PANERA BREAD BAGELS RECIPES

Panera Bread’s product information pages refer to a long proofing time when describing the sour characteristic of the chain’s phenomenal bagels, but there is no mention of how long. After several weeks of trying different approaches to proofing these cinnamon bit–filled bagels, I decided the best solution was to form the bagels and proof them overnight in the cold. The next day the bagels came out of the refrigerator not much bigger, but after sitting for several hours at room temperature they more than doubled in size and had a light sourdough flavor like the original. The cinnamon drops that go into the bagel were also tricky. I needed to come up with a way to make bits of cinnamon/sugar that were crunchy, but not so hard as to break a tooth. I found the best way was to make oven-cooked cinnamon candy bound with cornstarch and milk and tenderized with oil. This sugar mixture is baked in a loaf pan until no longer bubbling, then cooled and shattered into tiny pieces. When the candy is broken up, much of it gets pulverized into dust, which you separate from the crumbs with a sieve. The crumbs are the cinnamon drops used in the bagel, and the cinnamon/sugar powder is used to dust the tops of the bagels just before baking. I also found that kettling (boiling the bagels) with just a tablespoon of sugar in the water produced a browner bagel than kettling with no sugar, so that’s the technique I’m sharing here. Some techniques call for malt in the water, but sugar works just fine and makes the perfectly shiny, blistered crust you see in the photo. Panera Bread has amazing soups too! See if I hacked your favorite here. 

Provided by Todd Wilbur

Total Time 16 hours 25 minutes0S

Prep Time 8 hours 12 minutes30S

Cook Time 8 hours 12 minutes30S

• Ingredients

I found the best way to get good cranberry flavor and light pink color into this clone is to use concentrated cranberry juice found in the frozen food section of your market. First, thaw the juice, then shake the canister before you open it. After you've measured out the 3 tablespoons of concentrate you'll need for this recipe, make the rest of the concentrate into juice and sip it with your freshly baked bagel clones. The most important step for commercial-quality chewy bagels is no secret: a thorough kneading process. Add flour to your hands if the bagels begin to stick while you form them. Any excess flour on the bagels will wash off when you drop them in the boiling water. Boiling the bagels before baking is called "kettling," and it's this step that gives bagels their shiny crust. Find more of your favorite recipes for Panera Bread salads, soups and pastries here.  Source: Top Secret Recipes Unlocked by Todd Wilbur.

Provided by Todd Wilbur

Total Time 1 hours 40 minutes0S

Prep Time 50 minutes0S

Cook Time 50 minutes0S

• Ingredients

Nutrition Facts : Calories 330 calories