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sourdough rainbow bagels with vegan funfetti

Rainbow Sourdough Bagels with Vegan Funfetti Cream Cheese

These rainbow sourdough bagels are so fun to make and vibrant! I made them with vegan funfetti cream cheese!
5 from 4 votes
Prep Time 5 hours
Cook Time 22 minutes
Rise time 1 day
Total Time 1 day 5 hours 22 minutes
Course Breakfast
Cuisine American
Servings 8 bagels
Calories 462 kcal

Equipment

Ingredients
  

For the dough:

  • 1 cup active bubbly starter
  • 1 ¼ cup room temperature water
  • 2 tablespoon brown sugar
  • 5 cups bread flour
  • 2 teaspoon pink sea salt
  • Water for boiling
  • Brown sugar for boiling

Colors:

  • 1 tablespoon beet root powder or liquid red food coloring
  • 1 teaspoon blue spirulina or liquid blue food coloring
  • ½ tablespoon butterfly pea powder or liquid purple food coloring
  • 1 tbp passion fruit flakes or liquid yellow food coloring
  • 1 teaspoon spirulina or liquid green food coloring

Egg wash for baking:

  • 4 egg whites

For the cream "cheese"

Instructions
 

For the bagels:

    day 1:

    • Fit your standing mixer with a paddle attachment. Add 1 cup of active bubbly starter to the mixing bowl along with the 1 ¼ cup cold water and 2 tablespoons of brown sugar. Mix it until it is combined.
    • Change to a hook attachment. Add the 5 cups of flour along with the salt. Mix on #2 speed for 6-7 minutes or until the dough is elastic and no longer sticky.
    • Let the dough rest 20 minutes.

    To color them:

    • After 20 minutes, divide the dough into 4 pieces.
      Add each piece 1 at a time with the coloring you want to use to your standing mixer fitted with a hook attachment. Let your mixer run until the dough is completely colored. You will notice that the liquid dye mixes into the dough better than powdered dye.
      Flatten each colored piece by rolling it out with a rolling pin. Mine were about 1 foot long x 6 inches across.
      Lay each colored piece of dough on top of the next one. Use the rolling pin to help press the layers together.
    • Slice the dough into 8 pieces. I used my pastry scraper to cut the dough. If you want the bagels to be smaller, divide into 10 pieces.
    • Shape each piece of dough into a bagel shape. You can do this by:
      Rolling each piece of dough into a log. Then, connect the two ends.
      To get a "swirled" look, twist the log of dough before you connect the two ends.
    • Flour a large baking sheet. Place the bagels on the sheet. Flour the tops of the bagels to prevent them from sticking. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest at room temperature for 4-8 hours.
    • They should double in size, the time will vary depending on the temperature of your room. To tell if they are done, fill a bowl with water. Place one bagel in the water. If it floats, it is done. If it sinks, let it stand at room temperature for longer.
      Make sure to dry the bagel off before you put it back on the tray.
    • After the bagel has passed the float test, cover the tray back up. Place it in the fridge for 12-24 hours. Usually, I let mine sit in the fridge overnight.
    • IF YOU'RE MAKING THE CREAM CHEESE: now is the time to put your cashews in water to soak overnight so they are soft the next day. Put the can of full fat coconut milk in the fridge as well.

    day 2:

    • Preheat your oven to 450 degrees F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a baking mat.
    • Heat a large stockpot with water and 2 tablespoons of brown sugar.
    • Gently remove the wrap from the bagels. Make sure you don't deflate them, or they will not be as puffy after you bake them. The bagels may stick to the tray a bit. You don't want to pull them off with just your hands, because this could result in deflated bagels. I use a pastry scraper to get the bagel off the tray.
    • Boil each bagel in the water for 1 minute on each side. Use a slotted spoon or spatula to let the water drain off before placing them on the parchment paper lined baking tray.
    • After you have boiled each bagel, use a pastry brush to lightly brush the top of each bagel with egg whites.
    • Turn the oven down to 400.
    • Bake them in the center rack of the oven for 18-22 minutes. You can tell if they are done when the tops are very light golden brown.
    • Let them cool completely on a wire rack.

    For the cream "cheese:"

    • Drain the soaked cashews. Put the cashews in a food processor or blender along with the 1 teaspoon of vanilla extract, ¼ cup pure maple syrup, and the dash of sea salt. Let it food process for ~10 minutes or until it is completely pureed.
    • Meanwhile, fit your standing mixer with a whisk attachment. Take your coconut milk from the fridge. Scrape just the hard portion from the can into the bowl of your standing mixer.
    • Turn your standing mixer on speed #3 or #4 and let it run until it is fluffy.
    • Gently fold your cashew puree into the whipped coconut milk. An alternative is to just use coconut milk with rainbow sprinkles.
    • NOTE: If your house is very hot, the cream cheese may get soft very quickly. Just put it in the fridge to firm it up again.
    • Spread on a toasted rainbow bagel and enjoy!

    Notes

    NOTE: the powdered colors I used for the food dyes (beet root powder, blue spirulina, butterfly pea, passion fruit flakes) don't mix into the dough as well as liquid food dyes
    NOTE: bread flour gives a "chewier" bagel like texture. The all-purpose flour does work in this recipe, but you might have a texture more like bread rather than a bagel.
     
    Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1bagelCalories: 462kcalCarbohydrates: 55gProtein: 17gFat: 13.5gFiber: 2.5g
    Keyword everythingbagels, rainbowbagels, rainbowfood, sourdough, sourdoughrecipe
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