For those of you who are still doing carbs these days, July 26 is National BagelFest Day. North Americans love this crunchy on the outside and chewy in the middle bread. Served with a variety of toppings, bagels also come in a diverse flavors. In most communities, bagel shops are a staple across the country.
What is BagelFest you ask? Well, BagelFest is a 5-day celebration of America’s favorite kosher carbohydrate that takes place in Mattoon, Illinois. The idea for the event is credited to Murray Lender, owner of Bagel Factory and Lender’s Bagels. When the Bagel Factory first came to the town of Mattoon, Illinois, Lender hosted a free bagel breakfast for all the citizen of the city. This breakfast eventually evolved into a multiple-day festival that celebrates the community every year. Every year the festival has a Miss BagelFest Contest, a Bagel Baby Contest, a parade and lots of live music!
As for this foodie history of the bagel itself, according to National Today, it was Polish-Jewish immigrants who first introduced the bagel to the United States. Throughout New York City and the surrounding boroughs, they grew thriving businesses. Of course, it didn’t take long for the bakers to organize. In 1907, they created the International Beigel Bakers’ Union. For decades, Bagel Bakers Local 338 held contracts with nearly all bagel bakeries in and around the city for its workers.
Until the 1960s, bakeries made bagels by hand. Then Daniel Thompson invented the bagel maker and along came a heated debate of man versus the machine. Thereafter, the question of the better bagel dangled before customers. Was it the handcrafted bagel or the manufactured bagel?
So on this, #NationalBagelfestDay, toast one up and add a schmear or two. If you don’t, you’re not really celebrating.
—
Photo Credit: littlenySTOCK / Shutterstock.com