Sunday, October 19, 2014

Cranberry Walnut Power Bagels - Grain Free & Low Carb


Yesterday I did a lot of cranberry baking. One of the items I made was a fresh cranberry and walnut version of "power bagels" that I used to love eating at Einstein's Bros Bagels before I created my own grain free recipe for them. I usually add dried fruit to them with seeds (an antioxidant blend I find at Costco). I wanted to see how they would work using fresh cranberries in place of the dried fruits since I love their tart tangy flavor and we're at the beginning of cranberry season. I really liked the tart fresh cranberry flavor of this version. Their a little more tart than the dried fruit version even after I bumped up the sweetener a bit, but I like them that way. If you prefer yours a little sweeter, you can add a bit of stevia to the batter to your liking. I enjoyed one for breakfast this morning spread with cream cheese and topped with my fresh Cranberry Orange Sauce that I used as the "jam." It was complete cranberry heaven. 

I've also been working on a couple of other projects as well this weekend. I absolutely loved the one I created today and will share it with you later this week. I snapped a few photos of my Cranberry Walnut Power Bagels below as well as posted the recipe. Enjoy!






Cranberry-Walnut Power Bagels

Ingredients:

1/4 cup coconut flour, sifted

1-1/4 cup blanched almond flour
1/2 cup ground chia seeds
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
1/2 cup granular Swerve Sweetener
4 large eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup chopped fresh or frozen cranberries
3 tablespoons melted coconut oil 

Directions:


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  


In a medium sized bowl, mix first 9 ingredients together with a whisk to help break up any lumps.


In a small bowl, whisk eggs, buttermilk, vanilla, vinegar, and 
cranberries together. Stir wet mixture into dry ingredients and mix well; stir in coconut oil and combine until a dough is formed. Dough will be thick and slightly sticky. 

Lightly spray a 6-well mini cake pan (for thicker bagels) or a nonstick muffin top pan with olive oil or coconut oil spray. Using a 4-tablespoon size retractable scoop, divide and scoop dough into 6 equal sized portions in pan. 


Gently pat down and smooth dough with moistened fingertips to form patty-sized circles in the wells or muffin cups. Bake for about 25 minutes, or until done and slightly springy when gently pressed on. Remove from pan after sitting for 5 minutes and cool on a wire rack. Slice in half with a sharp serrated knife.

*Note: If more sweetness is desired, add stevia (to taste) to boost sweetness. These can also be baked on a parchment paper lined baking sheet (shaped and smoothed with moistened fingertips) but will hold their shape better when contained in a pan to reduce spreading.

            

13 comments:

CyberSis said...

Hi GGC,

Well, guess what just landed at the top of my "queue"! I'm making these tomorrow for sure! Last week at our Costco I asked them to look up Antioxidant Fusion, and they don't carry it. Same thing at Sam's Club. So this recipe is very timely. I know I'll love the tang of the fresh cranberries. In fact, I'd been adding a few dried cranberries to your Power Bagels ... the ones that come with Costco's "Eat Smart Sweet Kale" bagged salad. They are *very* lightly sweetened with sugar but added a nice tangy element to the A.F. Even though the sugar content must be infinitesimal, I will really like having a completely sugar-free bagel. The cranberry sauce “jam” is a great idea!

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi CyberSis,

Hope you enjoy them. I actually had one lightly toasted with butter and "jam" for my lunch...and I actually had leftover grilled steak and salmon in the fridge that I should have eaten instead...LOL. But, the cranberries were calling my name. I would like to add more cranberries to them but am afraid of making them too soggy...hence the "cranberry jam." :-)

CyberSis said...

Hi GGC,

I got up early today and made these. They are wonderful and they passed the Hubby Test with flying colors (he really likes the "regular" Power Bagels, too.) The flavor and texture are just perfect! I had good luck baking them on a parchment-lined baking sheet. They held their shape nicely.

I almost had a little disaster, though. I'd mixed everything up ... or so I thought ... and popped them into the oven. When I started cleaning up I discovered the *buttermilk* sitting in the measuring cup. (I *wondered* why the dough seemed somewhat drier than the other recipe ... duh!) The bagels were already baking, but not by very much, thank goodness. I quickly pulled them out, scraped them back into the mixing bowl, added the buttermilk, and pressed on. Despite all that, they came out great! I guess you could call this recipe "Fool Proof"!

My fresh cranberries weren't juicy at all, so maybe I could have added more. I kind of remember from prior years that it was after they'd been frozen that they seemed to get more juicy when I went to use them ... at least they would leave cranberry stains all over the cutting board. I think I'll try adding a few more next time and see what happens. :-)

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi CyberSis,

Wow...I'm impressed that you were able to recover these AFTER you had started baking them! I hadn't thought about that before...fresh cranberries not being as juicy as the frozen berries, but you are right! I also wonder if baking them open on the parchment lined baking sheet helped keep them from getting too moist, as opposed to baking in an enclosed pan.

That would be great to be able to add more cranberries without making the bagels soggy. Did you need to add more sweetener or did you add less? I like them with a hint of sweetness but I do enjoy the tartness of the cranberries too.

Great that they passed the hubby test...that's always a good thing. I am definitely going to buy a few more bags for the freezer while they are in season. I kicked myself for not doing that last year. By the time I thought about doing it, they were gone! Let me know how it goes if you add more cranberries...if I don't do it first! ;-)

Anonymous said...

These are SO GOOD! I wanted to try just a bite but with the "jam" I guess I couldn't just stop at one bite & now one is all gone! They were really good with the mix from Costco too! I didn't have any orange extract for the jam & used almond, which worked. Maybe a pumpkin version with a pumpkin topping would be good too (hint, hint)! Thanks so much for all the recipes! I'd definitely buy your cookbook if you ever come out with one!

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi Anonymous,

Thanks so much. I'm so happy you enjoyed them. I bet pumpkin would be great, too. I will have to add that to my "to do list". Thanks for letting me know you enjoyed them. :-)

Kathleen Norris said...

Made this for the first time last night. They are SO GOOD! Had a toasted one last night with cream cheese, and this morning had a cold one with cran-orange sauce on it with my coffee. I think I like them cold even more. Thanks for your continued wonderful recipes!

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi Kathleen,

Yay! I'm so happy you enjoyed them. I like them cold too. I wanted to make a version that didn't require getting the special dried fruit blend that everyone didn't have access to.This way more folks get to enjoy them...plus, any excuse I can find to add cranberries to something...I'm all about! You are very welcome. ;-)

Marianne said...

I would love to try some of your low carb breads but I noticed most of the recipes use buttermilk. My body won't tolerate dairy, so I tend to use coconut creamer in coffee and either rice milk or almond milk in recipes. However, buttermilk is a bit thicker than the rice or almond milk. Any suggestions for a buttermilk substitute that isn't dairy based?

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi Marianne,

That's not a problem at all. You simply make "faux buttermilk" using almond, coconut or cashew milk. To make 1/2 cup of "buttermilk", add 1-1/2 to 2 teaspoons white vinegar or lemon juice to a glass measuring cup and then fill to the 1/2 cup line with almond milk. Let sit 5 to 10 minutes or so, stir and use as buttermilk. You need the acidity to help with the rise. Many have told me they used this substitute successfully. :-)

Della said...

These are to die for!!! This is a regular recipe for me, I almost never have buttermilk and just adding a 1/2 TBSP vinegar to a 1/2 c whole milk works perfect! Thank you so much for a fabulous recipe!!

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi Della,

Thanks so much! I am so happy to know you are enjoying them and making them regularly. Your buttermilk substitute is perfect for those that don't typically have it on hand. I've even suggested to some that need dairy free to do the same thing with either a nut milk or coconut milk and it works nicely with those, too. Thanks for letting me know you are enjoying them. That makes me happy! :-)

M.Caker said...

You were in my thoughts this weekend Ayla because I made this recipe and the sesame buns recipe. Both are incredibly outstanding and I will continue to make these recipes regularly. I had no idea you were going through a difficult time. I mentioned you to my husband over the holiday and my coworker this morning about how you put so much time in for others. I hope the Lord grants you piece through this time in your life. Clare