Joey, who told me she used to come here quite some time ago, was good enough to send me the following bialy recipe. I made them yesterday and oh boy! they're good!
Brooklyn Bialy Recipe
Cornmeal
Onion Topping (recipe below)
2 cups war water (ll0-115 degrees)divided
1 package active dry yeast
2 tsp. sugar
2 1/4 tsp. salt
1 3/4 cups bread flour
3 1/2 cups non bleached flour
cover 2 baking sheets with parchment paper and sprinkle lightly with cornmeal. Prepare Onion Topping, set aside.
In a large bowl combine 1/2 c water, yeast and sugar;let stand 10 min. or until foamy. Add rem. 1 1/2 c water, salt, and flours. Knead by hand or with dough hook of mixer for 8 min. until smooth.(The dough will be soft)--I used my kitchenaide dough hook. If you think the dough is too moist, add flour, 1 Tbsp. at a time. If the dough is looking dry and grnarly-add warm water, 1 Tbsp. at a time.
Form dough into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl, turning to oil all sides. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise 1 1/2 hours or until tripled in bulk. Punch dough down in bowl, turn it over, cover with plastic wrap and let rise another 45 min. or until doubled in bulk. On a floured board or counter, punch dough down and roll into a cylinder shape. With a sharp knife, but into 8 rounds. Lay rounds flat on lightly floured board, cover with a towel and let them rest 10 min.Gently pat each round into circles (a little higher in the middle than at the edge), each about 3-4 inches in diameter. Play bialys on prepared baking sheets, cover with plastic warp and let rise an additional 30 min or until increased by about half in bulk. (Don't let them over-rise)
Make an indentation in the centre of each bialy with two fingers of each hand, pressing fromn the centre outward, leaving a 1" rim. Place approx. 1 tsp of onion topping in the hole of each bialy. Dust lightly with flour, cover with plastic and let rise 15 min.
Preheat oven to 425F. Bake on upper and lower shelves of the oven for 6-7 min. then switch pans and reverse postions from front to back and bake another 5-6 min. until bialys are lightly browned.
NOTE: These are soft rolls, and it is important not to bake them too long or they will be very dry. Remove from oven and let cool on racks.
After cooling, immediately place in plastic bags(this will allow the exterior to soften slightly).NOTE: these rolls are best eaten fresh, preferably lightly toasted and smeared with cream cheese. For longer storage, keep in freezer.
Makes 8 bialys.
ONION TOPPING
1 Tbsp ve. or olive oil
1 1/2 tsp. poppy seeds
1/3 c minced onion
1/2 tsp. coarse kosher salt.
In a small bowl, combine oil, poppy seeds, onion and salt; set aside.
ENJOY!!!!!