Fresh Blueberry Bagels!

We have a wonderful blueberry patch in our backyard. It's been the source of so many happy memories for our family and for our grandkids. My son-in-law calls the patch our "Scandinavian Garden" - we not only have blueberries, but also red raspberries, currants, elderberries and sour cherries ( I guess he associates berries with Scandinavia/ IKEA  - LOL!) Though the other berries are nice to have and fun to use, to me it's still "the blueberry patch." Last year we had a bumper crop of berries, as my freezer will still attest to.....and now this year's berries are beginning to ripen! I really prefer to use up the previous year's berries before I put any more in the freezer, so I've been serving A LOT of blueberries up lately. I've also had a passion for making bagels and pretzels lately (similar process to make them both), so it seemed to make perfect sense to make blueberry bagels.

It turned out that it certainly was "perfect sense"! I took these in to work on Wednesday and it did not take long for them to disappear. Delish! I took one home with me and toasted it......even more perfect! I hope you'll enjoy this "taste of summer!"

Fresh Blueberry Bagels!

 

1 pkg/Tbsp Red Star Platinum Yeast

1 ¼ Cup warm water

3 ½ Cups unbleached all-purpose flour

2 Tbsp. sugar

1 ½ tsp. salt

1 Cup blueberries, fresh or frozen

Place warm water and yeast in EZ DOH bucket and stir to dissolve yeast. Let rest 1 minute. Add one cup of flour, then additional dough ingredients. EZ DOH-it for 2-3 minutes, or until dough is smooth and soft and all ingredients are incorporated. Just a note – the dough will be very purple- That’s part of the charm/beauty of it!  Remove dough from bucket, spray bucket with cooking spray, “smooth” dough and replace in bucket. Cover and let rise until doubled.

*Note 1: I used frozen berries, which made the dough very cold – I did NOT thaw them. To ensure the dough rising, I placed a pan of warm water under the EZ DOH bucket during the rising stage. Worked fine!

*Note 2: This dough was a little stickier than some, due to the berries. You may add flour, little by little, as you “EZ DOH”-it to take away some of the stickiness. When you handle the dough, you’ll want to have your hands covered with a little flour or cooking spray.

*Note 3: I made the dough the night before. I let it rise on the counter (with the pan of water under it) for 20 minutes, then I tucked the covered bucket in the frig. I placed a small bowl of warm water under it, as I was still a little nervous about the effect of the frozen berries. In the morning, it was perfectly risen. I pulled it out of the frig and let it warm up for about ½ hour, then completed the shaping, etc.

Prepare a baking tray by lining it with parchment and spritzing lightly with cooking spray. Divide the dough into 12 equal parts, forming each one into a ball by cupping your hand over the dough and rolling it on your kitchen surface. Make a hole in the center of each ball and tug on it gently to make a quarter-sized opening. Place the bagels on prepared tray and let rise 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 425. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Boil a few bagels at a time, 1 ½ minutes on each side. Remove from water and drain briefly on a paper towel. Return the bagels to the baking sheet. Bake at 425 for 17-20 minutes. Enjoy!
 

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Fresh Blueberry Bagels!