Vegan Sourdough Discard whole Wheat Bagels

I have a large amount of affection for whole wheat and whole grain baked goods. That’s why the majority of my sourdough baking series are vegan whole grain recipes, and these whole wheat bagels are no exception! As part of my sourdough routine, I make these bagels with sourdough discard and active dry yeast. They are chewy and slightly sweet, packed with delicious complex flavors.

What you may need:

Clear bowl with lid

Food Scale

Deep and wide soup pot

A slotted wide scoop or a strainer with a handle

Ingredients:

Makes 8 small bagels, 5-6 medium bagels, or 4 “standard” large bagels.

(I often double this recipe to make a 10-12 meduim bagels)

100 g Sourdough Starter

142 g Water

21 g Sugar

1 tsp (g) Active Dry Yeast

178 g Bread Flour

119 g Whole Wheat Flour

6 g Salt

Instructions:

In your mixing bowl, add sourdough discard, warm water, sugar and yeast. Mix everything together. Cover and let yeast proof (bloom) for 10 minutes.

After proofing, you should see some light colored foam on the surface of the water.

To the mixing bowl, add bread flour, whole wheat flour, and salt.

Mix until dough comes together. Dough should be on the drier side, but still needs to hold together.

Kneed lightly until the majority of the flour is hydrated.

Cover the bowl.

Let rise on your counter, or in a warm spot for 90 minutes.

Refridgerate overnight. This is an optional step, but adds complex flavors from cold fermentation.

If you refridgerated your dough, let return closer to room temperature on your counter for an hour

Add plenty of water to your pot, and add 4 or more tbsp of brown sugar. Bring to a boil.

Preheat the oven to 425.

Divide your dough into equal parts, (8, 6, 5, or 4 depending on your size preference. I normally do 5-6).

Roll into balls or logs, and form bagels.

For balls poke a hole in the middle of your dough ball and widen a little.

For logs, join the ends into a circular shape by flattening one end and bringing the other to a thinner point. Wrap the flattened end around the thinner end, pinch and smooth.

Let the bagels sit and rise for 20 minutes.

Prep your baking tray with oil or cornmeal and set aside.

Add bagels to boiling water, boiling on each side for about 30 seconds.

Add boiled bagels to baking tray. Top with whatever prefered toppings you want. (For example: everything but the bagel seasoning, seseme seeds, cinnamon sugar, nutrional yeast, garlic or onion poweder, vegan cheese, or whatever you prefer.)

Bake bagels for for 18-22 minutes or until the tops are lightly browned. (In a cold oven this could take up to 30 minutes)