St. Patrick's Day - Naturally Green Spinach Bagels

Happy St. Patrick's Day!

In my quest to have a little extra green fun to my day today, I decided to make something naturally green. I know more and more people are concerned about adding dyes to their food. But, there are lovely options for bright greens in nature, like spinach!

I know, green food isn't for everyone. These homemade Spinach Bagels get their color from spinach leaves, but do not taste overpoweringly of spinach.

So, how did I create these? First I started by boiling some baby spinach. Just wilt it, you don't want to loose the bright green color.

Then I strained out the leaves and put it into my blender. This recipe calls for 1 1/2 cups of water, so I blended up the spinach and added just enough of the reserved spinach water to make 1 1/2 cups.

I made the dough for these bagels in my bread machine on the dough setting. It is my favorite bread cheat.

My machine calls for wet ingredients first, then flour and then the yeast last. You can make this recipe by hand, or use the order as instructed by your own bread machine.

The finished dough came out this lovely green color. My kids were very impressed at my food coloring skills.

Then I separated out 8 balls of dough and covered them to rise for another hour or so.

Forming the bagel is always the best part!  Just stick your index finger through the middle and give it a twirl. I like to exaggerate the middles a little... the elastic dough will start to come back together as they sit and wait to boil.

Heat up a big pot of water and add non-diastatic malt powder, or you can add molasses to the water instead. At a simmer, boil the bagels for 2 minutes on one side, flip and cook for another minute on the other side.

After they have been boiled. Place them on a baking sheet in the oven for about 20 minutes until they start to turn golden brown on top.

Okay, ready to dive right in and start baking?

Spinach Bagels

You Will Need:

• 1 c. baby spinach
• reserved water, enough to make 1 1/2 c. water
• 4 c. high gluten flour (or bread flour)
• 1 Tbsp. non-diastatic malt powder (or barley malt syrup, or brown sugar)
• 2 tsp. salt
• 1 Tbsp. instant yeast

Fill your bread machine pan in the order suggested by the manufacturer. Select dough cycle and let the machine run. Check the dough after 10 minutes. The dough should be stiff, and all the flour should be incorporated.

Remove the dough from the bread machine and divide into 8 balls. Let these rest for 30 minutes, covered. 

Bring a 2 quarts of water to boil. Put in 2 tablespoons non-diastatic malt powder (brown sugar or barley malt syrup). Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

Working in batches, work with 2 - 3 bagels at a time. Simmer on one side for 2 minutes, then flip and simmer for another minute. Remove the bagel and place on a sheet tray. When all the bagels are done, put them in the oven for 20 minutes, then turn over and bake for an additional 10 - 15 minutes.

Cool on a wire rack and then enjoy! 

And how do I like to enjoy my freshly made bagels? With just a smear of plain cream cheese... and a handful of fresh sprouts on top. Perfect for today and my little obsession with green.

Happy St. Patrick's Day!