Montreal Style Gluten Free Bagels

Two weeks have gone by since my last entry.....Life sure has been busy. The last week of November left me feeling a bit under the weather. Not the best setting to let the creative juices flow. Then came the first of December and the Christmas season kicks off......With birthdays and staff parties and company coming over. This all happened in the last 7 days.

Thankfully throughout my hectic schedule, I remembered to take photos of winning baking recipes and incredible dinners. I hope I can do a few entries this week to catch up on some good home cookin'. I know at the beginning of this blogging journey I promised you  a play by play of my weekly menu planning.....I still plan on doing that as soon as I can find a rhythm that works for me and this blog. I have many ideas I would love to share with you and in time I think I will be able to incorporate it all here.

Enough about my busy life. I know we all have them...... It's time I shared with you this incredible recipe I found on line a few weeks ago. Unfortunately I wrote down the recipe and forgot to keep a link to where I I found it. I want to give credit where credit is due but I can't. I spend so much time searching for recipes and ideas you would think I was organized enough and have it all bookmarked nicely on my computer.....My simple answer is I do not!!!!! Anyway I came across a recipe for Gluten Free bagels and had to try making them. I was a bit unsure at first. I was always under the impression bagels took time and were a bit of work to make. But as you will keep hearing me saying over and over again, gluten free baking is a breeze in comparison to regular baking. And this recipe doesn't disappoint either!

From start to finish, the bagels took about 2 hours to make......They came out chewy and not crumbly at all. My only complaint is that they were a bit too yeasty for me. And this I will rectify the next time I make them. But for now I will share with you the original recipe I found. 

So here it is ......

Montreal Style Gluten Free Bagels

3 cups          Gluten Free Flour Mix( see *note)

1/2 cup         Tapioca Flour

1/4 cup         Millet Flour

1/4 cup         Ground Flax Seeds( Not in original recipe)

1 Tbsp          Active Dry Yeast

2 tsp             Xanthan Gum

2 Tbsp          Brown Sugar, packed

1 3/4 tsp       Salt

                2  Eggs + 2 Egg Yolks

1 Tbsp          Oil

1 1/3 cups    Warm Water

Once risen, you will need to finish:

12 cups        Water

1/4 cup         White Sugar

1 Tbsp          Baking Soda

1                   Lightly Beaten Egg

1/4 cup         Sesame Seeds ( Not in original recipe)

Instructions:

~ Place dry ingredients in a bowl. Mix well( including yeast).

~ In another bowl, gently whisk the remaining ingredients until combined.

~ Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones and mix. You can use a hand mixer here. It worked well for me. But a Kitchen Aid would be best. I had to finish with a wooden spoon for fear of losing too much batter. My bowl wasn't big enough.....The dough will be sticky but not unbearable. ( I did sprinkle a bit more flour. It felt too sticky for me. It should be a bit tacky.)

~ Using a 1/2 cup measuring cup, drop a blob of dough on the counter lightly dusted with rice flour. Not too much though or else the dough will slide around. You want it a bit sticky as its easier to roll into a smooth ball.

~ Making a cupped shape with your hand, cover the dough and make circles in a quick repetitive motion. You want to create a smooth rounded ball.

~ Once you have a nice ball, using your thumb, press straight in the middle of the dough and move it around in circular motions to help widen the hole for your bagel.

~ Then using your fingers, press down on the dough a bit to help make a flattened bagel shape.

~ After shaping it, transfer each bagel to a cookie sheet lined with a lightly oiled piece of parchment paper.

~ Repeat until all the dough is shaped. The recipe should make 8 evenly shaped bagels.

~ Gently drape the bagels with a piece of lightly oiled plastic film( saran) and allow to rise in a warm spot for about 1 1/4 hour. They should be doubled in size by then.

~ About 30 minutes into the rise, preheat your oven to 450C.

~ About 20 minutes before the bagels are ready from rising, bring your 12 cups of water in a pot to boil. Add the sugar and baking soda. Once the water starts boiling, lower temperature just below a simmer. 

~ Working 2 bagels at a time, drop bagels into the simmering water and cook 1 1/2 minutes per side. Use a slotted spoon to gently turn them.

~ Place on a prepared baking sheet. Brush tops with egg wash and sprinkle them with sesame seeds. Bake at 450C for about 15- 20 minutes. Ready when they've reached a nice golden brown color.

* Note:

For the gluten free flour mix, I used Brown rice flour ( 2 cups), Tapioca Flour ( 1/3 cup) and Potato Starch not Potato flour ( 2/3 cup).

Now I thought this recipe was a good start for bagels. Next time I will try proofing the yeast first as opposed to mixing everything together. And I will try using a bit less yeast. And the best part is tweaking the recipe a bit to have fun with it. You could always add seeds to create a multigrain bagel. Try adding a mixture of mustard seeds, pumpkin, sunflower, flax and sesame. Maybe a total of 1/4 cup to start. Or mixing in some frozen blueberries. Or adding some cinnamon and raisins......The possibilities are endless.