Successfully making Parmesan Sprouted Whole Wheat Bagels inspired a happy dance at my house. A bona fide, get your hands up, twist and shout, tickled pink sort of dance in the middle of the kitchen.
Why so giddy?
Well, as any parent can attest, making healthy food choices is a great idea until you try to replace a favorite. Favorites are harder to let go of and our daughter loves the bagels at Costco, specifically the Parmesan bagels. It is the only white bread I buy, even though I am still riddled with guilt every time she eats one.
Making dietary changes takes effort and time; old (bad) habits die hard. Even with a health crisis like the one we faced a couple years ago, we were careful to include our kids (those still at home) in the education process of our dietary conviction rather than force it on them. With both of them at an age far beyond the “because I said so” phase, their transition has been gradual, still allowing some things for them we would no longer eat … like Costco bagels.
Eating something for the sake of it being healthy has never worked at our house. If it does not pass the taste test, no one is going to touch it. I knew anything dense or chewy was not going to satisfy. I had to produce a bagel to make us both happy—sprouted grain for me; light, soft, crunchy when toasted, for her. No door stops. No seeds. Lots of Parmesan.
Bolstered with confidence from successful Sprouted Wheat Burger Buns and more than a dozen bagel recipes for reference, it was time to dive in. The only thing really holding me back was the idea of investing more than 3-4 hours, I needed bagels I could turn out in an afternoon. Every bagel recipe involved boiling the bagels, but I just didn’t want to mess with it, so I opted for steam instead, the same concept used to make French baguettes.
The steam worked, the pieced together recipe ideas worked, the mounds of Parmesan worked, it all worked!
Oh, the intoxicating aroma that spread through the house as the Parmesan melted over the bagels in the oven! All I could do was sit in front of my oven door watching the dough capture every morsel of cheese as it baked. When my husband and daughter walked in the door, they knew it too … there was something delicious going on in the kitchen and they wanted in on it.
She toasted.
She tasted.
She approved!
Let the dancing ensue.
The only thing that would make these bagels any better is if I had taken the time for homemade cream cheese like my blogging friend, John. I assure you, his cream cheese recipe is on my agenda for the next batch.
Parmesan Sprouted Wheat Bagels
Ingredients
- 2 cups warm water -- 110°-115°
- 1 1/2 tablespoons active dry yeast
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 5 cups sprouted whole wheat flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg white -- lightly beaten
- 2 cups Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese -- shredded
- Olive oil
Instructions
- Dissolve yeast in warm water and honey in a stand mixer or a large bowl; let stand for 5 minutes. Stir in half the flour, salt, and whole egg until well blended. Let rest for 20 minutes.
- In a stand mixer with a paddle or flat beater, mix in the remaining flour, up to 5 cups, allowing the mixer to run for 4-5 minutes, scraping the bowl as needed. The dough should clean the sides of the bowl as it forms a shaggy dougn. Turn dough onto a floured surface and knead for one or two turns to form a ball.
- Oil a bowl with olive oil, place dough in bowl and turn over so that oiled surface is face-up.
- Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and then a towel, and let it rise in a warm spot (above 70°) for 1 hour, or until nearly doubled in bulk. (The oven, with the oven light ON is a great place to let the dough rise if the room is cool.)
- Line two baking sheets with parchment paper and create 6 small circles of Parmesan cheese on each sheet for the bagels to rest on--this will create a cheese crust on the bottom side of the bagel. Make sure the circles are far enough apart so the bagels do not touch when rising.
- With oiled hands, punch down dough and divide it into 12 pieces on a lightly floured surface (a kitchen scale can be helpful to make sure they are even).
- Shape each piece into a round, smooth ball, then punch thumb through middle of dough and stretch to create a 1 1/2" hole in the middle. Place bagel on top of prepared circle of Parmesan and repeat with remaining dough.
- Once all the bagels are formed, brush egg white on all exposed sides and sprinkle with remaining cheese. Don't worry about the cheese falling in the hole or any cheese that falls on the pan. Just gently push it up next to each bagel (the bagel will "grab" it as it rises and bakes).
- Allow bagels to rise for 20-30 minutes in a warm place away from drafts, or cover with a lightweight smooth towel or tented aluminum foil.
- Preheat the oven to 425° and position an oven rack in the lower third of the oven (approximately the third position from the bottom in a seven rack oven) and one in the lowest position.
- Pour 2 cups of boiling water in a shallow pan and place on the lowest rack of the oven. Steam will help the crust have the desired "pull" and texture of bagels traditionally boiled in water before baking.
- Bake the bagels on the rack above the steam pan for 5 minutes uncovered, then tent with aluminum foil and continue baking 12-15 minutes until light-golden in color.
- This will keep the bagels from becoming too browned to toast at a later time. If serving all the bagels right away without toasting, the foil is not needed.
- Remove from oven and let cool on the pan for 10-15 minutes. Remove from pan and cool completely on wire racks until ready to slice and serve or freeze.
Notes
Nutrition
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Mya Burgoon says
Why not boil them? I love the texture boiling gives a bagel, will this work if I do that step?
Judy Purcell says
Sprouted wheat responds differently than regular all-purpose flour, so I would recommend trying to boil one or two as a test and see what you think. If you do, let me know how it goes!
Tammy says
I love these bagels! Thank you so much for sharing your recipe. I am wondering if you have made a pumpkin version? I am going to try today using your recipe as the base I hope it turns out as good as the original!
Thanks again for sharing.
Janet Levy says
My go-to bagel recipe includes an overnight cold rise with the already formed bagels. This is very convenient as I can get the bulk of the work done the night before and expend a minimal amount of time boiling and baking the next morning before breakfast.
Have you tried an overnight cold rise using this recipe? If so, how did it work out and how would you recommend proceeding?
Judy Purcell says
Hi Janet, thanks for asking. I have not tried a cold rinse with this recipe. When developing the recipe I wanted to avoid the steps of rinsing or boiling before baking, you can simply let them rise and then bake. The soft characteristics of wheat flour don’t produce the same “chew” to the exterior as white flour, so I don’t think the rinse or boiling would work as well. Let me know if you have any other questions and please let me know how the recipe turns out for you. 🙂
Dani says
I LOVE this recipe and will be trying it this afternoon. I too cringe every time my boys want to have a bagel for breakfast! Will the recipe work with plain Whole Wheat flour or Whole Wheat pastry flour? I usually buy in bulk and have about 50 lbs to use up before I go on the search for Sprouted whole wheat flour! Thank you!
Judy Purcell says
Hi Dani! Oh, I am sorry I didn’t respond before you planned to make them … Yes, I would imagine WW Flour or WW pastry flour would work as well, though you may adjust the liquid if you find the dough too dry. It took a couple of batches for me to get used to the dough and playing with it a little. Please, let me know how they turn out for you. I’d love to have feedback! 🙂
Dani says
Judy,
The bagels turned out GREAT! I think the plain whole wheat may have made them slightly ‘heavier’ but they tasted divine. Now I can feel good about the bagel request for breakfast! Thank you for all your effort and posting such wonderful recipes. It is so helpful to know that others are trying and/or worrying about what their children are eating on a day to day basis. Thank you again and have a blessed Thanksgiving!!
Judy Purcell says
Dani, thank you so much for letting me know, the feedback is so helpful and I am so pleased you liked them! 🙂 Have a wonderful Thanksgiving!
Elsa says
I’ve never used sprouted flour, but I need to give it a try. I keep seeing it pop up here and there and now I’m interested. The bagels look amazing and I love that they go right into the oven without any extra steps. Thanks for sharing! 🙂
Barb Bamber says
Oh… this is just something else, I can’t believe you’ve made these in your own kitchen! They do really look like something from a professional bakery:) I agree, with John’s cream cheese.. there’d be no stopping the two of you!!
Judy Purcell says
Thanks Barb, I appreciate you saying that. I really am not a baker, I much prefer to cook, so to have these turn out so well really did feel like something else. Only problem is I haven’t been able to stop thinking about that cream cheese! 🙂
sportsglutton says
Completely intrigued by this recipe Judy, as I’d never though of incorporating parm with bagels. Sounds like a winner though!
Judy Purcell says
I think you’d really enjoy it, Jed. As you can see in the photo, no need to be shy about the parmesan. 😉
Caroline says
Oh my gosh, these sound amazing, Judy! I’m a huge bagel fan…and then you go and add Parmesan!? That’s just cruel. 😉
Judy Purcell says
Thanks Caroline, the parmesan really does take it over the top! 🙂
ChgoJohn says
I made bagels once and the difference between those that I made and store-bought was unbelievable. Yours, with the parmesan cheese, must taste really good. I need to make these! Thanks for mentioning my cream cheese. I hope you enjoy it when you make it as much as we do. 🙂
Judy Purcell says
Your homemade bagels and cream cheese inspired me to try, and yes, the parmesan is wonderful. 🙂
Hotly Spiced says
What incredible looking bagels. I love bagels and yours look so amazing. What a great flavour they must be with the parmesan on them xx
Judy Purcell says
Thank you Charlie, parmesan is definitely our favorite flavor — smell so amazing in the toaster too!
Sammie says
oh wow, a bagel well done! Rose so beautifully! It must have tasted pretty delicious eh? hehe.. 🙂 Parmesan must have added a great flavour to it!
Judy Purcell says
Thanks, Sammie, for saying so. It was delicious, even the neighbor is asking for more!
Nami | Just One Cookbook says
Wow, great looking bagels! I’m guilty – I buy Costco bagels once in a while… :/ I wish I can bake bagels on my own because it’s one of my favorite food. Homemade must be really good. Your pictures prove it so. I can totally imagine when these are out of the oven. Thank you for sharing – definitely want to make it one day. No more Costco stuff! =)
Judy Purcell says
Thanks Nami, I’m glad to hear someone can relate to our Costco bagel dilemma. 🙂 I hadn’t made homemade before this recipe, but it was easy enough that I’m making another batch today. It was hard to wait to cut one when they came out of the oven, I’d been smelling them and was ready to eat.