Momofuku Bagel Bombs

I have a confession to make, I’m a little bit in love with those little Bantam Bagel bites at Starbucks. I would probably eat them every day if I could.

These bagel bombs are not the Bantam Bagel bites, but they certainly suffice in a pinch, and they were a huge hit at Christmas brunch last year. They’re not as soft as the Starbucks version, they’ve got a bit more heft and chew to them which I think makes them more bagel-y. I tried boiling a batch of them like you would with a regular bagel recipe, but I was surprised to see it really didn’t make much of a difference. So I say skip the boil, it’s not worth it (and wasn’t part of the original recipe anyway). They also don’t brown very much, which can be a bit confusing when trying to judge doneness, so don’t be afraid if they still look a bit pale when you pull them out of the oven.

Made as written, this recipe will make a slider-size bagel bomb. I like to make smaller ones so I cut the dough into twice as many pieces so I can have more bite-sized bombs. This can, however, make filling them a bit more difficult. Just be careful not to over-fill them so that as much filling stays inside the bomb as possible. As for the ‘everything’ bagel topping, you should probably make double because you’re going to want to sprinkle that stuff on everything.

I made the Momofuku savory version, then a sweet version as well. The filling for the sweet version was tough to nail. I wanted it to be maple-flavored but as you can imagine, adding a bunch of maple syrup to cream cheese makes it a bit…. runny. In the end I settled on just a tiny bit of maple and threw in some cinnamon and brown sugar for good measure, with an extra sprinkle of cinnamon sugar on top.

Momofuku Bagel Bombs

For the bombs

  • ½ recipe Mother Dough, proofed*
  • 1 recipe cream cheese plugs, frozen (below)
  • 1 egg
  • 1 teaspoon water
  • 1 recipe Everything Bagel Mix or cinnamon sugar (below)

Making the Bombs

  1. Make desired cream cheese filling (below) and freeze until firm, at least four hours or up to one month.
  2. Make mother dough (below, takes about 1 hour).
  3. Make your egg wash by mixing the egg and water together until well-combined.
    Preheat the oven to 325°F and line a baking sheet with parchment. *If you’re feeling brave, pop up the oven to 350, they never get as brown as I’d like at 325 but I don’t remember until it’s too late. Keep in mind you may bake them a bit shorter if you use a higher temperature.
  4. Gently punch down the dough and turn out and divide the dough into 8 equal pieces. **Alternatively, you can divide the dough into 12 to 16 pieces, about 1.5 to 2 ounces each) They get pretty thin when you do the 1.5 ounce version, though. 
  5. Use your fingers to gently stretch each piece of dough out into a mini pizza between 2 to 3 inches wide.
  6. Put a cream cheese plug in the center of each dough circle. **If using the log method, just cut the log into 1/2 to 1 inch pieces depending on how big of bombs you are making.
  7. Bring up the edges of each round and pinch to seal so that the cream cheese plug is completely contained (I mean, it’ll probably leak out anyway, but at least you can say you tried your best).
  8. Once pinched, gently roll the ball between the palms of your hands to make it into a round shape.
  9. Arrange the bombs on your prepared baking sheet, leaving a few inches in between each one (they will grow).
  10. Brush each bomb generously with the egg wash and sprinkle with a generous coating of everything bagel mix all over the savory bagel bombs. If doing sweet, cover with a generous sprinkle of cinnamon sugar.
  11. Bake the bagel bombs for 20 to 30 minutes. They will probably leak a little bit but don’t worry, no one will know. Enjoy warm or allow to cool completely and store at room temperature for one day, in the fridge for a couple days, or wrap individually with foil and put into a large ziploc bag, freeze for up to a month.
  12. Reheat by zapping for a few seconds in the microwave or, even better, in an oven or toaster oven. From room temp or fridge, just about 3 to 5 minutes at 375 will do it, from frozen reheat while still wrapped in foil, I put them in the oven while it’s preheating and then check them about 3 to 5 minutes after it comes to temperature.

For the Mother Dough (Full recipe) 

  • 3½ cups (550g) flour
  • 1 tablespoon (12g) kosher salt
  • ½ packet or (1 generous teaspoon / 3.5g) active dry yeast
  • 1¾ cups water, at room temperature
  • grapeseed (or other neutral) oil

Make the Mother Dough

*The book calls for a half recipe of the mother dough, this will make 8 large or 12-16 small bombs. Math can be hard so if you want to make the full recipe of dough, there’s nothing wrong with having extra bombs on hand (your future self will thank you). Alternatively, you can wrap half tightly in plastic wrap and drop it into a freezer bag and stash it in the freezer for a couple weeks. When ready to use, thaw overnight in the fridge then set on the counter (1 to 2 hours) to come to room temp. 

  1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, stir together the flour, salt, and yeast until combined.
  2. Using a silicone spatula, add the water and stir, mixing until the mixture has come together into a shaggy mass.
  3. Using the dough hook attachment, mix the dough on the lowest speed for 3 minutes, or until the dough forms a smooth ball. Continue kneading for another 4 or 5 minutes on the lowest speed. The dough should look like a wet ball and should bounce back when gently poked.
  4. Brush a large bowl with oil and add the dough, turning to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let the proof at room temperature for 45 minutes. (If you want to hit the “pause” button, throw the bowl in the fridge overnight. Be sure to take it out about an hour or two ahead of time when you’re ready to continue the next day).

Bacon, Scallion, Cream Cheese Plugs

  • 4 strips of bacon, cooked and crumbled or finely chopped
  • 8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
  • 2 scallions (greens only), thinly sliced
  • 1 teaspoon granulated sugar
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  1. Line a quarter sheet pan with plastic wrap and set aside.
  2. Put the cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until it is soft and creamy. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and add the chopped bacon, scallions, sugar, and salt and paddle briefly to incorporate.
  3. Scoop the cream cheese mixture onto prepared pan in 8 even lump. Freeze until rock hard, 1 to 3 hours. Alternatively, you can scrape it out onto the plastic wrap then use the plastic wrap to roll it into a log about 1 to 1 1/2 inches thick (depending on if you plan to make larger or smaller bombs)
    *Once the plugs are frozen solid, they are ready to be used, or they can be stored in an ziploc bag in the freezer for up to 1 month.

Maple Cinnamon Cream Cheese Plugs

  • 8 ounces cream cheese, softened to room temperature
  • 1 tablespoon maple syrup
  • 2 tablespoons brown sugar (dark brown is best)
  • 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
  • Powdered sugar, if needed
  1. Put the cream cheese in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat on medium speed until it is soft and creamy. Scrape down the sides and bottom of the bowl and add the maple, brown sugar, and cinnamon. If it looks too runny, throw in a teaspoon or two of powdered sugar to thicken it up. Taste and adjust as needed to your preference, I make mine a little less sweet (since the bombs will be dusted with cinnamon sugar) but you could use more or less brown sugar to your preference.
  2. Scoop the cream cheese mixture onto prepared pan in 8 even lump. Freeze until rock hard, 1 to 3 hours. Alternatively, you can scrape it out onto the plastic wrap then use the plastic wrap to roll it into a log about 1 to 1 1/2 inches thick (depending on if you plan to make larger or smaller bombs)
    *Once the plugs are frozen solid, they are ready to be used, or they can be stored in an ziploc bag in the freezer for up to 1 month.

Everything Bagel Mix

  • ¾ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 tablespoon white sesame seeds
  • 2 teaspoons black sesame seeds
  • 2 teaspoons poppy seeds
  • 1 tablespoon dried onions
  • ½ teaspoon onion powder
  • ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
  1. Mix together the salt, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, dried onions, onion powder, and garlic powder in an airtight container. The mix keeps forever in the pantry, but it is best used within 6 months.
    Note: You can now buy pre-mixed everything bagel mix at your local Trader Joes 🙂 Amazon also it (for a higher price tag) as well as a few options if you don’t feel like buying 6 different jars of spices.

Cinnamon Sugar Sprinkle

  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar
  1. Stir together ingredients until thoroughly combined.

Notes

  • If you do not plan to use your mother dough the day you make it, you can store it in an airtight container at least twice its size (or in its bowl, covered securely with plastic wrap) in the fridge for up to 3 days. Take it out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature 30 to 45 minutes before using.
  • If you’re making both fillings, split each recipe in half and fill half of the bombs with the savory cream cheese and the other half with the sweet cream cheese.
  • Reheat by zapping for a few seconds in the microwave or, even better, in an oven or toaster oven. From room temp or fridge, just about 3 to 5 minutes at 375 will do it, from frozen reheat while still wrapped in foil, I put them in the oven while it’s preheating and then check them about 3 to 5 minutes after it comes to temperature.

cherry clafoutis

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Cherry season is in full swing and we take advantage of these few short weeks be packing our refrigerator full of cherries – both red and rainier. We generally eat them plain, enjoying the sweet, firm fruit as an after-dinner or mid-day snack. However, I wanted to get a little creative to see what else I could do with these guys.

Clafoutis is something that I have been meaning to make for awhile now, not quite understanding what it was. Is it cake? Custard? What does it taste like? Where does it come from?   Continue reading

thursday things and an easter brunch roundup

instagram sunset march
I caught that pic while the BF and I were driving to the store.  Not too shabby for a weeknight sunset in the city, eh?

It’s the last Thursday Things for the month of March, and this weekend will be the last March (Cake) Madness recipe (although, not the last cake recipe by far).  I seriously can’t wait to share it with you.  As soon as I bit into it I was like, “Aw crap…”  Which doesn’t SOUND like a good thing, but it was just because after overdosing on confetti cake, and then making Oreo cupcakes, the last thing I wanted to know was that I had made another delicious cake.

To refresh our memories, here is March (Cake) Madness so far:

instagram confetti cake red velvet poke 8448 brownie swirl cake 8362

ding dong 3 oreo cupcake 8496 instagram reeses

Oh yeah, that last one… that one is for this weekend.  Trust me, it’s worth the wait.

I’m salivating just thinking about it… I don’t know why I just told you that.

Don’t mind me…

Here’s what you missed this week, BF and I made some delicious pizzas on the grill for dinner on Sunday.  Mine was pepperoni, pepperoncini, and like a bajillion types of cheese.  Oh, and wanna know my secret ingredient?  Bolognese for the sauce.  Yup.  Delicious.

I have a post here about how to make your very own delicious pizza from the comfort of your home.

pizza 2

I know I’ve been slacking on adorable kitties lately, but here is one heck of a gif that is bound to make you smile.  And laugh.  And make it painfully obvious that you’re not doing work-related things while you’re at your computer.

This one is not a kitty, but it’s still hilarious.

Oh, and if you’re still hunting for the perfect Easter basket… I saw the cutest candy-holders ever at Walgreens (I swear, that place has everything).

owl easter box

I kinda just want to buy like 100 of them and put them all over the house as “decoration”…

I can’t think of a single reason why that would be a bad idea.

This weekend the BF and I are packing our bags and heading on our first vacay (of 2013) – hittin’ the road to Cali!  Neither of us has ever been to California and I CAN’T WAIT TO GO!

That being said, things may get a little quiet around here next week.  If you start to miss me too much, you can always check in on me via Instagram or Facebook to see what I’m up to.  😉

Although I’ll be eating out this Sunday, if you’re hosting Easter brunch this weekend, here are some ideas for your party… And now, I present to you

2013 Easter Brunch Roundup

Cinnamon Sugar Popovers

cinn popover 2

Easter Deviled Eggs

Fresh Mushroom and Goat Cheese Tart

Maple Candied Bacon

Egg and Bacon Toast Cups

Ham & Cheese Waffles 

Homemade Holiday Ham

 Teeny Tiny BLTs

Caramelized Apple and Goat Cheese Crostini

Arugula and Apple Salad

 

Asparagus with Easy Hollandaise Sauce

Lemon Loaf Cake

lemon loaf 2

 

Clementine Cocktail

Sparkling Strawberry Lemonade

 

 

Sunday Brunch: Bouchon Bakery’s Blueberry Muffins

bberry muffin 2

These muffins will change your life.  They are so light and moist that you will forget all about those dense, dry, or gummy things from the bakery case at the grocery store.  These particular muffins have juicy berries, a hint of lemon, and crunchy almond streusel.  It’s everything you could possibly ask for in a muffin (and maybe even a little more).

The magic takes place overnight.  Now I know muffins are usually in the family of instant gratification, but Thomas Keller insists that the overnight rest to allows the flour to fully hydrate and gives the flavors time to marry.

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Is it really worth it? All that t extra time between mixing and eating just so it can hang out in the fridge?

In a word: Yep.

I was positive I overbaked these muffins.  Positive.  I spent all this extra time waiting for them to cook to a perfect golden-brown, so by the time they reached that color, I did my toothpick test and it came out dry as a bone.  Now, with the the toothpick test I usually looks for a few crumbs to show there is still some moisture in there, so of course I was devastated.  After the overnight rest, I was going to have to start all over again.  I took a bite anyway, just to see how they were.

bberry muffin 1

They were perfect.  They had a perfect tender crumb and bright, blueberry flavor, with just a subtle almondy sweetness from the streusel.  If I were to do it over again, I would probably add some brown sugar to the streusel to make it more streusely (totally a word).

I adapted this muffin recipe from Shannon at A Periodic Table, who makes it a little more user-friendly for the average home cook, who may not want to measure 72 grams of eggs.  Since I was using her recipe, I didn’t even realize that I was leaving out the molasses called for in the book (which may lend a darker hue to these pale muffins) but, to be honest, I didn’t miss it one bit, and her addition of lemon helps to brighten up the flavor of these beautiful muffins.

bberry muffin 3

You can find the original recipe on page 76 of the Bouchon Bakery Cookbok, and if you don’t have molasses in your pantry, don’t fret, your muffins will survive just fine without it.  I added the almond streusel from the book, but it really wasn’t necessary, the muffins would’ve been just as delicious without it.

Bouchon Bakery’s Blueberry Muffins

Yields 1 dozen muffins

Printable Recipe

For batter:

  • ¾ cup all-purpose flour
  • ¾ cup + 1 ½ Tablespoons cake flour
  • ½ teaspoon baking soda
  • ½ teaspoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 7 Tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • zest and juice of 1 lemon
  • 2 Tablespoons unsulfured blackstrap molasses* (I left this out)
  • 3 Tablespoons clover honey
  • 2 large eggs
  • ½  teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • ¼  cup buttermilk + 2 Tablespoons (reserved for post-batter rest)

For berries:

  • Scant 1 cup of frozen berries
  • 1 Tablespoon all-purpose flour

For streusel:

  • ¾ cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup almond flour
  • ½ cup granulated sugar* (Optional: use ¼ cup granulated sugar and ¼ cup brown sugar, or replace all of the granulated sugar with brown sugar)
  • ¼ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 stick (8 Tablespoons) unsalted butter

 

  1. Toss berries with 1 Tablespoon of flour and return to the freezer.
  2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, baking soda, baking powder, and kosher salt; set aside.
  3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until pale.  Scrape down the sides and add the sugar, continue beating until light and fluffy; about 2-3 minutes. Scrape down the sides and bottom of bowl (again) and add the lemon juice, zest, and honey (molasses too, if using) and continue beating to incorporate.  Scrape down the bowl, and add the eggs and vanilla, mix on low speed until combined; about 30 seconds.
  4. Add the flour mixture and buttermilk in 2 additions (flour-buttermilk-flour-buttermilk) mixing on low just until incorporated. Be extremely careful not to over-mix the batter. Scrape down the bottoms and sides of the bowl one last time, and then either transfer to a new bowl or leave in that one, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight or up to 36 hours.
  5. While that is doing its thing, you might as well make the streusel.  Mix all of the dry ingredients together in a medium bowl, melt the butter in the microwave and stir into the dry ingredients with a fork until completely mixed.  Cover and refrigerate until show time.
  6. When ready to make the muffins, take the batter out of the fridge and set on the counter to come to take the chill off.   Preheat the oven to 425˚F and line a muffin tin with paper cups.
  7. Once the oven is preheated, add the reserved 2 tablespoons of buttermilk to your batter and gently fold into the batter to loosen it.  The batter will be very thick (and conveniently scoopable).  Sprinkle the berries over the top of your batter and gently fold into batter, using as few strokes as possible.
  8. Scoop batter into muffin cups, and sprinkle with up to 3 tablespoons of streusel, lightly pressing the streusel into the muffin batter.
  9. Place the pan in the oven and lower the temperature to 325˚F.  Bake for 35 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.  Cool completely on a wire rack.
  10. These muffins are best served fresh, but can be stored in an airtight container up to 3 days, or individually wrapped and frozen once cooled.  Set out overnight to thaw or reheat, wrapped in foil, in a 325˚F oven for 20-30 minutes until heated through.

 

 Adapted from A Periodic Table & The Bouchon Bakery Cookbok

Sunday Brunch: Meyer Lemon Cake

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Two things:

1.  This cake is filled TO THE TOP with lemon flavor.

2.  It is probably the best lemon cake known to man.

Maybe not, but it might be.  I haven’t tried every lemon cake on the planet (yet). It has  a bright citrus flavor with a light and airy crumb… I don’t know how it happens, but it does.  And it’s magical.  Even though it’s no secret that I’m a chocolate girl at heart, every once in a while I crave something a little more… refreshing.  Plus, it’s not really acceptable to eat chocolate cake for breakfast.

Lemon cake, on the other hand, is totally legit.

Replacing the lemons called for in the recipe with meyer lemons allows the ctirus flavor to really shine and keeps it light and refreshing instead of having the citrus flavor assault your tongue.

Like, I love lemons, but if you give me a lemony treat I can usually only eat so much of it before my mouth is just tired of the lemon flavor.    It’s all “HEY I’M LEMON AND I’M HERE IN YO FACE,” where meyer lemon is like the regular lemon’s sweeter, more laid back cousin who is just like “Hey, what’s up? I’m kinda lemony and kinda sweet… whatevs.”

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That being said, if regular lemons are your thing (ahem, BFF), go with that.  I will happily use regular lemons later in the year when my darling meyer lemons are nowhere to be seen.

But, if you do get happen to find some meyer lemons in your basket at the store, bring them home and make this amazing sweet, citrusy cake.  You will not be sorry.  A little guilty, maybe, but not sorry.  Not too guilty though, this cake has yogurt so it’s good for you!  (Something like that)

Meyer Lemon Cake

Makes: 1 loaf

[ Printable Recipe ]

For the Cake:

  • 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1 cup vanilla yogurt*
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 3 large eggs
  • 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
  • ½ cup vegetable oil

For the Soak:

  • ⅓ cup sugar
  • ⅓ cup lemon juice

For the glaze:

  • 1 cup powdered sugar
  • 2 Tablespoons lemon juice

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and grease or line a 8 x 5 inch loaf pan

2. Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.  In a large bowl whisk together the yogurt, 1 cup sugar, eggs, and lemon zest.

3. Slowly whisk dry ingredients into wet ingredients just until mixed.  Gently fold in the vegetable oil until incorporated.  Pour into prepared pan and bake about 50 minutes or until done.

4. While the loaf bakes, make your lemon soak by heating ⅓ cup lemon juice and ⅓ cup sugar in a small saucepan until the sugar is dissolved.  Set aside while loaf finishes baking.

5. When loaf is done baking, cool in pan for 10 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack placed over a baking sheet.  (To make clean-up easier, line the baking sheet with foil).  Pour the lemon soak over the loaf and allow it to soak in while the loaf continues to cool.

6. Once the loaf is completely cooled, make your lemon glaze by mixing the powdered sugar and lemon juice.  Drizzle over cake to your liking.  Honestly, I think the cake was just perfect even WITHOUT the glaze, so if you want to skip this step, be my guest!

* Alternatively, you can use 1 cup of plain yogurt + 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract

[ Recipe adapted from Barefoot Contessa at Home ]