Ray's New York Bagels: Frozen better than fresh? Course not!
Okay, if you're from the New York Metropolitan Area you know the joy of biting into a freshly baked bagel. And, if you're from Watertown, NY you can look it up in the Wikipedia. It's one of life's true pleasures. But truthfully, these days high quality fresh bagels can be found in most major and quasi-major towns. I know there's that urban legend about New York water being responsible for their taste, and if there is anything about water transversing the city in 150 year-old rusting cast iron pipes that imparts a specialness to the bagel making process, I'll stand corrected. The truth is, down here in South Florida it's hard to pass a strip shopping center without a decent bagel store. So I was really surprised when I was unpacking groceries that the ever-radiant Mrs. Xeno had purchased to find a bag of **Ray's New York Bagels**. Frozen bagels in the Xeno abode? Well, it turns out that my precious Veronica thought it made sense to keep in the house along with the frozen waffles and pancakes so when my daughter comes flying down the stairs, racing the clock before leaving for school, that she have one more quick choice. Fair enough. **Ray's New York Bagels - Plain** So, what are these things? To start with, they're frozen. Plenty of frozen bagels around. But these are actually made in New York, in the traditional boil then bake method. The unique thing about them is that they have been 95% par-baked. They need another 5-7 minutes in a 425 degree oven. In a pinch, they can be nuked then toasted. Ray's web-site, raysnewyorkbagels.com screams **Frozen is better than fresh!** So, we just had to put them to the test, didn't we? We prepared them according to Ray's directions. **The Verdict?** C'mon. You didn't really think that a frozen bagel could be better than a fresh one did you? Even a fresh bagel from Watertown, NY is better than this but, compared to other supermarket available frozen bagels they are pretty good. Not quite as good as fresh bagels carefully frozen in freezer bags, but up against the likes of Lender's and Thomas' they compare favorably. They are a decent chew and they have a pleasant, if not authentic taste to them. **My Viewpoint** My choice for frozen bagels is to freeze fresh ones. But, if there is no convenient bagel bakery where you live you could do a lot worse than keeping a bag in your freezer. They seem to last forever in their par-baked form. They could come in handy during the hurricane season. Try a bag. Rudi
RudiXeno
Boca Raton, FL