Cinnamon Raisin Bagels

Day one: To make the sponge,  in a large mixing bowl, stir together the yeast and flour. Add the water and whisk, only until it forms a smooth, sticky batter. It should resemble pancake batter, but slightly thicker. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a damp cloth and leave at room temperature for 2 hours, or until the mixture becomes very foamy and bubbly.

To make the dough, in the same mixing bowl,  add the remaining yeast to the sponge and stir. Then add 3 cups of the flour, cinnamon, sugar, salt and malt. Stir (or mix on low speed with the dough hook attachment) until the ingredients form a ball, slowly working in the remaining 3/4 cup flour to stiffen the dough. In the last two minutes of mixing, add the raisins.

Transfer the dough to the counter and knead for at least 10 minutes (or for 6 minutes by machine). The dough should be firm, stiffer than French bread dough, but still pliable and smooth. If the dough seems too dry and rips, add a few drops of water and continue kneading. If the dough seems tacky or sticky, add more flour to achieve the stiffness required. The kneaded dough should feel satiny and pliable but not be tacky.

Immediately divide the dough into 12 (4 1/2 ounce) pieces for jumbo-sized bagels, 16 (3.375 ounce) regular-sized bagels, or 24 (2.25 ounce) mini bagels. Roll the pieces into balls. Cover the balls with a damp towel and allow them to rest for 20 minutes.

Line 2 baking pans with parchment paper and spray with cooking spray. Poke a hole in each dough ball and gently rotate your thumb around the inside of the hole to widen it to approximately 2 1/2 inches in diameter for a supersized bagel, two inches for a large one or just slightly more than one inch for a miniature. The dough should be as evenly stretched as possible (try to avoid thick and thin spots.)

Place each of the shaped pieces two inches apart on the pans. Mist the bagels very lightly with the cooking spray and cover each pan loosely with plastic wrap. Let the pans sit at room temperature for about 20 minutes.

Check to see if the bagels are ready to be placed in the refrigerator by using the “float test”. Fill a small bowl with room-temperature water. The bagels are ready to chill in the fridge when they float within 10 seconds of being dropped into the water. Take one bagel and test it. If it floats, immediately return the tester bagel to the pan, pat it dry, cover the pan, and place it in the refrigerator overnight (it can stay in the refrigerator for up to 2 days). If the bagel does not float. Return it to the pan and continue to proof the dough at room temperature, checking back every 10 to 20 minutes or so until a tester floats.

The following day or 4 hours later: preheat the oven to 500°F with the two racks set in the middle of the oven. Bring a large pot of water to a boil (the wider the pot the better), and add the baking soda. Have a slotted spoon or skimmer nearby.

Remove the bagels from the refrigerator and gently drop them into the water, boiling only as many as comfortably fit (they should float within 10 seconds). Do not overcrowd the pot. After 1 minute, flip them over and boil for another minute. If you like very chewy bagels, you can extend the boiling to 2 minutes per side. While the bagels are boiling, sprinkle the same parchment-lined sheet pans with cornmeal or semolina flour.

When all the bagels have been boiled, place the pans on two middle shelves in the oven. Bake for approximately five minutes, then rotate the pans, switching shelves and giving the pans a 180-degree rotation. (If you are baking only one pan, keep it on the center shelf but still rotate 180 degrees.) After the rotation, lower the oven setting to 450°F and continue baking for about 5 minutes, or until the bagels turn light golden brown. You may bake them darker if you prefer.

For the spread, beat all ingredients in a medium mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until smooth. Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Remove the pans from the oven and let the bagels cool on a rack for 15 minutes or longer before serving. Serve with a pumpkin cream cheese spread. Enjoy!