I Might Be a Bagel Addict

During the time of my quarantine because of the coronavirus pandemic, I discovered an insatiable taste for bagels, especially the everything bagels. I grew a fondness for bagels because they are delicious and convenient to eat. Besides, there are so many ways to prepare them for a meal or a snack. They can be eaten toasted or untoasted with cream cheese or other ingredients on the slices after the bagel is split into two halves. I love the bagels so much and eat them so often that I might have become a bagel addict.

About Bagels

Bagels were made popular in Jewish communities, but you don't have to be Jewish to love the delicious bread product. Bagels are available both fresh and frozen, and they come in many different flavors. They are in most grocery stores as mini bagels or the big regular ones. My favorite ones are Thomas' Everything Bagels that are extra chewy, soft in the middle, and has a salty and crunchy crust with different flavorful seeds on top.

How to Make Everything Bagels

Bagels are very easy to make, and more and more people are making them at home. It is really easy to make everything bagels once you become familiar with the steps. Below is a video with instructions on how you can make a batch for you and your family.

The first step is to prepare the bagel dough by mixing five ingredients: warm water, yeast, flour, brown sugar, and salt. After mixing, knead the dough with your hands into the traditional bagel shape and punch a hole in the center with your finger.

Before baking, brush the dough with a little egg white and coat with everything bagel seasoning that includes a blend of poppy seeds, sesame seeds, dried minced onion, dried garlic flakes, and coarse salt.

If you like, you can use more of one seasoning than another, or you can leave out the seasonings that you don't like. You can use a mixture of all the seeds or you can use just your favorites. Bake the dough at 350 degrees. When the dough is ready, the bagels will have a distinctive taste, chewy texture, and shiny appearance. They can be eaten with many different toppings of your choice.

There is a long list of ingredients that can be put on top of bagels. Of course, the Jews' favorite combination on bagels includes cream cheese and lox which is cured salmon. Other people also favor cream cheese, jelly, jam, bacon, turkey, ham, a fried egg, avocado, peanut butter, and so many other good toppings.

Nutritional Value of Everything Bagels

One average size bagel has 290 calories, 9 grams of protein, 6 grams of sugar, 3.5 grams of fat, 2 grams of fiber, no artificial sweetener, and a source of potassium. Bagels are cholesterol-free. People should limit the number of bagels they eat because one bagel contains 53 grams of carbohydrates and 410 milligrams of sodium.

My Friend's Advice

When I told one of my friends about much I have grown to love everything bagels, he suggested I go to Bagels Anonymous and introduce myself as an addict. We laughed about it then, but I did discover that sesame seeds and poppy seeds are addictive.

Opiates, such as heroin, morphine, and codeine can be found in those tested for drugs up to two days after eating sesame seeds and poppy seeds. However, the small amount on a bagel isn't harmful. Maybe I won't have to go to Bagels Anonymous after all.

While talking to some other people, I have learned that most of them have their own favorite comfort foods while they are quarantined. Some common comfort foods include pizza, macaroni and cheese, potato chips, French fries, ice cream, and cookies.