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1
Mix starter or poolish ingredients in a large bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel. Leave to ferment at room temperature for 7 to 8 hours until bubbly and swollen in size.
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2
Add the starter or polish to the mixing bowl of a mixer or to a large bowl. To that add the water, honey, flour, salt (on one side of the bowl) and yeast (on opposite side of the bowl.
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3
Using a dough hook on the lowest setting (or by hand), mix all ingredients until well mixed (2 to 3 minutes) and turn off the mixer. Cover the bowl and let sit for 5 minutes.
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4
Knead with the dough hook on the lowest setting (or by hand), for 5 minutes and tip out onto a lightly floured counter. Stretch the dough into a large rectangle and fold letter-style, top to middle, bottom over top and side to side.
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5
Place in an oiled, straight-sided clear container and cover.
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6
After 15 minutes, repeat the stretch and fold procedure and cover again.
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7
Let rise at room temperature for 30 to 45 minutes until the dough is 1 1/2 times as large as it was initially or doubled in volume.
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8
Divide into 16 equal pieces and roll each into round balls.
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9
Preheat the oven to 450°F.
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10
Press each ball with thumb and forefinger to form a hole and use fingers to roll and stretch the bagels until the holes are about 2 inches in diameter. Place on baking sheet lined with parchment paper sprayed well with vegetable oil spray. This prevents the wet bagels from becoming one with the parchment.
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11
Cover with oiled plastic and let rise for 15 to 20 minutes or until one of the bagels floats in a bowl of cold water.
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12
Meanwhile prepare the boiling bath by mixing all ingredients and bringing to a light boil.
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13
Also bring out the sesame seeds, rehydrated onion flakes, poppy seeds or whatever the toppings are you choose. I like to rehydrate onion flakes and toast the sesame seeds before making the bagels.
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14
Boil each bagel (4 to 5 at a time if you can without crowding the pan) for 1 minute and flip the bagels with a slotted spoon to boil on the opposite side for 1 minute as well. Remove with the slotted spoon and return the boiled and swollen bagels to their parchment paper.
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15
Put toppings on the wet bagels and bake at 450 F for 6 to 7 minutes, rotate the pans and bake for another 6 to 7 minutes being careful not to over-brown the bagels. Bagels should be dark golden in color.
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16
Place bagels on a cooling rack and let cool before slicing.
