Rainbow Bagels

Close-up photo of a rainbow bagel, highlighting its vibrant swirl of colors and texture.

4.78 from 9 votes

Taste the rainbow! Create a colorful culinary masterpiece with Paul Hollywood's Rainbow Bagels - a fun and unique baking challenge.

Prep Time1 15

Cook Time30

Total Time1 45

Servings:

Calories: 239kcal

Author: Laura

Equipment

Nordic Ware Natural Aluminum Commercial Baker's Half Sheet (2 Pack), Silver
12 Color Cake Food Coloring Set, Nomeca Food Grade Vibrant Food Color Liquid Dye Tasteless for Baking, Icing, Decorating, Fondant, Cooking, Slime Making DIY Supplies Kit - .35 Fl. Oz (10 ml) Bottles
SMARTAKE 200 Pcs Parchment Paper Baking Sheets

Ingredients

3 cups bread flour
1 1/4 tsp rapid rise yeast--see notes if you have regular yeast!
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp salt
240 Mils water
food coloring gel
1 teaspoon baking soda

Instructions

put the dry ingredients in the bowl of a mixer
add 3/4 of the water and run the mixer with the dough hook to make a very rough dough
slowly add the remaining water until the flour is mixed in
run the mixer on low 2-3 minutes until a smooth dough is formed
weigh the dough and divide it evenly into 5 balls, cover them loosely
lightly grease 5 bowls to put the finished dough in
working with one dough at a time add a couple of dots of yellow gel to the dough fold it over, knead until the color is incorporated
add more color to the dough until you get a nice vibrant yellow
put it in the greased bowl and cover it loosely
repeat with the remaining dough balls making orange, red, blue, and green dough
let rise in their covered bowls until doubled in size
lightly dust the counter space with flour
roll out the red ball to a 5x8 rectangle, set it aside
roll out the orange piece and stack it on top of the red
then roll out the yellow, green, and finally blue, stacking them on top of the pile
then use a sharp knife to cut the pile in half lengthwise, then cut each of those halves in thrids so you get 6 strips for bagels
roll each strip in the opposite direction from itself to get a twist stretching it slightly as well to get a 10 1/4 inch strip, loop it around, pinch the ends together into a bagel shape
line a baking sheet with parchment lay the bagels on the tray
when the bagels are shaped cover or put in a proving bag, let them rise in a warm place for 20 minutes or until puffy
while they're rising preheat the oven to 395˚
and also set a deep frying pan full of water over medium-high heat and bring to a simmer
when the bagels are done rising whisk in the 1 teaspoon baking soda
gently lift a bagel off the tray and slip it in the boiling water
cook 30 seconds on each side
you can cook 2-3 at a time if you have room
once each bagel has cooked for 30 seconds on each side remove it from the water and put it on a fresh baking sheet with yet another sheet of parchment paper on it
once ALL the bagels have been boiled place the baking sheet in the oven and bake 25-30 minutes or until the bagels a lightly browned (hard to tell with the colors) and feel set when you poke them
cool and serve!

Notes

If you don't have rapid rise yeast just take a small portion of the water and pour it over the yeast to soften it up, let it sit for a few minutes. You can add a little flour to the water too but I don't find it to be necessary. Then add that water to the flour first, and some of the plain water called for in the recipe.

Nutrition