Not-so-Montreal Bagels

Guy, St Catherine, St Mathieu, Atwater, Rene Levesque...this was my neighbourhood when I was a student in Montreal. That was quite the location. Everything was at my doorstep. I shared an appartment with my sister, Nathalie, and she taught me where to get good eats. From time to time, we would get hazelnut coffee from Java U and head to Rene Levesque for wonderful breads. We got croissants from a small bakery on St Mathieu, groceries from the Faubourg, where we would also buy fancy cheeses, cold cuts, the best pad thai in the country and also wonderful bagels. ahhhh...the list is long...

The neighbourhood has changed a lot since then and some of our favourite spots have unfortunately closed. The bagel guy still operates, although not as much as before.

I am pretty sure Nathalie helped refine my taste buds. When she was still in high school, she used to make wonderful things like Crêpe with bechamel sauce, chocolate mousse, Bavarois à l'ananas...mmm mmm mmm. We don't get to spent too much time together anymore. We're separated by oceans. So I'm dedicating this one to her as good bagels remind me of good times in Montreal.

Here's the recipe.

In a food processor, pulse:

• one medium onion

Remove the onion from the bowl and reserve for later use.

Without washing the bowl, add to the food processor:

• 4 cups bread flour
• 1 tsp yeast
• 2 tsp salt

Turn the food processor on and while the motor is running, add:

• 1 3/4 cups water (room temperature)

Process the dough for 2-3 minutes, until it becomes soft and heats up a little bit. Transfer the dough to a board and knead briefly. Place the dough back in the food processor. Process for a minute and knead again on a board. Repeat this process a 3-4 times to work the dough so it becomes very smooth and strong.

Allow the dough to rest (2 hrs) until it doubles in volume. When the dough has doubled in size, cut it into 12 round pieces and allow to rest for 1 hr.

To prepare the onion, in a low heat pan:

• Fry the onion with some olive oil and stir until the onion caramelizes into a paste

Stretch each dough ball out slightly, making a hole in the middle for the bagel shape. Spread a little bit (1/4 tsp) of the onion paste on top. Bake in a 450 F oven for about 15 min.

Smell the aroma in the house... It's quite wonderful.

These aren't quite the Montreal bagels from my old neighbourhood but they're very satisfying and till the next time you can get the authentic Montreal bagels... Yummy.