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Bagels
Sometimes referred to as the cement doughnut, the bagel has long been a staple in New York delicatessens and a favorite of the Jewish community. Once relegated as a bland breakfast food given flavor by the addition of lox and cream cheese, there are now more bagel flavors than you can shake a stick at. The bagel has also risen in up the culinary ladder to become a popular base for sandwiches.
What makes it a bagel?
From a purist standpoint, a bagel is a round yeast roll with a hole in the middle, no egg in the dough, malt rather than sugar, cooked in water, and then browned in the oven. This process produces a dense, chewy roll with a crisp exterior, hence giving rise to the term cement doughtnut. Of course, nowadays, bagels have evolved to include not only egg, for a bit lighter roll, but also spices and herbs to give added flavor. A common misconception is that water bagels are any bagel cooked in water. Of course, all bagels by definition are cooked in water and then browned in the oven. To the purist, water bagels are bagels made with water in the dough, specifically with no egg or flavoring additions.
Bagel history
There is some debate amongst historians about the origin of bagels. There are numerous etiologies of the word bagel. In Yiddish, it was beygel, from the Middle High German bouc and Old High German boug, both meaning a ring or bracelet. Another possibly origin is from the German word bügel, for a round loaf of bread. Some historians credit a Viennese baker for creating the bagel to commemorate the victory of Polish King Jan III Sobieski over the Turks in 1683. The bread was formed into the shape of a buegel or stirrup, because the liberated Austrians had clung too the king's stirrups as he rode by. Author Leo Rosten notes in The Joys of Yiddish that the first printed mention of the word bagel is in the Community Regulations of Cracow for 1610, which stated that the item was given as a gift to women in childbirth. Some cultures regard the circular shape as the continuous life cycle and good luck.
The art of bagel-making used to be a closely-guarded secret. The International Beigel Bakers' Union was founded in New York City in 1907 (now disbanded), with the regulations only permitting sons of members as apprentices. In 1927, Polish baker Harry Lender came to New Haven, Connecticut, USA, and founded the first bagel factory outside New York City. His company is credited with being the nation's first frozen bagel manufacturer and the first to put bagels in supermarkets, spreading baglemania to the masses.
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