Cherry Vanilla Bagels

I saw a recipe for theses bagels a while back and immediately pinned it. I have never come across a bagel that had dried cherries and vanilla flavor in it. Seeing as cherries are one of my favorite fruits I knew I had to make these bagels.

I planned on making them several times, but never made them. It could have been they are a two day process and at night I would forget or be too tired. Either way I never got around to making them. Then one day my husband and I happen to be at Panera and they had a Cherry Vanilla Bagel and it reminded me of the recipe I had waiting. So after eating the most delicious bagel, I vowed to make the recipe. It took me a few more months before I got around to making the bagels, but I have to say the two day process is totally worth it and I wish I had made them much sooner.

These bagels are full of plump tart cherries with a vanilla flavor. The outside of the bagel has a slight crisp to it while the inside is nice and chewy.

Cherry Vanilla Bagels

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 1/4 cups + 2 tablespoons lukewarm water (90-100º F)
• 3 1/2- 4 cups (16-22 ounces) unbleached bread flour
• 3 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup dried cherries, chopped
• cornmeal
• 1 tablespoon baking soda

Directions:

1. Stir the honey, yeast and salt into the lukewarm water.
2. In the bowl of a stand mixer, with the dough hook attached, add in 3 1/2 cups flour, brown sugar, honey, vanilla extract and water mixture.
3. Mix on the lowest speed until the dough comes together, about 2-3 minutes.
4. Add in the cherries with 2 teaspoons of flour to help the cherries knead in better.
5. Increase the speed to medium and knead until the dough is smooth, satiny and forms a stiff ball, about 5-6 minutes. Add in more flour as needed. The dough should be hydrated and not dry. If dough seems dry add in a few drops of water.
6. While the dough is kneading, cover a baking sheet with parchment paper and sprinkle with cornmeal.
7. When dough is ready, immediately divide the dough into 8 equal pieces, about 4-4.5 ounces per piece.
8. Roll each piece of dough into a round ball. Poke a hole in the middle of the dough ball with your thumb and gently rotate rotate your thumb around the hole to widen the hole. Try to make the dough an even thickness all the way around.
9. Place the bagel on the prepared baking sheet leaving 2 inches of space in between the bagels.
10. Lightly mist the bagels with cooking spray.
11. Cover the bagels with two layers of plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.
12. 1 1/2 hours before you are ready to bake the bagels, remove them from the refrigerator.
13. Place the oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the oven to 500º F.
14. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and slowly sprinkle in the baking soda.
15. Gently drop the bagels into the boiling water, only dropping 2-3 at a time. You do not want the bagel to touch each other and will need room to flip the bagels. Flip the bagels after 30 seconds. After another 30 seconds remove the bagels with a slotted spoon and transfer to a wire rack to drain. I placed a towel under the rack to catch the water.
16. If needed sprinkle the parchment paper lined baking sheet with more cornmeal.
17. Remove the bagels from the wire rack and place on the parchment paper.
18. Bake for 5 minutes and rotate the pan.
19. Lower the heat to 450º F.
20. Bake for an additional 5-7 minutes or until golden brown.
21. Transfer the bagels to a wire cooling rack and let cool for 15 minutes.
22. Store the bagels in a sealed container at room temperature up to 3 days.
23. To freeze the bagels wrap them in plastic wrap and then aluminum foil or place in a freezer bag. The bagels will keep for about 1 month in the freezer.

Enjoy!!!

Notes:
My baking sheet was big enough to fit all 8 bagels, depending on the size of your baking sheet, you may need 2.

Nutrition Facts
Servings: 8
Amount Per Serving
Calories: 302
Total Fat		0g
Saturated Fat		0g
Polyunsaturated Fat		0g
Monounsaturated Fat		0g
Trans Fat		0g
Cholesterol		0mg
Sodium		911.4mg
Potassium		3.9mg
Total Carbohydrates		63.9g
Dietary Fiber		0.4g
Sugars		16.2g
Protein		8.5g
Vitamin A 8.8% Vitamin C 0%
Calcium 0.6% Iron 12.6%
*Nutritional information will vary depending on the brands you use.

*Adapted from Gather for Bread.