These bagels, like many things on this blog, are directly inspired by a GBBO episode. My mom and I were watching an episode from the 2020 season, and they made rainbow bagels. While I saw no reason to go through the rigamarole of dyeing bagel dough five different colors… I wanted to try making homemade bagels! 
These turned out pretty well for a first attempt! I’m not sure how they compare on a scale of store-bought to bagel shop level. They aren’t quite as good as the bagel shop here in town. They’re better than store-bought, but they obviously don’t have any preservatives or anything in them, so they don’t last as long. I’d recommend eating these the day-of or day after you make them, just because they deteriorate faster. But they’re great when they’re fresh!
I’m sure I could get better at these too, I think I let the dough get too dry before shaping them. I want to try using bread flour (I just used all-purpose), because I think that would really amp up the chewiness. I also think I could add more salt to the dough, just because the plain bagel is… pretty plain. But I’m never really a plain bagel kind of gal!
Now that I’m in full-swing for half marathon training, I’ve been trying to find good carb-heavy breakfasts that aren’t just oatmeal. I used to just go with oatmeal before long runs, but it can get a bit boring after a while, and they discontinued my favorite kind of oatmeal. Long run mornings are the only days when I plan breakfast around, “What are the simplest carbs I can consume?” And it’s definitely a change of pace from my usual breakfasts, so even though that’s a simple question, I feel like I have to think about it and plan for it.
But, I’ve found that bagels are a solid option! They’re a bit more hearty than just toast, and you can keep it as a very simple carb by toasting it with peanut butter. 
Or, you can make a breakfast sandwich! A simple sausage, egg, and cheese at home!
And while I don’t think this homemade sausage egg and cheese surpasses the one I can get at a bagel shop, I think there’s a possibility I could get it closer. Maybe I’ll keep making bagels for my long runs until then.
Or… I’ll just keep going to the bagel shop and getting what the pros make!
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Ingredients
For bagels:
- 1 and 1/2 cups warm water (between 100-110°F)
- 2 and 3/4 teaspoons instant or active dry yeast*
- 4 cups bread flour (all-purpose is fine)
- 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar or packed light or dark brown sugar
- 2 teaspoons salt
- coating the bowl: nonstick spray or 2 teaspoons olive oil
- egg wash: 1 egg white beaten with 1 Tablespoon water
- everything bagel seasoning, sesame seeds, whatever bagel flavor you’d like
For Boiling
- 2 quarts water
- 1/4 cup honey
Instructions
- Prepare the dough: Whisk the warm water and yeast together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. Cover and allow to sit for 5 minutes. *If you don’t have a stand mixer, simply use a large mixing bowl and mix the dough with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula in the next step.
- Add the flour, brown sugar, and salt. Beat on low speed for 2 minutes. The dough is very stiff and will look somewhat dry.
- Knead the dough: Keep the dough in the mixer and beat for an additional 6-7 full minutes, or knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 6-7 full minutes. If the dough becomes too sticky during the kneading process, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of flour at a time on the dough or on the work surface/in the bowl to make a soft, slightly tacky dough. Do not add more flour than you need because you do not want a dry dough. After kneading, the dough should still feel a little soft. Poke it with your finger—if it slowly bounces back, your dough is ready to rise. You can also do a “windowpane test” to see if your dough has been kneaded long enough: tear off a small (roughly golfball-size) piece of dough and gently stretch it out until it’s thin enough for light to pass through it. Hold it up to a window or light. Does light pass through the stretched dough without the dough tearing first? If so, your dough has been kneaded long enough and is ready to rise. If not, keep kneading until it passes the windowpane test.
- Lightly grease a large bowl with oil or nonstick spray. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides in the oil. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise at room temperature for 60-90 minutes or until double in size.
- Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Shape the bagels: When the dough is ready, punch it down to release any air bubbles. Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces. (Just eyeball it—doesn’t need to be perfect!) Shape each piece into a ball.
- Press your index finger through the center of each ball to make a hole about 1.5 – 2 inches in diameter. Watch video below for a visual. Loosely cover the shaped bagels with kitchen towel and rest for a few minutes as you prepare the water bath.
- Preheat oven to 425°F (218°C).
- Water bath: Fill a large, wide pot with 2 quarts of water. Whisk in the honey. Bring water to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-high. Drop bagels in, 2-4 at a time, making sure they have enough room to float around. Cook the bagels for 1 minute on each side.
- Using a pastry brush, brush the egg wash on top and around the sides of each bagel. Place 4 bagels onto each lined baking sheet.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, rotating the pan halfway through. You want the bagels to be a dark golden brown. Remove from the oven and allow bagels to cool on the baking sheets for 20 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.