Homemade Paleo Bagels Recipe -- Gluten Free, Grain Free, Vegan Option

I haven't had a good bagel in far too long. Ever since going gluten free, it's been hard to get bagels, and when I do, they tend to be the texture of regular bread, just shaped like a bagel. I saw this recipe for gluten free bagels from Kosher Everyday when it was going around my Facebook feed, and it looked awesome, especially since it is grain free and paleo friendly, and suitable for the holiday of Passover. Most paleo recipes using almond flour also use eggs, which make them not suitable for me, but this recipe that I saw only used eggs for an egg wash, which I knew would be optional, so I decided to tweak this recipe.

While the recipe calls for tapioca starch, I didn't have any on hand, but had a lot of potato starch, so attempted to see if it would work. I'll admit, I was scared, because one of the steps involved boiling it in water, and I was sure it would fall apart, since it had no binder... But it worked! 

In place of the egg wash, I decided to use almond milk brushed on, but next time I think I'll leave them off.

The bagels are delicious, everyone in my family loved them!

Can I say they have the exact same texture as regular bagels? Definitely not. But they were definitely better than the previous gluten free bagels I've eaten, and I'd highly recommend them. And they made a delicious cream cheese sandwich.

While the version I made wasn't 100% vegan, you can easily make this vegan by using maple syrup, jaggery syrup, or date syrup instead of the honey.

Other than tree nuts, this recipe is free of the top 8 allergens, so its pretty allergy friendly too.

Homemade Paleo Bagels Recipe -- Gluten Free, Grain Free, Vegan Option

Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups almond flour (this was precisely one 400 gram package of almond meal)
1 cup potato starch or tapioca starch
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons liquid sweetener of choice: honey, jaggery syrup, maple syrup, or date syrup
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2/3 cups warm water
Almond milk or other alternative for egg wash, or actual egg wash
Toppings (optional; this time I used nothing, next time I'll use everything but the bagel seasoning)

Instructions:
1. Mix your almond flour with your starch, baking powder, and salt.

2. Add your sweetener of choice, vinegar, and warm water. Mix thoroughly so it is completely uniform.

3. Wet your hands slightly and divide into 6 equal portions.

4. With damp hands, shape your portions into balls, flatten to a disk, then poke a hole with your finger, and shape into a bagel shape, smoothing as needed.

5. Bring a pot of water to a slow boil. Gently drop in one or two bagels at a time and when they float, remove them with a slotted spoon or spatula. This took me only approximately 30 seconds, so keep an eye out on them.

6. Place on a lined baking tray and bake at 350 for 10 minutes.

7. Remove from oven and brush with your wash of choice, then top with whatever toppings you'll be using, then return to the oven for another 15 to 20 minutes.

8. Let sit for 20 minutes to cool off.

9. Slice open and fill with your favorite bagel fillings. I used homemade cream cheese, tomato slices, purple onion, and onion greens.

Whoops! Guess the camera wasn't straight!

Enjoy!

P.S. I was accused of stealing this recipe. Here is my response.

If you're gluten free, have you ever found a bagel recipe you enjoyed? Does this look like a recipe you'd try?
What is your favorite bagel filling?