Product Review: Sweet Note Gluten Free Unicorn Bagels

Product: Sweet Note Gluten Free Unicorn Bagels – $9.99

You didn’t think they existed…but they do.  You thought they were a myth…but they are not.  Yes…the infamous Rainbow Bagel gets a gluten-free makeover thanks to the crazy bagelers at Sweet Note Bakery.

God, I love them!

Just before…and I mean…right before…as in DAYS before I went to New York City back in March, the big article about the Rainbow Bagel that The Bagel Store in NYC was offering hit the mass media…and it was…insane.  I felt a little pang of judgement (okay…okay…resentment) because I, myself, could not have one.  And they looked so, so pretty!  And delicious.  Pretty delicious too!

So, my bagel experience in NYC was left up to the gluten free offerings at Tompkins Square Bagels…which was fine…but it wasn’t a true NY-style bagel…and it just didn’t seem perfect to me.  And…the Rainbow Bagel was out there.  Sometimes schmeared with birthday cake cream cheese.

Life wasn’t fair.

But then the rain lifted and the sun came out, and the amazing ladies over at Sweet Note Bakery said, “You know what?  Celiacs shouldn’t have to miss out on tasting the rainbow.  Skittles got nothing on us.”  And so, a little while after my return from NYC…I saw a prototype of their own rainbow bagel on their Instagram feed.

And I coveted it.  I said if they put it out on the market, I’d buy it.  I needed it.  No, I wanted it!  They had asked if people would be interested in buying it…and that they were going to look into more natural food dyes as well (although their first attempt was with natural food dye and it baked out)…before offering it on the Web site.  I immediately chimed in with my calm, cool and collected, “I would buy them”…which…the more times the Rainbow Bagel appeared on their feed…the more this became…”OMG I NEED THESE IN MY LIFE RIGHT NOW!”

Well, last week…it happened.  They aren’t using natural food dies yet…but those crazy baglers have made their version of the Rainbow Bagel…called the Unicorn Bagel (don’t you love it??!) available as an Online Exclusive purchase in their store.  So…yes…for now, you can only order these online.

So…I threw more money at these wonderful people and put in my order.

Here’s the thing…I have been a collector of unicorn things since I was a child.  No joke.  Then, when I became a runner and qualified for the Boston Marathon…unicorns returned to the forefront of my obsessions.  So…you give me a swirly breakfast bread of wonderment in fun colors and call it a “Unicorn Bagel”…my money is coming at you and these are finding a way into my life.  No doubt about it.  And that, my friends, is how I wound up with the new Unicorn Bagel in my freezer…which lasted all but 15 hours before they were out and being thawed in the microwave and toasted in my oven.

It’s important.  Because…NEW GLUTEN FREE BAGEL.  Because…COLORS!  Because…UNICORN.  And because it’s a RACE WEEKEND.  So the unicorn theme should be good luck, yes?  Good omen, yes?  Oh…I hope so.

I think I’ve told you enough about Sweet Note Bakery…their origins and the like in all the past blogs I’ve done about them.  If you are just now tuning in…you can read about their history here.  If you want to know why size always matters, especially in certain important matters like…bagel size…read all about it here.  Seriously…if you want authentic New York-style bagels…that are both vegan and gluten-free…NOTHING beats Sweet Note Bakery!  Their bagels are phenomenal.  Feel free to go back to all the past entries (and I still have 1 more of their new flavors to review!) and see what every flavor is like.  Trust me…I grew up in New York.  Bagels and I are BFFs.

Just really quickly though, I will revisit the proper way (or at least the best way) to evenly thaw out the frozen bagels.  DO NOT thaw these on the counter.  It’s easy.  It only takes 60 seconds out of your daily routine.  Simply place a bagel on a plate and place in the microwave. Microwave on HIGH for 30 seconds.  Then, flip the bagel completely over and turn it about 180°. Microwave for another 30 seconds.  Let it sit for a few seconds and then slice in half.  Place each half in a toaster oven or on a baking sheet and in the oven and let it toast up for about 15-20 minutes.  This is normally about the time I leave the kitchen to shower and let my roommate make sure that if she smells smoke to shut off the oven.  But I’m always done before anything gets burned.

I can’t even begin to tell you how giddy these bagels made me.  Seriously. They were swirly and rainbow-y and just plain fun!  I pulled them out of the oven when they reached that perfect level of toasty.  I mean…perfect crispy outer crust with the dense and chewy dough in the middle.  Bagel perfection.  I gave each half a schmear of vegan cream cheese from Kite Hill.  And then, because, I’m eating the rainbow here…I gave the cream cheese a smattering of rainbow sprinkles.

DUH!  You can’t eat a Unicorn Bagel without rainbow sprinkles.  And with that…breakfast was served.

Who doesn’t love fun food, right?  The more fun, the more exciting breakfast is.  I loved eating a colorful breakfast.  They say to eat the rainbow…well…they may not have had a Unicorn Bagel in mind when they said that…but…I successfully ate the rainbow today.  HAHA!  And it was tasty.  I get it…it’s a plain bagel with all the dressings of a sparkly soul, but it somehow makes it fabulous, you know?  It tasted sweet, but I don’t know how much of that was the bagel and how much of that was the little sprinkles of rainbow goodness I topped the cream cheese with.  Nevertheless…this bagel is made of complete awesomeness.  You can top it off without whatever floats your boat.  Frosting would have been pretty epic.  I mean, you’re devouring a breakfast bread that is dyed to every amazing color in the color spectrum…have frosting and sprinkless…or whatever…whatever makes you feel like a kid at heart.  Or a Boston Marathoner.  Or a lover of unicorns.  Or just…a lover of bagels.  Or rainbows. Or all of the above.

So, let’s discuss what goes into each of the Sweet Note Gluten Free Unicorn Bagels.  Each bagel is made from love (because all rainbow-type food is made with love…and unicorn tears), water, white rice flour, tapioca flour, sweet white rice flour, sorghum flower, sugar, cane syrup, olive oil, molasses, yeast, xanthan gum, psyllium husk, salt, food coloring (red 40, red 3, yellow 5, yellow 6, blue 1, blue 1, titanium dioxide, modified corn starch, vegetable gum, citric acid, and less than 1/10 of 1% sodium benzoate, potassium sorbate).  They are still experimenting with natural food dyes that won’t fade…and I have every faith that they will find something that works.  But…for now…if food dyes don’t bother you, these are totally epic and worth a try.  As always when it comes to Sweet Note’s bagels, these bagels are gluten-free, soy-free, dairy-free, non-GMO, egg-free, peanut & tree nut-free, and cholesterol free.  Made with love, indeed!!

As far as nutrition goes for the Sweet Note Gluten Free Unicorn Bagels…well…here are the magical facts.  A serving size is one (1) bagel, which is about 4.5 oz (128 grams).  There are 4 servings per package.  Each bagel will deliver 280 calories, 3.5 grams fat, 0.5 grams saturated fat, 0 grams trans fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 320 mg sodium, 60 grams carbohydrates, 3 grams fiber, 7 grams sugars, and 4 grams protein.  The mythical morning hunger pangs remained at bay…this was delicious and filling.  Loving the rainbow.

Breakfast should be fun.  After all, it is the most important meal of the day.  You might as well color it up, top it off, and eat it with a smile.  That’s the magic that is inside the Unicorn Bagels.  They are simple…but simply wonderful.  Just because you have to eat gluten-free doesn’t mean that you can’t have fun bagels for breakfast.  Sweet Note Bakery is taking the standard bagel and making it for the gluten-free and vegan bagel lovers.  No limits.  No boundaries.  Anything goes.  Like rainbow unicorn bagels.  The Unicorn Bagel will totally win you over.

Maybe it will make me run faster.

Maybe.

I’ll go for my run…and you go ahead and run over to the Sweet Note Bakery online store and purchase a pack or five of the Gluten Free Unicorn Bagel!