chewy pumpkin spice bagels
Little beats a good bagel sandwich for breakfast or lunch, especially on a homemade pumpkin bagel.
Happy Thursday, kids! Today, we’re whipping up a batch of Chewy Pumpkin Spice Bagels. These fun little guys are the perfect bread to have on hand for hearty autumn sandwiches, or just as vessels for your favorite pumpkin spice cream cheese or smashed avocado.
I would know, because I’m a big fan of avocado and boiled eggs on bagels for lunch lately, and these are my current stash of carbs or the job.
Bagels are not difficult to make, although they may seem intimidating at first due to the unique steps involved. Quite honestly, I find the molding and poking and prodding and boiling to be rather meditative. The result ain’t so bad either: chewy, lightly spiced little nuggets that you can proudly say you made all by yourself.
I don’t know about you, but I like that little bit of validation and vote of self-confidence.
Bae-gel
Bagel dough is a yeast dough, not unlike a loaf of bread. Into your mound, we mix in pumpkin puree, spices, and a touch of brown sugar to get everything going and tasting stupendous. And yes, these are fully vegan!
First, proof your yeast in a mix of warm water and brown sugar, in a big mixing bowl, for about 5-10 minutes until foamy. Then, whisk in your pumpkin puree. Please for fuck’s sake do not buy pumpkin pie filling unless you want your sweet tooth to fall out.
Attach your dough hook and knead in flour, cinnamon, ginger, clove, and salt. Let the mixer do it’s swirly magic until a nice firm but tacky dough ball forms. This may take about 10-15 minutes. If the dough is sticking to the bottom and walls of the bowl, add flour 1 tablespoon at a time until it pulls away from the sides easily.
Grease a clean bowl (or clean the bowl you just used, lazy ass) and flip the dough in the oil so both sides are coated. Cover with plastic or a tea towel and let rise in a warm, draft-free area until doubled, about an hour or so. Or, you can cover and fridge-proof overnight. Just be sure to let the dough come to room temperature for about an hour or so before trying to form your bagels.
Ring Around the Rosie
When your dough is risen and puffy, punch it down and divide in half. Then, divide each half into four roughly equal-sized balls. You can measure them if you want, or just rawdog it like I do. Builds character.
Line two baking sheets with parchment. Poke a hole into a ball of dough and pinch a ring-shape out of it, until it looks like, well, a bagel. Your bagels will be roughly 4-5 inches in diameter. Place on the baking sheet and repeat with the remaining dough balls. Cover and let rest about 10 minutes while you…
…Boil water.
That transition was VERY anticlimactic. Sorry if I got you excited needlessly.
Bring a big pot of water to a simmer. Not a rolling boil. An intense boil will cause the bagels to wrinkle and deflate in the oven. Once the water is at a nice smooth tumble, stir in a tablespoon of baking soda. This provides the smooth and crisp exterior we all love in a good bagel.
Drop two bagels in at a time and simmer for 30 seconds, then flip and simmer 30 seconds more. Place back on the baking sheets and, once all the bagels are pre-boiled, dab any excess moisture from around them. This limits the amount of steaming in the oven and ensures a more even, firmer texture.
Bake at 450 for 12-15 minutes until the bagels are golden and hollow when knocked from the bottom. Use an oven mitt if you’re handling the hot bagels. Move to a wire rack to finish cooling.
What’s next? Slice, toast (or don’t, if you’re a purist), and slather on your favorite toppings. Some peanut butter and banana…yo, that sounds good about now. Perhaps my pre-dinner snack.
I recommend storing these in the fridge, in a bag or tupperware, for maximum longevity (about a week). They freeze extremely well too, for up to 3 months, and can be toasted right from the chiller. I always find that homemade breads don’t toast as easily so I always crank up my setting to get the correct crunch.
Enjoy, kids!
Tried this recipe out? Leave a rating and comment below with your thoughts, and don’t forget to come say hi on Instagram and show me what you made!
Pumpkin spice and everything nice (for brunch):
Cream Cheese Swirled Pumpkin Bread
Baked Pumpkin Sticky Bun French Toast
chewy pumpkin spice bagels
Ingredients
- 1 cup warm water
- 3 tbsp dark brown sugar
- 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast (1 packet)
- 3 – 3 1/4 cup bread flour
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree, at room temperature
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp ginger
- 1/2 tsp cloves
- 1 tsp kosher salt
- 1 tbsp baking soda
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the water, brown sugar, and yeast. Let sit 5-10 minutes until the yeast bubbles and becomes foamy.
- Whisk in the pumpkin puree. Using the dough hook attachment on your mixer, add in 3 cups of the flour, the cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and salt. Knead until a soft, tacky, but firm dough forms, about 5-10 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon of flour at a time, as needed, if the dough is too sticky.
- Grease a clean bowl and toss in the dough ball, flipping to coat both sides lightly with oil. Cover with plastic wrap or a tea towel and let rise in a warm, draft-free area until doubled, about 60-90 minutes.
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line two large baking sheets with parchment.
- Punch down the dough and divide in half, then divide each half into four roughly equal-sized balls. You will have 8 balls, then. That's a lot of balls. Roll into a neat little sphere and poke a thumb into the center, then stretch the ball into a doughnut shape with the center hole around 1 inch in diameter. Lay onto the baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining dough balls. Cover and let rest 10 minutes.
- Bring a large pot of water to a simmer. Stir in the baking soda. Drop 2 bagels into the water and simmer for 30 seconds. With a slotted spoon, flip and simmer 30 more seconds. Remove the bagels from the water and set on the baking sheets. Repeat with remaining bagels.
- Dab any excess moisture off the bagels and the parchment. Bake for 12-15 minutes until lightly golden and puffy. Transfer to a wire rack and let cool.
