Wednesday 23 September 2009

Sesame Bagels with Cashew Chive Spread

vegan sesame bagels"Why Miss Maple Spice, I do believe you've made the world's biggest bagels!"

Toasted bagel with Cashew Chive Cheese SpreadToasted and spread with vegan margarine and the super yummy cashew chive cheese.

Yes, I made some comically large bagels!!! Why I always miss-judge how much these things rise is beyond me..... Anyway, these turned out lovely, even the largest ones there are light as feathers and with just enough chewiness to make them 'proper'.... I did live in Montreal for a couple of years, prior to being vegan, consuming vast amount of bagels and feel quite qualified to use the term 'proper' here ;) Despite store bought bagels here already being vegan I think I'll be making my own from now on!

I'm even more excited about that cheese spread, it is so, so good!! We currently can't get enough of it, I like it way more than any store bought vegan cheese I have ever bought and it's so easy. The recipe is also very versatile, I have made it with both cashews and almonds, rice and almond milk..... all good, hardly any difference. Next I'm going to try it without the miso to make it soy free, maybe just omitting, maybe replacing with some tahini. Love it!

Bagels - makes 6 (I made 4 out of it, but they really are too big)
250g strong white bread flour (must be this type, the higher protein count the better)
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
1 1/8 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 Tbsp sugar, brown sugar or barley malt syrup (I used regular sugar)
1 tsp vegetable oil
125ml warm water, make up with 1 part boiling and 2 parts cold
2 Tbsp barley malt syrup (for the poaching liquid)

Sprinkle the yeast over the warm water and give it a whisk. Leave for 10 minutes, it should have a couple cm thick foam over the surface. Give it another whisk then add the sugar and oil and whisk again. In the bowl of your electric mixer add the flour and salt. Pour in the liquid then with the dough hook knead the dough on slow speed for a good 10 minutes. When done knead a couple times by hand to get a nice ball shape then place in a greased heated bowl, turn over to coat and cover with cling film. Place in a warm place free of drafts for 1 hour, or until doubled in bulk.

Punch down a few times then give it a good knead. Now roll into a log and cut out your 6 pieces. Take each piece and shape into bagels - either by poking a hole through the middle and stretching out, or by make a rope and sealing the ends together, I did both and preferred the latter. Place these on a greased baking sheet, cover with cling film that's raised slightly and place in a warm place for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile pre heat the oven to 250C or the hottest your oven will go and put a large pot of water on. When the water boils add the malt syrup and stir well until melted. Drop the bagels into the boiling water 2 at a time cooking for 2 minutes on one side and for 1 minute on the other. Scoop out draining the excess water and place back on the greased sheet. Keep the boiled ones covered with cling film while you cook the rest. When all done sprinkle with sesame seeds and bake for 10 - 15 minutes. They should be golden but really, really light :) Let cool slightly on a wire rack.

sliced open prior to toasting to show texture...

Cashew Chive Cheese Spread:
*note - this is a scaled down version, good for trying the first time. Also, the original recipe called for agar flakes, I only had powdered so used that. It set nicely for a cream cheese but didn't set hard to be able to grate. If you want a hard cheese you'll need to experiment with the levels of agar - I suggest you follow the original recipe for that :)*

35g finely ground raw cashews or almonds (2 1/2Tbsp)
1 Tbsp nutritional yeast
1/4 tsp onion powder
1/4 tsp fine sea salt
1/8 tsp garlic powder
105ml rice milk (or any dairy free milk)
1 1/4 tsp agar powder
1 Tbsp vegetable oil
1/2 Tbsp sweet white miso paste
3/4 tsp fresh lemon juice
fresh chives, chopped finely

If using already ground nuts, just mix all the dry ingredients together and set aside. In a small saucepan heat the milk, agar and oil until it comes to a boil. Cover and simmer until thickened and the agar is dissolved. This doesn't take long using the powder, if using flakes, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat and slowly add to the nut mixture, whisking all the while, when all added give it a good whisk until nice and creamy, then add the miso and lemon juice and whisk again. Stir in the chives then place in a dish, cover and chill.

Cashew Chive Cheese Spread
Sources:
Bagel recipe is based on Nigella Lawson's from 'How to be a Domestic Goddess'
Cheese recipe is based on Ann Gentry's on Heidi's blog .

3 comments:

  1. I've been looking for a bagel recipe that made about 4 - 6, and this one has been sitting under my nose for a while - how on earth did I miss it. Thanks for pointing it out. I love the chive spread.

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  2. oh boy, these look great and the chive spread sounds so good!

    Rose

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  3. I made the cheese spread yesterday and it turned out awesome!! However I am glad I used only a pinch of salt instead of 1/4 tsp because it is quite salty. This recipe will become definitely a favourite, thanks a lot!

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