Product: Sweet Note Gluten Free Everything Bagels – $7.25+
I think it has been well established that as a former New Yorker, I am a bagel lover. When I got my Celiac diagnosis, I became a one-time lover of bagels. Sure, there were a few different gluten free bagels out on the market…and I tried them all. Most of them were all wrong. I was enticed, because they had different flavors than the others…but in the end…just wrong. The closest I could get to a true bagel in my gluten-free world were the offerings by Udi’s and, more recently, Canyon Bakehouse.
But here is where the power of social media plays an important roll. I had recently reviewed the Canyon Bakehouse Plain and Everything Bagels that I ordered off their Web site, since they weren’t in stores yet (and still might be working their way there). After posting the review, I was pinged on Twitter by a company that literally does only gluten free bagels. Not just gluten-free, but also vegan, soy-free, dairy-free, egg-free, and non-GMO. I was intrigued enough to Google search them and take a look at their Web site. Their name: Sweet Note Bagels.
New York style bagels…gluten-free? It sounded too good to be true. Usually very hesitant and cautious about ordering from a company I know little about or have heard little about, I decided to take a risk and a chance. And I went all-in, ordering half of their New York style gluten-free bagel flavors. Yep. They have eight (8) different flavors…I started with four of them – opting for the Plain (previously blogged), Everything, Cinnamon Raisin, and Chocolate Swirl. In addition to these four, Sweet Note Bagels offers Poppy, Sesame, Snickerdoodle and Pumpkin. And,according to their Web site, they are working on a Spinach Garlic offering as well (which sounds SO delicious).
Sweet Note began in 2012, when founder and president, Michelle MacDonald, stepped up to a challenge. She had been baking ever since she was a child and was very passionate about it. When her grandfather and sister were diagnosed with Celiac Disease, she took the first steps on her entrepreneurial journey. Her family really missed a good New York Style bagel. (Hey…I can’t blame them…I know this feeling all too well). So with a lot of experimentation and trial and error, MacDonald perfected the recipe, getting huge approval from her family (also bagel lovers). Gluten-free bagels that taste good?! It was a reality. Sweet Note Bakery’s vision is to make gluten-free options more readily accessible. Those of us who live with Celiac understand how isolating this disease can be, when you can’t have a meal while out with friends and family, be it at a restaurant or a ballpark, or wherever your adventures take you. MacDonald wanted to change that…one gluten-free bagel at a time.
She and her team are doing a fantastic job. And I hope it continues and more and more people try and discover these amazing bagels. Sweet Note Bagels are top-of-the-line. And I can now attest to that given that I have tried my second flavor that I purchased off their Web site…
EVERYTHING!
Yes, the Everything Bagel. Nothing gets as New York as this flavor of bagel. Unfamiliar with the Everything Bagel? Well, the basic information is these bagels appeared in New York back in the 1970s-1980s. They are basically a bagel that is topped with all the different topping varieties that are normally found on bagels. It is basically traditional to see a combination of seeds and dried herbs, with the most commonly used being poppy seeds, sesame seeds, onion, garlic, salt, and even caraway seeds. Everything but the kitchen sink. They are incredible.
As the Everything Bagel is a New York tradition, and one that I am most fond of, I had high hopes when I pulled these out of the freezer to thaw them in the microwave for a minute, slice them, and toast them in my oven (you can toast them in a toaster, I just don’t own a toaster). They smelled amazing. Like…garlic and onion and awesomesauce. I don’t know what awesomesauce smells like, but I have a feeling it would be these bagels. And my mouth began to water more in anticipation as they toasted and the aroma filled my kitchen. Oh yeah…New York heaven.
The best part is…Sweet Note Bagels gets EVERYTHING right with their Gluten Free Everything Bagel. Trust this New Yorker. This bagel is a perfect 3-inch diameter…just like bagels used to be made, not the monstrosities that exist on the market and in bakeries today. Old school, traditional bagels…minus the gluten. LOVE. What this also means is that the outside of the bagel gets this great golden crust that is crisp when you bite into it after toasting it. The center…soft, chewy, and perfection. With the Sweet Note Bagels Gluten Free Everything Bagel, I topped it with a schmear of Kite Hill Plain Cream Cheese Style Spread and went to town. I couldn’t help it. If anything brought back my memories of New York…it was this bagel…in perfect technicolor! The flavors were amazing. Nothing was overpowering, not even the garlic! Seriously. The outside was this perfect crisp, which gave the bagel texture. The top half was topped off with a healthy spread of salt, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, dried onion, and dried garlic. Yes…these are messy bagels. But messy bagels when you’re talking about an Everything Bagel…is just what you’re supposed to get. I thought there was the perfect amount of toppings on each bagel (4 come in each package). And they cooked up to perfection. I ate them faster than I intended…and I wanted another one! I mean, I literally wanted to go and prepare another one right then and there. I resisted…somehow. Even my roommate, who had a regular Everything Bagel back in New York City in November when I was running the marathon fell in love with this version. She doesn’t have to eat gluten-free…but she does about 90% at home…because of me, and these bagels have really, really impressed her. She didn’t grow up a bagel lover…so these have won her heart. They have won me over too. If I were asked to choose my final meal, I think a Sweet Note Gluten Free Everything Bagel would be on the menu. Yes…they are that exceptional!
So…let’s talk about what goes into Sweet Note Gluten Free Everything Bagels, shall we? I can tell you this…these won’t leave you feeling hungry an hour after you eat them. These bagels are made with REAL ingredients, not just fillers and rubish. That’s another great thing about Sweet Note Bagels…they make real food made with real ingredients. The Gluten Free Everything Bagels from Sweet Note are made with LOVE (Yes…really on the ingredient list!), water, white rice flour, tapioca flour, sweet white rice flour, sorghum flour, sugar, cane syrup, olive oil, molasses, yeast, xanthan gum, psyllium husk, salt, sesame seeds, poppy seeds, dried onion, and dried garlic. These bagels, as mentioned above, are gluten-free, soy-free, egg-free, dairy-free, vegan, and non-GMO.
How about taking a look at the nutritional facts of the Sweet Note Gluten Free Everything Bagels? A serving size is one (1) bagel (135 grams). This serving will provide you with yumminess. Aside from that, you will be taking in 300 calories, 5 grams of fat, 0.5 grams saturated fat, 0 grams trans-fat, 0 grams cholesterol, 540 mg sodium, 63 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams fiber, 7 grams sugars, and 4 grams of protein. See why you’ll feel so full and stay full? LOVE IT!
Let me tell you, there are few things that win me over as quickly as these bagels did. I am so grateful that Twitter drew Sweet Note Bagels to my blog on Canyon Bakehouse, and had them reach out to me about their product. Never before have I been so blown away by a product. Bagels…they are simple pleasures, but the bagels that Sweet Note Bagels makes are a gluten free treasure. Nothing else will stack up to these. I’m sure of it.
The Celiathlete 