Noonie's |Bagel Fixes|

Since I can remember I've always loved a good bagel. In fact one of my earliest memories involves bagels. My dad used to take my brother and I to this one bagel shop Downtown on the weekends we spent with him. There was a baseball field right across the street from our bagel shop, and on this one particular Sunday there happened to be a baseball game going on, so we took our bagels, walked across the street and watched the game as we enjoyed our breakfast. All together now "awwww" yes I know cute memory. LOL

I think my story illustrates to you the point I'm a bagel junkie, always have been, always will be. My typical "fix" is usually just a plain bagel, but lately I've been really into 'Everything' bagels, you know the ones with all the seeds that love to get stuck between your teeth. Well worth the sacrifice in my book. Sometimes I go for an onion bagel, but I don't really stray from these three types of bagels too often at all. Once in a while I enjoy a cinnamon raisin bagel, but I don't lean towards sweeter bagels too often. I enjoy a good ol' savory bagel much more. But life is all about broadening your horizons and so I'm going to touch a little on about the sweeter side of the bagel world.

So we talked a little about types of bagels, now let's talk about what to put in the middle of these things. I guess I should mention that yes I do eat my bagel the typical way, you know toasted and spread with plain cream cheese, leaving the bagel separate as 2 pieces. If I do go this route I always top my bagel with Za'atar (which I will talk about in a moment, I'm getting ahead of myself) + a little Salt + Peppa. But I like to spice things up, so I rarely eat my bagels this way. The way I DO usually eat my bagels require eating the bagel as a 'sandwich' in order to keep the goodies from slipping and sliding off, which would surely happen if I ate the bagel separate as 2 pieces instead one.
 
As I mentioned I always toast the bagel before doing anything else with it. I personally prefer mine a little on the crunchy side. Here are just a few of my favorite bagel sandwiches that I regularly eat.

Noonie's Favorite Bagel Sandwiches

* Egg Bagel Sandwich: Start with a toasted or  grilled bagel
 (simply grill the bagel in a pan with some butter spread on it)
Fixins': Add an over hard egg (that's how I prefer mine) +/or Cheddar cheese +/or bacon + Salt + Peppa

 * Turkey Bagel Sandwich: This one is pretty straightforward. Start with a toasted bagel.
Fixins': Turkey + Provolone cheese + A little Mayo + Black Peppa

* Childhood Favorite: Start with a toasted bagel. 
Fixins': Plain cream cheese + Cheddar cheese + a few slices of tomatoes +  Za'atar + Salt + Peppa

Okay so I guess people don't typically add Za'atar on their bagels because I don't think everyone knows exactly what Za'atar is. Well let me drop some knowledge your way.

 Za'atar is an Arabic spice that is kind of tangy I guess you could say. It typically consist of Roasted Sesame Seeds, Sumac, Thyme, Oregano and Salt, although there are a few variations here and there on the mix. I've been eating it ever since I can remember. I typically get my Za'atar fix from my local Mediterranean store, but I'm sure an international grocery store will probably have it. It's a popular spice in the Arab world. If you don't feel like buying it just to try it you can always make your own at home, although I haven't personally tried making my own I found this recipe online. Seems like it's pretty legit.

 

These are just a few of my personal favorites, but I randomly found this bagel recipe online (which is actually what inspired me to write this post to begin with) and I just had to share it alongside my faves. I have yet to try this number, but it looks pretty damn tasty! I think when I do get around to making it I'll skip the egg part and just go for the avocado + hummus + cheese.

Like I said earlier I am a bagel junkie + have a super bad sweet tooth, but I don't typically go to the sweeter side of the bagel world. However, I know there are some of you out there that do enjoy the sweeter side of bagels, and I didn't want to leave you out in the cold so I thought I'd share a few sweet bagel ideas.

   Sweet Tooth Bagel Ideas: 

* Butter + Cinnamon + Sugar  

* Cream Cheese or Butter + Jam

  *  Cream Cheese or Butter + Honey  

* Fresh fruit + Cream Cheese 

 Source

On another note, all this talk of bagels reminded me of a TV show I saw a few months back about the history of bagels, which I'm not going to get into. But the tv show mentioned a bagel shop in Brooklyn, NY (coincidentally) that is one of the few bagel shops that still makes their bagels the old fashion way, by way of boiling. I looked up the name of the place which is The Bagel Hole and I thought maybe Nelli can go try them out and let us know how they are since they're in her neck of the woods. :)

Until next time friends...Cheers!!

P.S. Hey! I want to know about your bagels habits! 
How do you typically enjoy your bagel? 
Maybe you have a favorite local bagel shop you'd like to shout out?
Comment below! :)

Also if you get around to making the Za'atar recipe I included, let me know how it is! <3