"Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish" by Cathy Barrow is an amazing cookbook! Being Jewish and growing up eating this type of food, I was literally drooling over all of the recipes. Brunch food is my favorite type of food and this book didn't disappoint. From bagels to bialies (my favorite!) to cream cheese to smoked salmon (delish!) and more - this is THE essential Jewish brunch food cookbook. The amazing food photos made me drool. This is a 5-star cookbook! Highly recommend!

The "stories and asides, history and fables, and tables of Barrow's childhood" make Bagels, Schmears, and a Nice Piece of Fish a warm and enjoyable reading experience. I have made a fair amount of bread and pretzels at home, but never a bagel. I live in the Twin Cities and haven't had a NYC bagel in close to ten years. Tackling bagels at home has been on my to-do list but often the effort seemed like more trouble than its worth. I am happy to report that the easy-to-follow instructions changed my mind. Each bagel sounds better than the last and the pictures made me drool at dinnertime and long for breakfast. I can confidently say there is a bagel for anybody in this delightful little book!

What a lovely find! I could live on bagels, and the cover got me immediately. I remember eating a bagel with cream cheese and smoked salmon every morning and loving it. So this book was definitely for me. I like the history and all the bagel info. And the recipes and the photos are great. I can't wait to try my own cream cheese (the author calls it smears).

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are mine. Bagel lovers, unite!

I am obsessed with bagels, so I really enjoyed this cookbook! I love the fact that the cookbook gives information about the history of bagels, too.

A very thorough cookbook on bagels, every type of bagel you can imagine and some more!. There are a lot of nice images and plenty of recipes. I was even more surprised at the variety of smear recipes! I will probably only make my own cream cheese smears from now on. The most intriguing recipe I found was Hot Honey and Marcona Almond Cheese! In addition to smears there are many recipes for bagel toppings like pickles, smoked fish, and egg salad! Highly recommend this cookbook for a baker!

After reading this book I wonder if the author is willing to adopt me? Wow! I never thought you could make your own cream cheese or sour cream?!? I loved all family stories as much as I loved all the recipes. I sincerely hope the author writes another cookbook with more family recipes.

What a fun collection of ideas for one of my favorite foods. Lots of ways to expand my enjoyment. A worthwhile. Read. Tasty

Wow, this book is amazing! There are beautiful images and it makes bagels seem doable at home! Plus, all the schmears sounds so tasty. I'm really very excited about making some of bagel recipes detailed in the book. Not to mention the bagel sandwiches and salads.

There's also good advice on how to time everything (for bagels, you need to make the dough, proof it, let it sit, boil, bake...) it's time consuming but the author makes it seem easy!

Thank you Net Galley for the early peek at the book. I actually can't wait to buy a hardcopy when it comes out. If you've always wanted to try making bagels at home, this might just be the book for you!

I grew up in the NYC metro area and bagels and brunch were a weekend way of life. Living in the South Central now, REAL bagels are hard to find. But like most of what I miss, I find a way to make it or have it shipped. Making my own bagels just became my newest project with this book. With recipes to help me not only nail my favorite round carb, but to make the schmears and lox I love so much.

A great cookbook, but it’s so much more as it brings the scents and tastes of my youth back to me and stirs up so many memories. Enjoy the book, then enjoy your own brunch with the fruits (Schmears and bagels) of your labor.

I received a copy of this book through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This is a helpful guide to making bagels! There's a brief history of bagels, recipes and tips, and information on making your own schmear, lox, and bagel sandwhiches.

The pictures included in this recipe book are helpful. There's trouble-shooting tips on how to make the right shape bagels and how to cook them. It's a nice look at bagels and brunch ideas I'd actually eat. The recipes are listed in cups and grams so you can be sure that your measurements are accurate.

Overall a nice find!

I love brunch and I love bagels so this is right up my alley! A great recipe book for those of us who prefer to stay at home and set up a delicious brunch table at home.