Pumpkin bagels 🥯

🍁 September is here! Which means fall is arriving, and so are the fall foliage sceneries. This year has past so fast because of COVID-19, but we hope everyone are staying safe and healthy.

Last Autumn, we went apple picking twice, enjoyed the apple cider and cider donuts, and carved pumpkins around Halloween. It was all our first time in life! We also drove all the way up to Vermont from Boston, but we missed the breathtaking view of golden foliage on Green Mountain Byway told by a friend. The best view only lasted for less than two weeks, our friend from Vermont said.

Autumn is all about the golden colors, of which pumpkins are the most iconic. There are always a superb collections of pumpkins at the local supermarkets. My favorite ones are originated from Japan, called the Kabocha カボチャ. In Taiwan, we call them "Chestnut Pumpkins" with its chestnut-like texture and flavor. I really like its light texture with some grittiness, which is different from the the smooth and silkiness of other types of pumpkins.

In order to infuse some autumn flavors into our baking, I created these pumpkin bagels which are stuffed with lightly sweetened pumpkin filling in the middle. The chubbiness of this light orange ring-shaped dough are just so appealing.

One thing I learned from making bagels is not to freak out after the boiling step because they are likely to be wrinkled and ugly. After baking in the oven, they would rise with a shiny crust in the end as well as my favorite part of bagels, their chewiness. 

As you could barely see my bagel holes, I wonder how large the holes should be before rising and baking 👀?