Caramelized Onion + Apple Breakfast Bagels
If there was one thing I was dead set on last week, it was making bagel sandwiches as a pre-work treat. I went in to last week with a heavy motivation to look forward to one home-cooked meal each day, so on night’s where I was working at the bar, it meant sneaking in a little early afternoon time to prepare myself something I actually wanted to eat. And in one quick “brunch” search on Pinterest, it became real obvious that I needed to make a bagel sandwich happen because all of the photos were making me salivate.
The bagel sandwich I landed on - Caramelized Onion + Apple Breakfast Bagels. It’s like all of my favorite things to sneak into a grilled cheese (arugula + apple + caramelized onions + herby aioli) except with the added bonus of a sunnyside up egg with a runny yolk and a crispy everything bagel. It was loaded, a little messy, and a total pre-bartending treat.
I knew that these bagel sandwiches would be the highlight of my weekly menu, but I think back to the Thursday morning when I whipped things up, and they were honestly one of the last great things to happen last week before my week went into a bit of a tailspin. My husband got hit in his car by a total crazy bitch who is the poster child of zero accountability & creating a nightmare situation over a fender bender, a hobo randomly started throwing rocks at our sweet bar customers (& like palm size rocks that could do some real damage), Saturday date night was a total bust, and a “friend” Is throwing a total shit fit as a result of not being followed by our business Instagram. I. Literally. Just. Can’t. But the Thursday when I got to spend my morning enjoying these breakfast bagels, life was simple + fun + delightful, and I’m just trying to start this week with the same good energy that surrounded these breakfast bagels. This too shall pass + I’m just going to give this week a little reset - starting now.
Don’t forget the veggies
The array of veggies (& fruit!) in this sandwich is just beyond satisfying. Like hello onions + apple + arugula.
Buttery caramelized onions + fresh slices of apple is like one of the most delicious combinations I’ve ever had, and I want it on every cheeseboard, every sandwich, and just anywhere it makes sense. And it makes sense on a bagel sandwich. The egg and melty cheese is just so dang good with the buttery onions + crispy apple slices.
Last veggie component - arugula. Specifically arugula that’s oh so lightly wilted. Just tossed in the pan with the caramelized onions, burner totally off and using the existing heat of the pan to quickly cook the arugula over indirect heat. Cooked only so that the greens are easy to layer on the sandwich and aren’t so bulky to work with.
Melted Cheddar
To be precise, we’re creating a “cheese-skirt” over one of the bagel halves. The bagels go in the oven on their own first for for the initial warm-up, and then one half of each bagel gets topped with the cheddar cheese and it melts so it forms little cheese shield around the bagel. Turning half of the everything bagel into a cheddar-everything bagel. So here for it.
I bought good quality, kind of thickly sliced cheddar a more “gourmet” market, and I really don’t regret that decision. It was so cheesy and kind of made up for the lack of cream cheese.
Creamy Aioli + Runny Yolks
If you’re not having a bagel with cream cheese, it’s kind of a sacrifice and there need to be bagel sandwich factors that make up for it - hence why this bagel sandwich is so loaded. The sauces are those x-factors.
First - we have aioli. Bright, garlic-y, lemony, + herby aioli. A light slather of this (or even just plain mayo) goes far and adds a super pleasant creamy component. And helps avoid any dry bagel risks. The runny egg yolk - that’s like your secondary sauce. Tastes great with everything.
So cheers to big breakfast bagel sandwiches that are totally vegetarian, very loaded, sparked some mid-morning joy this last week.
For the sandwiches
3 tbsp butter
1 onion, halved + sliced
1/2 c. mayo
1/2 c. chopped parsley
2-3 garlic cloves minced
2 tbsp Dijon
1 tbsp lemon juice
Salt + pepper
2 bagels (or 1 for however many people you’re making them for)
1 honey crisp apple, thinly sliced
Cheddar cheese slices
Eggs
A couple handfuls of fresh arugula
Place a skillet over medium heat. Add in the butter. Once melted, and in the onions, stirring every 5-7 minutes. You want them to caramelize so they become soft + buttery, which will take 30-40 minutes. If they start to char, reduce the heat. At the 25 minute mark, stir in a sprinkle of salt and pepper, reduce the heat in the pan to low and let them cook for the remaining 5-15 minutes until they’re a nice, dark brown color.
In the meantime, mince the parsley and garlic. Add to a bowl and stir in the mayo, Dijon, and lemon juice. Season with a pinch of salt and pepper. Set in the fridge until you’re ready to use.
Preheat the oven to 350 + place a small skillet over medium-low heat with a tablespoon of olive oil (it’s for the eggs!). Place your halved bagels with the cut side up on a foil lined baking sheet, and cook for 5-7 minutes. Take them out and place the cheese on one half of each bagel, preferable the top half, and put back in the oven for another five minutes. Then go ahead and crack your eggs in the warmed skillet, cooking until they’re just the kind of sunny-side up consistency you want.
Turn off the caramelized onions and scoot them onto one side of the pan. Add in the arugula, cover, + let sit covered just for a couple minutes while the eggs cook.
To complete the bagels, spread a thin layer of aioli on the bottom half of the bagel. Layer on the arugula, onions, + apple, the top with the cooked egg. Slam that top, melty cheese layer right on top, and you’ve got yourself a sandwich.