Bagels Schmears and a Nice Piece of Fish: A Whole Brunch of Recipes to Make at Home

by Cathy Barrow, Linda Xiao (Photographer)

A playful-yet-comprehensive cookbook that lets anyone create bagels, schmears, and other deli favorites at home.

“To quote Seinfeld, Barrow’s classic New York bagels are real, and they’re spectacular.”—Publishers Weekly

Named a Booklist Top Ten Cookbook of 2022!

Bagel lovers rejoice! This delightful bagel cookbook makes it easy to bake fresh bagels in your own kitchen with just five base ingredients and simple techniques. With advice on mixing the dough, shaping the bagels, proofing, boiling, baking, slicing, and storing, you will be a master bagel-maker in no time.

Recipes include two dozen variations on the New York bagel, with classic and innovative flavors ranging from Sesame to Blueberry to Hatch Chile Jack. You'll also find recipes for homemade sweet and savory spreads, schmears, pickles, and other deli mainstays like Home-Cured Lox and Chicken Salad.

With suggested menus for fun brunches and gatherings, photos of finished food and step-by-step techniques, and a charming deli aesthetic, this is both a comprehensive baking resource and a playful guide to making one of America's best-loved foods.

BAGELS ARE EASY BAKING: This book brings bagels to the home baker with step-by-step recipes for making classic New York bagels, even in the smallest kitchen. And it's not about the water! It's about just five ingredients and straightforward technique.

BRUNCH RECIPE BOOK: For anyone who loves to bake, host, and eat, this cookbook will evoke the urge to entertain with bagel-centric menu inspiration. It is packed with vivid photography, straightforward directions, and winning recipes, including a chapter on chapter on bagel sandwiches and brunch spreads.

AWARD-WINNING AUTHOR: Cathy Barrow is an award-winning cookbook author. She's been recognized by IACP and the James Beard Foundation for her work on Mrs. Wheelbarrow's Practical Pantry and Pie Squared, respectively.
 

Perfect for:
Home bakers and cooks who love bagels
Bread enthusiasts looking for a new project
New Yorkers who live elsewhere and want to make a classic NY bagel at home
Fans of cookbooks like Bubby's Brunch Cookbook, Balaboosta, Josey Baker Bread, and The Whole Fish Cookbook

Genres: Cookbooks, Nonfiction, Cooking, Food, Self Help, Contemporary

208 pages, Hardcover

First published March 15, 2022

About the author

Cathy Barrow an award-winning cookbook author, gardener, knitter, traveler, and teacher. She is the author of Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish (Chronicle Books, 2021), When Pies Fly (Grand Central, 2019 ), Pie Squared (Grand Central, 2018), and Mrs. Wheelbarrow’s Practical Pantry (W.W. Norton, 2014). Her writing has been published in The New York Times, The Washington Post, Serious Eats, Saveur, Food52, The Local Palate, Garden & Gun, Southern Living, NPR, and National Geographic. Her books have won the IACP Cookbook Award (Mrs. Wheelbarrow’s Practical Pantry) and been nominated for the James Beard Award (Pie Squared). From her home outside Washington, DC, shared with husband Dennis and two irrascible terriers, Cathy cooks in a sun-filled kitchen just steps from the garden. Find her on Instagram (@cathybarrow), YouTube (Cathy Barrow), and her website, https://www.cathybarrow.com/

Reviews

[Online Eccentric Librarian · Rating 5 out of 5]

More reviews (and no fluff) on the blog http://surrealtalvi.wordpress.com/

This is a beautifully presented cookbook with a focus on bagels but at heart a Jewish culture exploration. The presentation is inspired by a NYC deli menu and interspersed with recipes, tips, family remembrances, Jewish cultural tidbits, and plenty of recipe photographs. This really demystifies the whole bagel making process (no, you do not need NYC water) while also including other Jewish family recipe items such as borscht, various salads, pickles, and of course fish.

The book breaks down as follows: Bagel techniques, classics, bagels my mother wouldn't recognize, fish, salads, pickles and ferments, family favorites, bagel centric menus (brunch suggestions), and then an index at the back.

The recipes are cleanly presented in very large font and typically take 2 pages. There is a title, then ingredients broken down by type (e.g., first bagel and then topping and water bath ingredients). Below that is an introduction to the recipe and any tips. Steps are numbered into small paragraphs (hence the reason why most recipes are 2 pages despite being fairly simple). There are photographs for nearly every recipe and they are bright and cleanly presented.

Interspersed throughout are tip callout sections: e.g., how to get various types of seeds to stick to the bagel or different types of bagels around the world. The author also peppered in reminiscences about her family/coming to America and Jewish customs (such as presentation of cooked items).

The focus here is on chewy, crusty bagels and how to get them right: mostly that you use high gluten flour, cure them for the right amount of time, boil properly, then cook properly. There is a call out section on identifying what went wrong if you bagels didn't come out correctly.

In all, this is a beautifully presented and lovingly curated set of recipes for good, authentic, Jewish cooking. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

[Jonann loves book talk❤♥️❤ · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bagel lovers unite!

I had no idea how many different types of bagels there are. I also had no clue all the different topping recipes are available to eat on the bagels. "Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish" by Cathy Barrow is a definite go-to for bagel lovers! Borrow shares her family love of food, and discusses types of flour, salt, seeds, and techniques like proofing, boiling and baking.
My favorite part is all the recipes for delicious spreads, butters, homemade pimento cheese, egg salad and so much more. Sides like pickled onions and a entire chapter devoted to different types of fish with recipes to compliment any meal.

Thank you NetGalley and Chronicle Books for allowing me to review this georgous cookbook. It will be published March 14, 2022.

[Rachel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I’ll start by saying this is one of the most beautifully laid out cook books I’ve ever seen. Each piece of information added about the writers family history to the tools & ingredients was well thought out. I love trying new recipes with my husband and we always enjoy getting a new cook book. Cinnamon raisin bagels are my all time favorite so we gave that one a try first. I was intimidated because it had a few more steps than some of the other bagel recipes but they turned out great. Hardest part was waiting the full 8 hours for the dough to rise. For anyone wondering we don’t personally have a stand mixer but our hand mixer worked fine with small batches. Thanks so much to Hachette book group for the advanced reader copy.

[Sean · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have always loved a bagel. One for breakfast with cream cheese or a brunch time bagel sandwich... Or even a late night snack of pizza bagel bites hastily thrown into the microwave. I do have to confess that most of the bagels I had through my childhood up until my teens were either the frozen kind or those mass produced soft ones that I've since vowed to never go back to after having both fresh from actual New York and the slightly inferior fresh from "New York" style bagel shops over here on the west coast. While I do bake, bagels have always seemed a challenge as I feared I'd never get something close to the real deal. This book gives me hope. The recipes are easy to follow, well written, and accompanied by some of the nicest and most delicious looking photos. The authors personal family stories and recipies constantly pull me in and make me feel welcome while also evoking a sense of food nostalgia that reminds me of my own familial food traditions. I can't say I've ever been so excited to try curing my own salmon or as equally excited to try her grandfather Allan Kadetsky's Onions and Eggs (of course with the recommended Bloody Mary while the onions cook down. ) This book is exactly what my morning breakfast routine needed and I'm sure would be a great gift for those who love bagels... And lox... And schmears.

[Sara Levine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was so excited to be approved for this cookbook on NetGalley and have loved the recipes I've made so far! Barrow covers how to make bagels - which I can't wait to do with the kids - and how to make your own cream cheeses and cured fish! She also has a whole section on salads and I made the chicken and tuna salads and they were both delicious!

One of my favorite aspects of the cookbook, however, is in the opening when Barrow talks about growing up in Ohio and how her grandmother would bring her mother east coast bagels when she came to visit. Growing up in NJ, I have a special love for bagels from my hometown area and I'm so grateful for family that brings NJ bagels when they come to visit us! I loved reading about Barrow's connection to Judaism through the pieces of prose throughout the cookbook and enjoyed that added cultural aspect throughout the story.

Again, I'm so thankful to @NetGalley and @ChronicleBooks for this eARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinion are my own!

[Kate Kaput · Rating 5 out of 5]

Will I actually try making my own bagels? Look, I've got to be honest. I don't know. I'm not much of a chef, & it seems hard! Plus, what if I screw it up? How will my ancestors feel? I can't handle that guilt. But there's something soothing about having this beautiful cookbook at the ready, as though maybe someday I will take on the massive challenges of cooking the foods of my people. And despite my inabilities in the kitchen, I got so much out of this book, which is more than a cookbook. It's a love letter to Judaism, to Jewish food, to the Jewish people. And it is a gift to us all.

[Barb Reinhold · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was introduced to bagels my freshman year of college by a friend and haven’t stopped eating them since. The thing is, though, I’m very finicky about the bagels I eat. And, I’ll confess, I’m an insufferable bagel snob.

Unfortunately, I live in an area where true Jewish delis are essentially nonexistent. Einstein Brothers makes good bagels, it’s true. But they’re not the bagels one’s beloved bubbe would make for one if one were lucky enough to have a bagel-making bubbe, which, alas, not being Jewish, I am not.

So, what do you do if you’re stuck in the middle of nowhere without a bubbe to make you bagels? Or, god forbid, not even within driving distance of an Einstein Brothers Bagels store?

Well, you make them yourself.

Really.

Truly.

You can do this.

Even if you think you’re totally inept in the kitchen, Cathy Barrow will teach you how, I promise you. Even though I’ve never met her in person, I can tell you that Ms. Barrow is a bagel genius. And that she’s a wonderful teacher. I know this because I read her book and I, whom I believe to be the only girl ever to have flunked out of home ec (both the semester of cooking AND the semester of sewing) at my junior high school, actually turned out a pretty darn good batch of bagels by following Ms. Barrow’s instructions.

Her book, Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish: A Whole Bunch of Recipes to Make at Home is a wonderfully one of a kind cookbook that will appeal to experienced cooks, not-so-experienced-but-eager-to-learn cooks, and, believe it or not, also to those of us who normally wouldn’t be caught dead in the cookbook section in a bookstore. (By the way, my review is based on having read an electronic Netgalley review copy but shortly after the book’s March 15 release date, I will be making my maiden visit to the cookbook section at my local bookstore to buy a hardcover copy of this book for easier use in making future bagel batches.)

The beauty of Ms. Barrow’s book starts with its intuitive organization. There’s plenty of detail for the serious cooks who are interested in detailed in-depth discussion of techniques and ingredients which novice cooks and home ec class flunk-outs can choose to skip if they prefer. For us, there are detailed yet easy to follow step-by-step instructions, helpful advice, and lots of close-up color photographs so you can be absolutely certain you’re doing everything right.

After I made my batch of bagels, I went back and read the entire book straight through. There is so much more than the recipes and advice on techniques and ingredients. For example, Ms. Barrow includes a wonderfully interesting section in which she reminisces about her family of origin (complete with snapshots!) and some other things, which is a section you absolutely shouldn’t miss. I could go on forever, but I’ll leave you with these words: If you love bagels, you will love this book.

[Sharon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish is a great brunch cookbook for the bagel lover. With attractive pages, great photographs, and a table of contents that looks like an old fashioned menu, this cookbook stands out in all of the right ways. The pages are displayed visually in a way that is eye catching. The author has included personal touches, including family stories and photographs, which gives this cookbook great appeal.

From troubleshooting to techniques, Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish is a great primer for all things bagel. From classic bagel recipes to innovative ones, the author has included all of the components for a great brunch. Having made bagels before myself, I appreciate the step-by-step instructions. Classic bagels like The New York Bagel, The Pumpernickel, and The Egg Bagel are displayed with newcomers like The Blueberry Bagel, The Gluten-Free Bagel, and The Pepperoni Bagel. The recipes do not stop there, as the author has included schmears like Veggie Cheese, Lox Cheese, and the Schmear Master Recipe. Sweet offerings include such delectables as Cannoli Cheese and Walnut Raisin Cheese. From Fish recipes to Pickles, the rest of a brunch table is well represented. The author has also included bagel sandwiches with fun names like Noshing With The Fishes, If A Bagel Were A Burrito, and Thanksgiving Any Day.

Overall, I really enjoyed Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish. Many of these recipes brought me back to my childhood and I look forward to making almost everything in this cookbook.

Disclaimer: I was given an Advanced Reader's Copy of Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish by NetGalley and the publisher, Chronicle Books. The decision to read and review this cookbook was entirely my own.

[RF · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was delighted to win this book from a giveaway. The bagel recipes are really creative and well explained.

[Cinnamon Frame Wood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Solid recipes and nice stories from an American Jewish perspective.

[Ro · Rating 5 out of 5]

The pictures in the cookbook say a thousand words. Very easy detailed step by step bagel recipes, cooking tips, troubleshooting tips, recipes for spreads on the bagels, fillings and pickled foods in this cookbook. Excellent bagel cookbook if you ever wanted to make your own. Who knew they were so easy to make?

[Lisa of Hopewell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Net Galley for providing a Kindle copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
My Interest

We’re a weird family. I’d guess cinnamon rolls or biscuits and gravy (or a trip to iHop) are the most popular Christmas breakfasts in very rural Southwestern Ohio, but we have everything bagels topped with smoked salmon, aka “lox,” cream cheese, capers, and red onion. It’s a mandatory part of Christmas just like the chocolate oranges and tuna fish for the cats. (WHERE do we buy this in very rural land? Kroger–we’re right outside the national HG and, if they are out, Jungle Jim’s at Eastgate carries it, but both run short at the holidays so someone else IS eating it or they don’t order very much–I suspect the latter.) I was looking at Net Galley while stressing with another shortage–the right cure of lox for our breakfast, when I saw this little cookbook and requested it.
The Story–or Contents

Wow! I was impressed. I could eat the pictures! Lox, herring (a childhood favorite of mine was herring in sour cream–yes, I was odd. My cousin got so sick one night from eating too much pickled herring she still can’t get near it and that was in 1971). The various cheese spreads are all delicious-sounding, though being almost in the South here (at least people are in culinary terms) Pimento cheese on a bagel might raise a few local eyebrows no matter how delicious it might be. Smoked whitefish salad? Bring it! Smoked trout spread? Yes, please. On and on with the foodie goodness of this little book. And the sandwiches? Huge piles of goodness between the two halves of the bagel. Forget going to a New York deli–enjoy them at home because this book lets you develop a bagel bakery AND deli in your own home. But bacon on a bagel…..holy culture clash! Never mind, I know it will be delicious! Also covered are pickling your own lox or veggies and assembling a lovely bagel platters for guests on special occasions

In addition to the food, we also learn the story of the author’s family and of why she came to make her own bagels. It was an enjoyable little read.


My Thoughts

This one is a keeper! I will definitely be trying a few things–the Smoked Whitefish salad first up, I imagine, if I can get the fish.

One minor complaint, which may be related to the pre-publication status of the book was the index and some of the phots, were a mess. That’s a shame, but probably does not carry over into the published volume. And, it does not, however, keep you from enjoying all the great eating this book will inspire. You can read more at the author’s blog,
My Verdict
4 big bagels!

[Brenda Schneider · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this cookbook and the recipes. Having fun trying the recipes. I won this book through goodreads.

[Kathleen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Who doesn’t love a bagel? Crusty, soft inside, seasoned on top, maybe cream cheese, smoked salmon…that’s what dreams are made of! You’ll find all this and much, much more in Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish, a compendium of everything bagel!

From the five basic ingredients that make a bagel, to bagel history, regional styles, techniques and recipes, this delicious cookbook continues with the “schmears” You can make your own cream cheese (who knew?) and season it with vegetables, lox and more. Then it’s on to the appetizer platters that make me want to be a permanent guest at the Barrow house. The sundry techniques that conclude Bagels, etc. include how to pickle vegetables and bone a whole fish.

Subtitled A Whole Brunch of Recipes to Make at Home, Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish is all that. Cathy Barrow is encouraging, always reminding the reader that you can buy whatever she’s making by hand at the local grocery store. The photographs by Linda Xiao are mouthwateringly good. And I love the family stories! 5 stars and a schmear!

Thank you to NetGalley, Chronicle Books and Cathy Barrow for this ARC.

[Shannon S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

**Won a copy from Goodreads Giveaway**

I love cookbooks and this one is especially beautiful! I love the format, the incorporation of deli signs, the pictures, and the personal stories. I am a huge bagel lover but have never made my own. I’m so excited to try! I love that there are tips for troubleshooting. All the recipes look delicious, from the bagels to the schmears. This would make a wonderful gift!

[Allison · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a treat! If you grew up in New York, you spent many mornings at the deli devouring fresh, hot bagels. This book made me feel as though I was eating that comfort food with good friends and family. This is so much more than a cookbook on bagels and schmears. The stories behind the recipes and the family history Barrow shares makes you feel like you are a part of their home. I could almost hear the laughter and taste the cooking with her words. I laughed out loud many times reading the Yiddish words I too grew up with. I’m not sure I will be saving chicken fat any time soon, but you can betcha I will be making those cinnamon raisins with my kids.

[Kate H · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this!! Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

[Sharon Dene · Rating 5 out of 5]

I learned a lot about bengals it was interesting how she did a history in the beginning of it and then she did the rest of the end but out every chapter she explained how they were made and what they were for. I'm pro New York some bagels have a special spot for me. I like how she explained the different bangles between New York and Montreal that was interesting. Especially like what you did about the different types of fish they put on the bagels that was kind of interesting to. But interesting how her family used to do different bagels And how they were so agreeing in her life.s, I like the different recipes for the different bagels and how she broke them down into chapters seasoning how to make them very easy to follow

[Audrey Stars in Her Eye · Rating 4 out of 5]

I worked for Panera Bread for a year and still didn't understand what went into bagels until I read this book.
Cathy Barrow shares not only the history and science of bagels but her own life and culture and how bagels and accouterments played into that life.
The recipes are ways to follow, and I love the photos of each bagel, schemer, fish, and cream cheese. Photos always help me understand what I am trying to achieve.
This is a great book for more than just other Jews; this explains bagels and Jewish culture in a way that anyone can understand.

[Johanna Sawyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bagel lovers rejoice! I’ll say…. Wow. The bagels still look a bit tough to master but with the easy steps look doable. My love was for the Schmears! The recipes and pairings looked absolutely divine!

What did I like? I usually buy my bagels from Panera bread and it’s convenient. The addition of flavors and toppings in this book absolutely caught my eye. So if your not dynamite in the kitchen this book is still worth it’s weight in gold. I flove the schmears! Divine concoctions that make your palate sing. Five stars!

Would I recommend or buy? I went right to the schmears in this one. I may willingly try to make a bagel in the future but the cheesy goodness and combinations you can put on a bagel are worth the love I give this cookbook! I will definitely recommend and get a copy.

I received a complimentary copy to drool over while waiting for an actual copy to come out and voluntarily left this here!

[Jess · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was such an amazing trip into the past for me. Like the author, I grew up on bagels, specifically New York bagels. When my parents moved to Virginia in the late 80s, the bagels my grandparents brought at their visits became so much more special. I've been searching for great ones since.

I love how this book breaks down not only the recipes for the bagels (and accouterments) but also the history and reasoning of the steps. Knowing why each ingredient is there and what it does helps me understand why my previous recipes were just not right. There's enough classics and nostalgia (love that bialys are included) and new creations for me to try with my kids. The recipes also are reasonable in the amount they produce - 6 bagels is the perfect amount for my family to eat over a few days while they're still fresh.

All in all, a great cookbook to pick up if you're a bagel and schmear lover like me!

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

“How many sides has a bagel? An inside and an outside. Jewish Riddle”
Bagels and cream cheese? Yes please! This book is the A-Z in baking your own bagels, starting with the world famous New York Bagel as well as Pumpernickel (including a little fun history on this flour), Sweet Blueberry, Hatch Chile Jack and a gluten free option. Lots of good information on ingredients, tools and methods as well as a troubleshooting guide. The chapter on “Schmears” is mouth watering including recipes for Hot Honey and Marcona Almond Cheese and Cannoli cheese, sign me up! There is an informative section on all the fishes, including how to home cure lox and how to debone a whole fish, followed by a section on Pickles and Ferments, and ending with the proper way to make a perfect Bagel sandwich.

Thank you Netgalley, Chronicle Books, and the author for this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

[LittleRead · Rating 5 out of 5]

I grew up in the NYC metro area and bagels and brunch were a weekend way of life. Living in the South Central now, REAL bagels are hard to find. But like most of what I miss, I find a way to make it or have it shipped. Making my own bagels just became my newest project with this book. With recipes to help me not only nail my favorite round carb, but to make the schmears and lox I love so much.

A great cookbook, but it’s so much more as it brings the scents and tastes of my youth back to me and stirs up so many memories. Enjoy the book, then enjoy your own brunch with the fruits (Schmears and bagels) of your labor.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow, this book is amazing! There are beautiful images and it makes bagels seem doable at home! Plus, all the schmears sounds so tasty. I'm really very excited about making some of bagel recipes detailed in the book. Not to mention the bagel sandwiches and salads.

There's also good advice on how to time everything (for bagels, you need to make the dough, proof it, let it sit, boil, bake...) it's time consuming but the author makes it seem easy!

Thank you Net Galley for the early peek at the book. I actually can't wait to buy a hardcopy when it comes out. If you've always wanted to try making bagels at home, this might just be the book for you!

[Rem71090 · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love making bagels and there are some really cool ideas in here I can’t wait to try at the next brunch!

[(a)lyss(a) · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a helpful guide to making bagels! There's a brief history of bagels, recipes and tips, and information on making your own schmear, lox, and bagel sandwhiches.

The pictures included in this recipe book are helpful. There's trouble-shooting tips on how to make the right shape bagels and how to cook them. It's a nice look at bagels and brunch ideas I'd actually eat. The recipes are listed in cups and grams so you can be sure that your measurements are accurate.

Overall a nice find!

[Kimberly · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very thorough cookbook on bagels, every type of bagel you can imagine and some more!. There are a lot of nice images and plenty of recipes. I was even more surprised at the variety of smear recipes! I will probably only make my own cream cheese smears from now on. The most intriguing recipe I found was Hot Honey and Marcona Almond Cheese! In addition to smears there are many recipes for bagel toppings like pickles, smoked fish, and egg salad! Highly recommend this cookbook for a baker!

[Blythe Josovitz · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish" by Cathy Barrow is an amazing cookbook! Being Jewish and growing up eating this type of food, I was literally drooling over all of the recipes. Brunch food is my favorite type of food and this book didn't disappoint. From bagels to bialies (my favorite!) to cream cheese to smoked salmon (delish!) and more - this is THE essential Jewish brunch food cookbook. The amazing food photos made me drool. This is a 5-star cookbook! Highly recommend!

[Joni Owens · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading this book I wonder if the author is willing to adopt me? Wow! I never thought you could make your own cream cheese or sour cream?!? I loved all family stories as much as I loved all the recipes. I sincerely hope the author writes another cookbook with more family recipes.

[Karen Hancock · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love bagels, but can’t find good ones in your area? You’ll want to make your own, and the best cookbook out there for that is Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish: A Whole Brunch of Recipes to Make at Home by Cathy Barrow.
Since Homemade is usually better for everything, and bagels are no exception. This excellent cookbook has a well-written introduction that will entice anyone to make good bagels at home, as well as sections on essential ingredients, equipment, a succinct history of bagels, step-by-step techniques to authentic perfect bagels, bagel styles and adaptations from different places, and plenty of recipes for different flavors of bagels. There are also recipes for quasi bagels such as Turkish Simits, flagels and others.

Also included are recipes for dozens of schmears, fillings, sandwiches and salads; everything you need to make bagels a daily snack or meal. There are also recipes for condiments and add-ons for perfect bagel snacks and meals.

The colored photographs are stunning, and there are photos of almost every recipe. The book is well-organized and well-written. The recipes are written in the traditional manner and are easy-to-follow so that anyone – from beginning cooks to experienced chefs will be able to turn out perfect bagels every time. Barrow does emphasize that practice makes for more beautiful bagels, but that even the ugly ones will taste good.

All told, this is the best bagel cookbook I have ever run across. I used my auto bread machine to mix the dough, but removed it and followed Barrow’s instructions from then on and my bagels were delicious. Highly recommended.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.