Day before baking

To make the dough in the bowl of kitchen aid stand mixer stir the sourdough starter and water and mix well.

To this add flour, salt, diastatic malt powder and mix everything.

Mix everything form a coarse ball, and the flour should be fully hydrated; If using a mixer, use the dough hook and mix on the lowest speed for 3 minutes. If mixing by hand, use a large, sturdy spoon and stir for about 3 minutes, until well blended. The dough should form a stiff,

Let the dough rest for 5 minutes.

Resume mixing with the dough hook on the lowest speed for another 3 minutes or transfer to a very lightly floured work surface and knead by hand for about 3 minutes to smooth out the dough.

Place the dough in a clean, lightly oiled bowl, cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap, and let the dough rise at room temperature for 5 hours.

When you are ready to shape the bagels, prepare a sheet pan by lining it with parchment paper or a silicone mat, and sprinkle liberally with cornmeal.

Divide the dough into 7 equal pieces about 120g . (A typical bagel is about 4 ounces or 113 grams before baking, but you can make them smaller.)

Form each piece into a loose ball by rolling it on a clean, dry work surface with a cupped hand.

(Don’t use any flour on the work surface. If the dough slides around and will not ball up, wipe the surface with a damp paper towel and try again; the slight bit of moisture will provide enough traction for the dough to form into a ball.)

Then poke a hole through the center of the ball to create a donut shape.

Holding the dough with both thumbs in the hole, rotate the dough with your hands, gradually stretching it to create a hole about 2 inches in diameter.

If you want you can shape by making the dough to a 10 inch long snake and wrap around the finger to join together.

Place each shaped bagel on the prepared sheet pan, then mist with spray oil or brush with a light coating of oil. Cover the entire pan with plastic wrap and set aside for proof about 2 hours and then refrigerate overnight or for up to 2 days. (You can also proof the full piece of dough in the oiled bowl overnight and then shape the bagels on baking day, 60 to 90 minutes before boiling and baking them, or as soon as they pass the float test.)

On baking day

Remove the bagels from the refrigerator 60 to 90 minutes before you plan to bake them,

Immediately check whether the bagels are ready for baking using the “float test”: Place one of the bagels in a small bowl of cold water.

If it sinks and does not float back to the surface, shake it off, return it to the pan, and wait for another 15 to 20 minutes, then test it again. When one bagel passes the float test, they are all ready to be boiled. If they pass the float test before you are ready to boil and bake them, return them to the refrigerator so they do not over proof.

About 30 minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 475°F (247°C) and gather and prepare your garnishes with everything bagel seasoning or (seeds, onions, garlic, and so on).

To make the poaching liquid, fill a pot with 2 to 3 quarts (181 to 272 g) of water, making sure the water is at least 4 inches deep. Cover, bring to a boil, then lower the heat to maintain at a simmer

. Stir in the brown sugar and baking soda.

Gently lower each bagel into the simmering poaching liquid, adding as many as will comfortably fit in the pot. They should all float to the surface within 15 seconds. After 1 minute, use a slotted spoon to turn each bagel over. Poach for another 30 to 60 seconds,

on a generous amount of whatever toppings, you like as soon as the bagels come out of the water then use the slotted spoon to transfer it back to the pan, domed side up. (It is important that the parchment paper should be sprinkled liberally with cornmeal, or the paper will glue itself to the dough as the bagels bake.) Sprinkle the top of bagels with seeds of your choice. I used everything bagel seasoning.

Transfer the pan of bagels to the oven, then lower the oven heat to 425°F (218°C).

Bake for 12 minutes, then rotate the pan and check the underside of the bagels. If they’re getting too dark, place another pan under the baking sheet. (Doubling the pan will insulate the first baking sheet.) Bake for another 13 minutes, until the bagels are a golden brown.

Cool on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes before slicing or serving.