Rick's Second Favorite Food

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Rick's Second Favorite Food  

          Rick Podowski and The Hefty Trio are four overweight high school English teachers who solve mysteries. Each of the five books in the series contain a mystery and the main characters eat Polish, Irish, Italian and Mexican food paired with botique wines from the Santa Cruz Mountains of California.

              Everyone knows that whenever Rick Podowski enters a donut shop, he is overwhelmed by the delicious odors and the sheer varieties of this great food.  However, what is less commonly known is that Rick's second favorite snack originated in Poland.  The origin of the bagel is up for debate, although it seems clear that it first took a foothold in Poland.  Bagels were first mentioned in a list of community regulations published in Krakow, in 1610 that stipulate that bagels are to be given to pregnant women.  Another story says that the bagel originated in 1863 when a baker from Vienna created them, fashioned in the form of a stirrup, as a gift to King Jan Sobieski of Poland to commemorate the King's victory over the Turks that year.  The fact that the bagel is not perfectly circular makes a case for the theory that it's name derives from beugal the word for stirrup in French.

             There are four steps in the process of enjoying a bagel.  First go to your closest bagel shop and immerse yourself in the colors, shapes, and the smells of the bagels.  Next, go over to the glass case at the counter and examine each row of delights.  Bask in the patterns formed by scattered onions.  Admire the coloring of the asiago cheese.  Examine the light yellow tint of the egg bagels and compare their color to the darkness of the pumpernickel, and rye.  Smell the power of the garlic and contrast it with the sweetness of the cinnamon sugar.  Take the time to enjoy the entire ambiance.

               Next, order coffee.  Never use a Styrofoam cup.  Find a bagel shop that has paper cups or bring your own.  Pour the coffee into the cup and add cream.  Under no circumstances should you use a flavored creamer.

               Finally, take care to choose just the right bagel.  Get in touch with your inner self.  Do you feel downtrodden and need a high?  In this case pick cinnamon sugar, raisin or blueberry.  Perhaps you feel the need for some substantial food.  In that case, pick an onion, garlic, pumpernickel, or rye.  If you feel sophisticated, you might try an asiago cheese or another specialty.  After you pick your bagel, have it toasted.

               Step four involves selecting the cream cheese.  Plain old cream cheese allows you to experience the full flavor of the bagel.  However, fruit and nut cream cheeses like blueberry, strawberry, maple raisin walnut or honey almond are acceptable.  Also, acceptable are the more powerful mixtures like garlic, onion, and jalapeno.  In my opinion, smoked salmon constitutes a special treat. 

             

     

               Step five is the culmination of the entire experience.  Sit at a table.  Take a sip of coffee as a prelude to the ultimate experience of actually biting into the bagel and letting it melt in your mouth.  Close your eyes to intensify the experience.  Continue this process until you finish.

                You are now ready to face the world!