 1 hour…until it has doubled in size.
3. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Move the dough to a floured surface and divide it into 8 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a ball. Using your thumb, middle, and index fingers, create a hole in the center of each dough ball. Spin the dough around your fingertips until you’ve formed a ring. (Keep in mind that the bagel holes will shrink in the oven. So, consider making them larger than you’d think.).
4. Place the bagels on a floured baking sheet; cover with a damp towel. Let them sit 10 minutes.
5. Meanwhile, fill a wide (4” deep) stainless steel pan with 6 quarts of water. Bring water to a boil.
6. Then, using a slotted spoon and working in batches, lower the bagels into the water allowing them to boil 1 minute per side. Transfer the bagels to a sheet pan (Optional: Brush each bagel with egg wash and sprinkle with your seasoning(s) of choice.)
7. Bake for 10 minutes. Rotate the baking sheets and bake for another 10 minutes. Once the bagels are golden brown, remove from oven and allow to cool . Store in an airtight container.
In conversations about cutting back on sugar while baking, I am often asked…”How do you adjust a recipe to use less sugar?”. One of my goals in the last several years has been to use as little processed sugar as possible while still sweetening things with natural sweeteners (syrup, applesauce, and honey being my top 3 sweeteners). So, I have experimented with different baked goods and different natural sweeteners to see how the outcome is affected.
The good news is…no matter what you bake…there is a pretty good chance (like 99% based on my tests) that you can automatically cut the sugar amount in a recipe in half. And…There are many recipes where part of the directions call for sugar (such as one tablespoon in making pancakes). I don’t even add that sugar…because I don’t need that sugar in with the other ingredients in order for the whole pancake to turn out right. Again, I just try baking it without sugar often times and then I determine how much more sweetener it needs…because you can always add more sweetener on top if desired (but you can’t take more sweetener out once it is baked).
So, I’ve included variations to some of the recipes I have posted as well as the adjustments on the sweeteners.
Enjoy…and feel free to share your adjustments in recipes as well so we can all benefit from healthier versions of the foods we enjoy!
