Food Friday's ~ Baked in a Box: Cinnamon Raison Bagels

I knew after my recent attempt at bagels, I'd have to try again so this week it finally happened. I bought myself a little motivation in the form of Philadelphia Cream Cheese, which is no doubt the best cream cheese ever and must be paired with bagels. This is what that little box of motivation brought about; big, crisp, chewy, Cinnamon Raisin Bagels! They were beautiful and delicious, and I can not wait to make another batch. Maybe next time I'll try blueberry and whole wheat, or spiced walnut.  The original recipe was for everything bagels over here at A Beautiful Mess, but I wanted Cinnamon Raisin so I mixed it up just a bit and something wonderful was born. My husbands comment "I often wander if all Americans can bake as good as you ... or if you're just special". I really didn't have an answer for him, most people I know back home can bake some are better then others and quite a few are better then me. But though I don't think I'm fantastic or amazing, I do get the job done and it usually comes out pretty good. So let's get right to it with the recipe part

Cinnamon Raisin Bagels

1 1/4 cup warm water

1 1/2 tablespoon sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 teaspoons (one package) active dry yeast

3 1/2 cups of flour ( I used half bread flour, half whole wheat)

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

1 cup of Raisins

2 tea spoons of cinnamon

1 egg

In a bowl, combine the water and sugar and stir to dissolve. Pour in the yeast and allow this to sit for 6-8 minutes. In a larger bowl, whisk together the flour and 1 1/2 teaspoon salt. Once the yeast mixture has had time to activate, pour it in to the flour mixture and stir until a crumbly dough forms. At this point, add your cinnamon and raisins, turn dough out onto a floured surface and knead for 6-7 minutes until the dough begins to become elastic-like. You can also do this in a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and allow to rise in a warm place for 1 hour.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and divide into eight equal pieces. Shape into a ball and press your finger through to form the center hole. Once you have shaped all the bagels, allow them to rest for 10 minutes or so. Now place them into a pot of boiling water. They should float. Let them cook for 45 seconds to 1 minute on each side, then remove to your prepared baking sheet.

Whisk the egg plus 1 teaspoon water in a small bowl and brush this over each bagel, it will add a pretty brown sheen to your bagels. Next bake at 425°F for 20 minutes, or if you bake in a toaster oven, bake on duel at the lowest setting for 5 min, then remove and egg wash a second time, then bake with only the top for a another 5 or so minutes till golden brown. If you don't eat them all in one day, store in an airtight container for 4-5 days.