There is no more food item is “New York” than the humble bagel, thanks to bakers from Central Europe and the Russian Empire who emigrated to New York in the early 20th century. Their bagels had a richness and texture all their own, were dense and chewy with a lovely golden crust. Eventually traditional Jewish staple food of the weekend became quintessential food of the city that never sleeps.
What sets bagels apart from other bread products is that the dough is boiled before it’s baked. There’s a good reason for this. In a strict Jewish household, no cooking is done on the Sabbath. So the bagel dough was mixed and shaped on the Friday afternoon, and left in a cold place over the Saturday. In the evening, once Sabbath was out, the bagels were immersed in boiling water to re-activate the yeast. They could then be baked relatively quickly, ready for the evening meal.
We can only add that our bakers have followed these steps to the dot re-creating this authentic bagel taste and results are well worth the effort involved.

Serving suggestion: bagels are phenomenal with butter, cream cheese and smoked salmon. However, they also taste great on their own or with a sweeter spread for a perfect accompaniment to tea and coffee.