flickr photo: Edgar Zuniga Jr.

1. A bagel starts its  life as a ring shaped doughy ball, roughly hand-sized. It is boiled for a short time in water, and only then  baked.

2. A trademark of bagels is a dense, chewy, doughy interior with a browned exterior.

3. Bagels are often topped with seeds baked on the outer crust, with the traditional ones being poppy or sesame seeds. Some also may have salt sprinkled on their surface, and there are also a number of different dough types such as whole-grain or rye.

4. The bagel was invented in Poland sometime in the 17th century. In the late 19th century, the bagel immigrated to the US along with Eastern European Jews, and New York became the bagel capital of the world.

5. The hole in the middle of the bagel was a practical solution to the need of European street vendors to loop bagels on a pole or string.

6. The US bagel market today is a $600 million industry, or about 5% of the $13 billion bread industry. Leading brand are Thomas’ (40% market share), Sara-Lee (15%), Lenders, and private label store brands.

7. The top three bagel variations are plain, everything (lots of seed variations) , and cinnamon raisin.

8. Unfortunately, bagels are not a very nutritious bread form. Made with processed wheat and containing 25% of the recommended daily sodium intake, a single bagel holds 290 calories.

9. As a result, whole wheat bagels have become very popular in the last few years. So have mini-bagels and 100 calorie bagels. Fortification with various vitamins and minerals is also trendy as of late.

10. Despite the disappointing nutritional attributes of the bagel, we find it irresistible on Sunday mornings, when, freshly baked and spread with cream cheese and lox, every bite is heaven.

What to do at the supermarket:

If buying frozen bagels, check the nutrition panel for the serving size and make sure the data refers to a whole bagel and not a slice (which is half a bagel). Choose the smaller bagels (around 3-4 oz, not 5oz). Whole wheat bagels are a better option because of the added fiber, but calorically they are similar to the processed flour bagels.

If buying fresh, ask the bakery for nutrition information before committing yourself to a dozen.

Instead of cream cheese, try avocado, tuna, or just eat plain, freshly baked.

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