Jewish · Authentic-ish Jewish
Bagels
280 kcal a serving, against 484 for the traditional version. That is 204 kcal off, or 42%, with 7.7g of protein. Serves 6. 2 hours plus rising.
What the traditional version is
Proper bagels mean strong white flour, a good hit of yeast, malt syrup in the dough and the boiling water for shine, and a long, fierce bake. The classic dough is kneaded hard, left to rise, shaped into rings, boiled for under a minute (usually with malt or honey), then baked till the crust is dark and the insides are dense. They're bigger than you think - about 120g each, perfect for a triple-decker salt beef monument.
What changed, and what each change costs
Downsized each bagel from 120g dough to 70g dough
The only honest way to cut what bagels cost your waistline and get more protein per bite is to shrink them. So instead of the usual bakery monsters, you get moderate rings that still chew well and crisp up nicely.
What it costs you. You can't stuff in a mountain of salt beef and pickles. Smaller bagels make for meaner sandwiches. You'll probably want two.
Halved the malt syrup in the boiling water
The glossy crust is nice, but that much malt syrup does little for the flavour. Halving it still gives you a decent shine and slight sweetness, but saves sugar.
What it costs you. The bagels are a little paler and not quite as malty-sweet as the bakery versions. If you're a crust obsessive, you'll spot it. Most people won't care.
Kept the same flour, salt, water, yeast and a touch of sugar
There's no real substitute for the flour - use anything weaker and you lose the chew. No protein gains or savings by swapping those.
What it costs you. You get the same essential bagel, just smaller.
The numbers
| Per serving | Traditional | Lightened |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 484 | 280 |
| Protein | 13.2g | 7.7g |
| Fat | 2.7g | 1.5g |
| Saturated fat | 0.4g | 0.2g |
| Carbohydrate | 100g | 57.9g |
| Protein per 100 kcal | 2.7g | 2.7g |
Every figure is computed from the recipe's own weighed ingredient list against public food composition databases. The appendix in Authentic-ish Jewish prints the exact database row used for each ingredient, so any number here can be checked.
Allergens. gluten, sesame.
The method is in the book
These are bagels for people who want restraint forced on them. The smaller size means you'll eat two, but get less of a carb bomb. You can't fill them with enough cold cuts to block a small river, but they're chewy, shiny and recognisably bagel. If you want bakery scale, you'll need a bakery oven and bigger trousers. For a weekday breakfast or a snack with salmon, these pull their weight.
The quantities and the method for this dish are in Authentic-ish Jewish, along with 52 more. It is not out yet. The swap kit is free in the meantime.