One dough recipe makes many treats

The first semester just ended, and my classes have finished up midterms. One of my biggest beliefs is that I can successfully teach college-level culinary arts at the high school and judging by the midterm exams, the students have proven me right. Their task was to prepare a basic white bread dough and use it to make four different styles of bread in 90 minutes: 2 bagels, 2 pretzels, 2 dinner rolls and 2 flat breads. Afterward, they had to serve their items to an outside guest who judged their food as if they were a consumer and gave feedback.

Here you will find the basic white bread dough, which I commonly use for my focaccia, pretzels and bagels.

For pretzels:

Weigh out dough into 4- ounce pieces. Roll each piece into approximately 12- to 16-inch pieces. Shape into a “U” form then cross the ends over and press them to the bottom of the U. Place each piece into a pot of boiling water for about a minute the put them onto an oiled sheet pan. Salt the pretzels as desired and bake for about 12 to 15 minutes or until they are golden brown.

For bagels:

Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface, and divide the dough into 4- ounce pieces. Roll each piece of dough into a cylinder shape about 8 inches long. Join the ends to form a circle and roll until they are combined. Repeat with the remaining dough. Place on a parchment paper-lined sheet pan. Preheat oven to 475 degrees F. Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a large pot. Boil the bagels, three or four at a time, until they rise to the surface of the pot, about 1 minute per side. Remove the bagels with a slotted spoon and place them on the baking sheet. Dip the tops of the wet bagels into toppings if desired and arrange them, toppings up, on the baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven until the bagels begin to brown, 15 to 20 minutes.

For flat bread:

Measure out 4-ounce pieces of dough. Flatten out and place the pieces onto a sheet pan with parchment. Lightly brush with a garlic rosemary oil and salt and pepper. Place them into a 400- degree preheated oven and cook until lightly browned. Remove from oven and coat generously with garlic rosemary oil and serve.