We first discovered Alanna of Planks, Love and Guacamole on Instagram when others were raving about this foodie, her photography and her recipes. The second we clicked on her handle we completely understood why – I mean, Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins, Zoodles with Cashew Cream Sauce, Death by Chocolate Cake Pancakes. The list of drool inducing recipes goes on and on. Alanna defies paleo-creativity in the kitchen.
Not going to lie, I was kind of sitting on the edge of my seat to see what Alanna would come with when we scheduled her for a guest post. And as if tapped into my cravings she went and shared not only her bagel recipe, with five flavor variations, but a recipe for APPLE CINNAMON BAGEL BREAD PUDDING.
I will be planning a brunch in the very near future to sample this bread pudding creation as soon as humanely possible. Enjoy!
♥♥♥
The main reason the paleo lifestyle found me was my son. It’s a long story, but essentially my son was dairy-sensitive as a nursling, and was so sensitive and miserable that he had colitis at 4 months old and would spit up brown, blood tinted milk. It took me a little longer to realize he was also sensitive to gluten.
Cutting the dairy out of my diet created a brand new baby – it was wonderful to finally be able to enjoy him and all of his happiness without always being fussy and gassy. But that was only one part of the puzzle. He still had bad eczema and this continued on through toddlerhood.
At two-years-old we lived in Long Beach, NY around the corner from a bagel shop. Not any bagel shop, probably the best bagel shop! We would get bagels once or twice a week and he was so obsessed! That same summer he was getting sick over and over again. One ear infection after another. It seemed like everytime he was getting better, he’d get sick again. High fevers, runny nose and cough were becoming the norm. This continued from around June all the way until December. Something was wrong.
Working with our chiropractor and holistic pediatrician, we decided to really clean up his diet and eliminate all gluten, refined sugar and most grains. We basically went full Paleo. All of a sudden the eczema cleared up, and most importantly he stopped getting sick. In fact, he hasn’t had an ear infection in two years and has only had maybe one or two colds since that time. Now, I’m not blaming the bagels, it’s just that this was ironically the same time that we started to go full paleo.
But he didn’t forget those bagels! All that poor boy talked about was the “bagew stowe!” I would even have to take alternative routes to bypass the store! When summer was over, I told him that the bagel stores close for the winter. I felt horrible lying to him, but he absolutely could not eat even one more of those glutinous doughy eczema balls!
This recipe was for him. The first time I made these, it was actually a complete accident. One of the best accidents ever! I was working on a focaccia recipe, and pulled the pan of bread out of the oven, took one bite and immediatley said to myself, THIS IS BAGEL DOUGH! It was dense and chewy and I literally felt like I was biting into a bagel. And I’m from Long Island, we have the best bagels in the world here, I know what a bagel is supposed to taste like! Right then I said screw the focaccia, I need to roll this dough into bagels! So I remade the dough, rolled bagels and boiled them just like traditional bagels are made, and out came the most perfect little bagels!
My oldest son is 4 now and he’s a Waldorf boy and they make bread once a week in class. It’s really nice, they actually grind wheat and churn butter, but he just can’t have the gluten. So I send these grain free bagels in often for him. My youngest loves them too, there’s nothing like a hard bagel for teething.
There are so many flavor variations you can create from this recipe. I’ve listed a few but go ahead and throw whatever you like in them! I prefer mine toasted, but it’s not necessary. If you are making them in advance, however, they get hard very fast and will need to be toasted.
At the bottom you will find my recipe for Apple Cinnamon Bagel Bread Pudding. I created this recipe as a make ahead holiday dish and it is really delicious. You can make and assemble the whole thing the night before and just pop it in the oven in the morning. It’s the ultimate comfort food and my family loves it! Serve it with some whipped cream or caramel sauce for a real indulgence.
Ingredients
- 2/3 cup tapioca flour
- 1/3 cup almond flour
- 1/4 cup coconut flour
- 2 Tbsp arrowroot starch/flour
- 2 Tbsp coconut sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 cup water
- 2 Tbsp olive oil
- 1 egg *see below for egg-free variation
- 1 1/2 quarts water
- 2 Tbsp coconut sugar
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1 egg, lightly beaten + splash of water
- -Cinnamon raisin swirl
- Fold 1 tbsp ground cinnamon and 1/2 cup raisins into the dough at the end.
- Top with coconut sugar after egg wash.
- -Bacon and onion
- Add 1 slice cooked, crumbled bacon per bagel into the dough at the end
- Top with dehydrated onion flakes after egg wash.
- -Everything
- Top with coarse salt, poppyseeds, sesame seeds, dried onion and dried garlic after egg wash.
- -Chocolate chip
- Fold 1/2 cup chocolate chips into the dough at the end.
- Top with coconut sugar after egg wash.
- -Double chocolate chip
- Fold 1 tbsp cocoa powder and 1/2 cup chocolate chips into the dough at the end.
- Top with coconut sugar after egg wash.
- -Other ideas: rosemary and sea salt, cranberry and orange, pumpkin spice, fig and onion, lemon poppyseed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or a silpat.
- Fill a medium sized saucepan with about 1 1/2 quarts of water. Add coconut sugar and salt and set heat on high to bring to boil.
- To a large mixing bowl, add all dry ingredients.
- To a small bowl, add wet ingredients. Lightly beat to combine.
- Add the wet to the dry. Mix to combine.
- Fold in any add-ins last. (like raisins, chocolate chips)
- Use hands to form bagels: make balls about 3 Tbsp in size, flatten, then poke a hole with finger and shape to form mini bagel. Tip: They don't have to be perfect, just don't make them too big. I have found the best texture to come from smaller bagels.
- Boil bagels: place 3 bagels at a time to boiling water. Once they float to the top, wait 10 seconds then remove with a slotted spoon and place on parchment lined cookie sheet. This will be done in 3 batches.
- Use a pastry brush to brush egg wash on each bagel. Sprinkle with toppings.
- Bake for 25 mins, until slightly golden.
- Allow to cool. Slice and serve or toast.
Ingredients
- Single batch of cinnamon raisin bagels
- 1/2 cup coconut sugar
- 2 eggs
- 1 cup unsweetened full fat full-fat, coconut milk
- 2 Tbsp butter (sub ghee or coconut oil)
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 cup peeled apples, diced (about 1 apple)
- 1/3 cup pecans, crushed
- Triple batch of cinnamon raisin bagels
- 1 1/2 cups coconut sugar
- 6 eggs
- 3 cups unsweetened full fat full-fat, coconut milk
- 6 Tbsp butter (sub ghee or coconut oil)
- 1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
- 2 tsp vanilla extract
- 3 cups peeled apples, diced (about 2 apples)
- 1 cup pecans, crushed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350F and butter or oil the baking dish. Use a bread pan for 4-serving size, or an 8 x10 baking dish for the 12-serving size. Position oven rack in the center.
- Cube bagels and place them in the baking dish.
- Heat a medium sized sauce pan on medium heat and heat butter.
- Sauté apples and pecans in butter until apples are tender.
- While the apples and pecans are cooking, take out a large mixing bowl. Add eggs, coconut milk, vanilla, coconut sugar, and cinnamon; whisk together until combined.
- Once apples are tender, pour the whole apple, pecan, butter mixture evenly on top of the bagel bread.
- Pour the egg mixture on top of the bread.
- Place the baking dish in the refrigerator over night.
- The next morning, bake in the oven for 50 minutes for 4-serving size or 2 hours for 12-serving size, until set.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool for at least 20 minutes before slicing.
[author] [author_image timthumb=’on’]http://paleoparents.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/unnamed-2.jpg[/author_image] [author_info]Alanna Figueira has a love for clean eating and enjoys experimenting in the kitchen for her two food sensitive children. She founded Planks, Love and Guacamole, a blog for recipes to create a sustainable paleo lifestyle without missing the comfort of traditional meals. For more recipes, ideas, and her ebooks, you can find Alanna on: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Pinterest[/author_info] [/author]