Silver Hills Bakery - Bagels

When I was young, I used to look forward to trips to the bagel bakery where I could get fresh bagels hot out of the oven. Oh, how I loved fresh bagels. Once I went vegan, I would eat them fresh without anything on them, enjoying the different flavors. Then at some point, it seemed like everyone stopped eating bagels. Word on the street was that they were filled with bad carbs and were 400 calories each. So, I too, stopped eating them.

Fast forward to today and I find it amazing how far we've come. I received samples of Silver Hills Bakery's bagels that are going to redefine the healthy in bagels. Instead of enriched bleached flour, these bagels use organic whole sprouted wheat and vital wheat gluten (all non-GMO). Why sprouted? Because sprouting unlocks the whole grain nutrition found inside the grain's protective shell. When a grain is sprouted, it believes it's being planted so it begins to grow and its stored nutrients are made readily available as its enzymes activate and enzyme inhibitors are broken down. As far as nutrition goes, each bagel is 240 - 250 calories, no cholesterol, 10 grams of fiber and 15 grams of protein.

The first one I tried was the Rappleberry bagels. No, there is no such thing as rappleberry, but there is such a thing as a delicious bagel filled with apples, raisins, and cranberries, hence the name "rappleberry!" These bagels taste incredibly fresh and healthy, made with all natural ingredients and sweetened with organic cane sugar. I spread a strawberry rhubarb jam on top for a perfect breakfast. And with only 1.5 grams of fat per bagel, there is no guilt.

Next up, the Squirrelly bagel. This one is the same as their Squirrelly bread made with raisin nectar, sesame seeds, and sunflower seeds. Again as a sprouted wheat bagel, it tasted uber healthy. I spread some smoked apple butter on this one, but it also worked great as a sandwich bagel as well.

Lastly, I tried the Herb's Garlic bagel. This one made my whole kitchen smell like herbs! It is loaded with a focaccia mix of onion, garlic powder, basil, and oregano along with organic garlic puree. I put my spicy eggless salad on it for a deliciously garlicky finish for my bagel sandwich. It was just the right amount and mix of herbs and garlic.

Does this mean that all bagels are good for you? Heck no! I am almost embarrassed to say that Einstein bagels were my favorite bagels when I was young. I just looked up the ingredients in an Einstein chopped garlic bagel and my jaw dropped. Check this out:  Plain bagel [enriched bleached flour (wheat flour, malt barley flour, niacin, ferrous sulfate, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), water, high fructose corn syrup, wheat gluten, salt, yeast, molasses, malt barley flour, soy oil, ascorbic acid, enzyme, L. Cysteine (an amino acid)], Garlic flakes, Sesame seeds, Cornmeal. 
It is complete with high fructose corn syrup, GMO soy oil and cornmeal, and all kinds of crap. So don't just go for any bagel. The Silver Hills sprouted wheat bagels are the way to go!

Although Silver Hills Bakery bagels can not be found in the DC area yet, they are in stores across the nation and they hope to be available here in March of 2014. They can be ordered directly from Silver Hills -- more info here. Oh, and did I mention that all of their breads and bagels are vegan and non-GMO?! Yep, it doesn't get much better than this. I can't wait to see them in stores soon.

Full Disclosure: Although the products were provided to me for free to review, that in no way influenced my veracious opinion.