Poppy seed bagels

Ingredients for 1 servings:

• 1 tsp dry yeast
• 300 ml milk, lukewarm
• 570 g flour
• 55 g butter (soft)
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 large egg yolk
• Poppy seeds, for sprinkling

Instructions

Working time approx. 30 minutes; Rest time approx. 1 hour; Total time approx. 1 hour 30 minutes

In a small bowl, mix the dry yeast with a little of the lukewarm milk and let it swell briefly. Put the flour in a bowl and make a slight well in the center. Add the mixed yeast to the well and stir a little into the flour. Add the softened butter, sugar, salt, and egg yolk to the flour and knead everything with the milk until it forms a dough. For me, the liquid measurement is just right; depending on the flour, a little more milk may be needed. Then place the dough on a lightly floured work surface and knead for about 6-8 minutes until it forms an elastic dough. Return it to the bowl and let it rise in a warm place for about 1 hour. It should have significantly doubled in size. Then knead the dough briefly, divide it, and then divide each of these two balls into six more pieces, so that you have 12 pieces. Shape these into round balls and press your thumb into the center. It’s best to then take the dough in your hand and form an evenly sized hole about 3 cm in diameter. Then cover and let them rise for another 10 minutes. In the meantime, line two baking sheets with parchment paper, preheat the oven to 190°C and bring a pot of water to a boil. The pot should be large enough to easily float three bagels in. Once the water boils, turn it down a bit, but keep it boiling. Then add three bagels at a time to the water, letting them float briefly on one side. Turn them over, then remove them with a slotted spoon and let them drain briefly. Place them on the prepared baking sheet, sprinkle with poppy seeds and bake in the preheated oven for about 20 minutes. Remove from the oven and let them cool on a wire rack. Here in America, bagels are best eaten with cream cheese. But butter and jam are also very good with them, whatever you like.