Give Homemade Bagels A Fall Vibe With A Fun Pumpkin Twist

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Bagels are pretty much the perfect breakfast as is, simultaneously easy to prepare, filling, and versatile — but they can be a little plain. Luckily, one easy twist takes them from being a blank canvas to representing a fall-inspired baking masterpiece, adding spirit to your kitchen as surely as seasonal dish towels or an apple spice candle from Amazon. The vision is simple: bagels shaped like miniature pumpkins. The tools needed to bring said vision to life? Merely kitchen twine, scissors, and maybe a little bit of pumpkin spice seasoning.

Essentially, you'll be creating the distinctive vertical lines that circle a pumpkin's exterior around the circumference of your homemade bagel dough. Once you've formed a ring of dough as usual, tie three to four short pieces of the twine (something like Hamuier's butcher twine for cooking and baking should work well) around the uncooked bagel, almost like you're tying ribbon around a Christmas present. Tie them tightly, so that they press into the dough, and you'll see small pumpkin-like sections start to separate. Boil your bagels with the twine on, then snip it off, and the lines should be effectively set in place. Voila! The ideal breakfast bite for any cloudy October morning.

Admittedly, a pumpkin-shaped bagel is already making good use of your creativity to add a little je ne sais quoi to your breakfasts. But if you're looking to spice up your morning fare even further, we have a few ideas to bring your bagels to the next level. 

First, there are the visuals: Although kitchen twine does a decent job bringing the pumpkin shape to life, there's more you can do to make your fall-spirited intentions clear. Using a touch of orange food coloring or pumpkin puree when making your dough is a sure way to bring the pumpkins to life. If you don't give each bagel its typical hole, adding a pretzel or cinnamon stick stem and a sprig of mint leaf to the baked good's center are next-level touches that, although small, add a lot of character.

Alternatively, you can take this concept and apply it to an entirely different type of bread. From sourdough to a crispy, airy rustic artisan loaf, the twine-tying method can be scaled up for a full-sized bread bake, whether you want to share it at a fall dinner party or you're just not really a fan of bagels. If you do go this route, leave the twine on while your bread bakes and develops its shape, then cut it off while the loaf is cooling. 

Oh, and you'll certainly want to use up any leftover apples by making apple butter to spread on the bread (or bagels). If you're feeling extra fancy, imbue some fall flavor directly into whichever yeast-risen concoction you select by adding swirls of cinnamon sugar or spiced pumpkin puree. Serve with a fall coffee drink, and you've got yourself a breakfast fit for any rainy day.