These gluten free asiago bagels are made in the Starbucks style, with Asiago and Parmesan cheeses. They're soft and fluffy inside, chewy outside.
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These are not chewy on the inside, crispy on the outside New York bagels. It's not like I really take that much pride in being from New York. It's just that … it's what I know. You know? And even though contrary to popular belief we don't really have a ton of great pizza in New York (well, we do in my house, but youknowwhatImean), we do have great bagels.
Even just a couple hours away in other cities in the northeast, like Philly, they just don't know how to make a bagel. Mostly, they make rolls with holes. but a roll with a hole does not a bagel make. The first rule of bagel-making (gluten free bagels or not) is that you gotta boil the bagel. If it isn't boiled first, it's just not a bagel. Full stop.
Boiling bagels before baking them is what makes for a thick and chewy crust during baking. It creates something of a moisture-barrier, and keeps the bagels from rising too much in the oven.
That's part of how they are slightly dense on the inside. But the shorter the boiling time, the thinner the crust and the more they will rise in the oven (so-called “oven spring,” discussed more fully in Gluten Free on a Shoestring Bakes Bread).
The bagel recipes in Bakes Bread are for making true New York Bagels. They're chewy and slightly dense, with a nice thick crust. Bagels. Slice them, toast them, smear them, *sigh* eat them.
But it has come to my attention … that not everyone wants a Real New York Bagel. Some of you would really prefer what you get in, say, Starbucks: a light and fluffy bagel, with a crust, sure, but a thin one.
And the inside? Fluffy as could be. And since I'm at your service, and this is not AllAboutMe, I present to you Super Fluffy Asiago Gluten Free Bagels, just like at Starbucks.
These bagels have more moisture, and the dough is even slightly enriched (true bagels are lean lean lean) with a bit of butter and cheese. Plus, they're boiled more quickly. Look at how fluffy they are inside!
You don't even allow the dough to proof overnight in the refrigerator. How's that for speedy?! For me, even though I work from home, it's still much, much easier to make gluten free bread dough ahead of time and allow it to proof slowly in the refrigerator for a couple days before baking it.
That way, I get that nice, tangy yeast development (remember Bread FAQ#12!), and I don't have to wait around for that first rise. It happens while I'm living the rest of my life. But many of you want more bread doughs that you can make and bake in the very same day.
Can you make the bagels without the cheese? You sure can!
Just leave it out of the dough, and don't sprinkle it on top. ;) One way or another, though, you neeeeeeed to have a REAL gluten free bagel. Those ones they sell in packages in the grocery store? C'mon. They're rolls with holes.
If you don't want to make bagels with our gluten free bread flour, try our recipe for classic gluten free bagels made with an all purpose gluten free flour blend. They're amazing!
Gluten Free Asiago Bagels | Like Starbucks
Equipment
- Stand mixer fitted with dough hook
Ingredients
For the starter
- 1 ¼ cups (175 g) gluten free bread flour (you must use this blend; click thru for full details)
- 1 teaspoon (3 g) instant yeast
- 2 ½ tablespoons (30 g) granulated sugar
- 9 ½ fluid ounces warm water (about 95°F)
For the dough
- 2 cups (280 g) gluten free bread flour plus more for sprinkling (you must use this blend; click thru for full details)
- ⅔ teaspoon (2 g) instant yeast
- 1 teaspoon (6 g) kosher salt
- Starter
- 2 tablespoons (28 g) unsalted butter at room temperature
- 1 ounce finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- Molasses bath for boiling (6 cups water plus 1 tablespoon molasses plus 1 teaspoon kosher salt)
- Egg wash (1 large egg, at room temperature, beaten with1 tablespoon water)
- 6 ounces Asiago cheese grated (or another semi-hard cheese)
Instructions
Make the starter.
- Place all the starter ingredients in a medium-size bowl, and whisk until well combined. The mixture will be thick and shapeless. Cover and set the bowl aside in a warm, draft-free location to rise until doubled (about 40 minutes).
Make the dough.
- Once the starter has finished rising, place the bread flour and yeast in the bowl of your stand mixer, and use a handheld whisk to combine well. add the salt, and whisk to combine.
- Add the risen starter, butter, and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese to the bowl, and mix on low speed with the dough hook until combined. Raise the mixer speed to medium and knead for about 5 minutes. It will be sticky dough, but will become stretchier and appear thinner as the mixer kneads it. Spray a silicone spatula lightly with cooking oil spray, and scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl or proofing bucket large enough for the dough to rise to double its size, and cover with an oiled piece of plastic wrap (or the oiled top to your proofing bucket).
- Place the dough in a warm, draft free location to rise until nearly doubled in size (about 1 1/2 hours).
- To make the dough easier to handle, after it has finished rising, place the sealed dough in the refrigerator to chill for 30 minutes before handling.
Shape the bagels.
- Once the dough has finished its first rise, line a large, rimmed baking sheet with unbleached parchment paper, grease it lightly with cooking oil and set it aside. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth by scraping the dough over on itself using a cake turner or bench scraper, sprinkling with more gluten free bread flour lightly as necessary to prevent sticking.
- Divide the dough into six parts. Shape each piece of dough into a round, and then poke a hole with a well-floured finger vertically into the center of the round dough. Move your finger in a circular motion to widen the hole so that it does not close during proofing.
- Place each piece of bagel-shaped dough on the prepared baking sheet about 2 inches apart, cover with oiled plastic wrap, and set in a warm, draft-free location to rise until nearly doubled in size (about 45 minutes to 1 hour, depending upon the environment).
- About 25 minutes before the dough has finished rising, preheat your oven to 375°F.
Boil the bagels.
- Dissolve 1 tablespoon of molasses and 1 teaspoon of kosher salt in 6 cups of water (approximate measurements are fine here). Bring the mixture to a boil over medium-high to high heat.
- Once the dough has finished rising, place the shaped bagels a few at a time into the boiling bath for only 30 seconds per side.
- Remove the bagels with a strainer and return them to the baking sheet.
Bake.
- Brush the boiled bagels with the egg wash, and sprinkle generously with about 3/4 of the grated Asiago cheese. Repeat with the remaining bagel dough.
- Place the baking sheet in the center of the preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes. Remove the bagels from the oven and quickly sprinkle the remaining Asiago cheese over the nearly-baked bagels. Rotate the baking sheet, return the bagels to the oven and continue to bake until they are golden brown all over and the cheese is melted (about 5 minutes more). To brown the cheese a bit, place it under your oven’s broiler for about 1 minute.
- Allow to cool on the pan briefly before serving.
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Thanks for stopping by!
Hi, I’m Nicole. I create gluten free recipes that really work and taste as good as you remember. No more making separate meals when someone is GF, or buying packaged foods that aren’t good enough to justify the price. At Gluten Free on a Shoestring, “good, for gluten free” just isn’t good enough! Come visit my bio!
Tracey in WA says
Getting ready to make these … I have your Bread book and was wondering if you can double dough recipes? I know in the past it was not suggested but I was wondering with this new method, if it now works?
Nicole Hunn says
You sure can, Tracey! Double away!
Donna B says
Who needs Panera Bread! These are amazing! My husband thought he would never have another real (N.Y.) bagel again when he was diagnosed with celiac 5 yrs ago- thanks Nicole you have brought a big smile to his face! I love GFOS BAKES BREAD!
Nicole Hunn says
Yay! Thanks, Donna! Now I’m smiling, too. :)
Linda says
These look so good. We made your NY bagels a few weeks ago, and they were absolutely delicious! My only problem is that they were slightly ugly – I seemed to destroy their beauty when I put them in the water bath to boil. And the same thing happened when we made soft pretzels (from the Pretzel Roll dough) this weekend. Do you have any special tricks for getting them boiled and still keeping their shape? I thought that I perhaps over-rose the bagels, but I was careful not to do that with the pretzels and still had the same problem. I guess I’m just saying that I’m a klutz and I took your beautiful dough and made it ugly!
Nicole Hunn says
You may have measured your water too heavily, Linda. Try measuring water by weight, not by volume. See the answer to FAQ#21 for details. That would make the dough more fragile. Other than that, I’d say just be careful not to overproof and handle them gently! You can even try removing the plastic wrap for the last 15 minutes of rising so they begin to dry out a weeeeee bit before boiling.
Erin Lowery Baerwaldt says
These little guys are on their second rise right now in my kitchen!! :) I am assuming they should be covered with an oiled piece of plastic during this rise in the warm, draft-free environment, like all the other breads? Wasn’t in the directions this time so i wasn’t sure if they get different treatment. Lol
Nicole Hunn says
Yes, Erin! Thanks for pointing that out! Will modify the recipe. And thanks for jumping in on Facebook. :)
Erin Lowery Baerwaldt says
No problem! :) It is the least I can do. You have the hard job around here!!
Nicole Hunn says
My husband’s office is actually right around the corner from Mozzarelli’s, and we have eaten their takeout many times. I’m afraid I really don’t care for the pizza at all (it just tastes like potatoes to me), but I’m still happy that it’s there so my son has something to eat.
Mare Masterson says
Since we are from NY/NJ area, I am not sure my family would want a bagel like in Starbucks. I do not believe we ever had a bagel from Starbucks. We are real deal people. We are actually food snobs. And, yes, the bagel recipe in the book is real deal GF NY style bagels! My family does not mind the wait for the slow rise in refrigerator because they truly appreciate the outcome! Because everything I have made from Nicole’s recipes is awesome, they no longer question — they just eat and enjoy!
I heart Nicole Hunn!
Donia Robinson says
All I have to do is say, “This is Nicole’s recipe” and my family knows whatever it is will be great!
Nicole Hunn says
You GUYS! Now I’m blushing. :)
Cool Canadian says
Thanks for the recipes, really like them. Please provide a substitute for Expandex or Ultrex . We can not get them in Canada. To import them from a seller in the US, the exchange rate, shipping/handling, and duty ends up being ridiculously expensive, so they are not an option. Please come up with a workable substitute.
Nicole Hunn says
Cool Canadian, if you look at the Gluten Free Bread FAQs that I refer to in the post, I have already found a workaround in the form of Ultratex 3, and it is readily available in Canada online. Many other Canadian readers have been able to find Ultratex 3 quite readily. Here is one such source: http://www.powdertothepeople.ca/collections/shop/products/ultratex-3
Amethystjean says
I was going to make these without the cheese but I am sad to see that I need both an ingredient I can’t eat (whey protein) and one that I don’t know how to get (expandex) because these look awesome.
Donia Robinson says
I, too, can’t eat dairy. Nicole discusses dairy-free protein powder options in her book. (Question #9:
https://glutenfreeonashoestring.com/about/gluten-free-bread-troubleshooting-faqs/)
And
for getting Expandex or Ultratex 3 (which sound scary, but are readily
available online in many countries), see Question 16:
https://glutenfreeonashoestring.com/about/gluten-free-bread-troubleshooting-faqs/
There is a link in that answer to the Resources page as well.
Brad G says
Btw, Mozarelli’s on 23rd Street (www.mozzarellis.com/) has great GF pizza when you don’t want to make it yourself or if you’re in the hood.
Hauteclaire.Stassen says
Nicole, I don’t think I tell you enough that I love you in a completely non-creepy way.
Nicole Hunn says
How could that be creepy at all, Hauteclaire? ;)
Adrienne says
You are a miracle worker! These look amazing!
Nicole Hunn says
Thanks, Adrienne!
Alexis S. says
Oh my goodness, I didn’t realize the bagel recipe in your new book is for New York style bagels. We lived in Rochester, NY for 2 years when I was in elementary school, and the only thing I remember about living there is the bagel store with the killer bagels, and eating them with tons of whipped butter. I guess I am going to be making bagels soon! Thanks Nicole!
Nicole Hunn says
Alexis, as far as I’m concerned New York Bagels are the only real bagels at all! Oddly enough, years and years ago I went to a friend’s wedding in Rochester and had bagels, and they weren’t half bad!
Mare Masterson says
Alexia, the bagels in the book are to die for! My gluten eating family is requesting their favorites. I will have to get a batch proofing tonight!
Donia Robinson says
Dairy be darned. I am going to have to eat one of these.
Nicole Hunn says
I don’t mean to sway you, Donia, but … I’m 99% sure they’re worth it. ;)
Donia Robinson says
That’s the trouble. I totally believe I can live without gluten, but dairy, oh dairy. Why don’t you love me back?
Jennifer S. says
they so are ‘rolls with holes’ and I hate them so much. Thank you for these recipes – you’ve changed the quality of our lives!!! love you!
Nicole Hunn says
Thanks, Jennifer!!
SaraCMYK says
I bake and this recipe is still super confusing.
Nicole Hunn says
Sara, I’m sorry you’re having trouble following the recipe. Baking yeast bread can be confusing at first, but if you read through the recipe thoroughly, take it step by step and trust the process, it can become really fun and rewarding.
Jennifer S. says
Also watch the videos on utube, they help a ton.
Danelle says
Rolls with Holes….that gave me a good chuckle this morning…and I needed it.
Thanks Nicole…They look great !
Nicole Hunn says
Thanks, Danelle!!