Place blueberries and water into a small saucepan over medium heat. Heat just until the water comes to a simmer and then remove from heat and allow mixture to cool to 100°F - 110°F so it's safe to use with the active dry yeast.
1 cup blueberries, 1 cup water
Pour blueberries and water into a large mixing bowl of a stand mixer
Add yeast and sugar. Mix and then let rest for 5 minutes until mixture is bubbly.
Stir in 1 cup of flour, vital wheat gluten and salt. When mixed, add another cup of flour. Continue adding flour until the dough forms a ball around the dough hook. You might not need all the flour.
3 - 3 ½ cups flour, 2 tablespoons vital wheat gluten, 1 teaspoon salt
Knead for about 5 minutes on a low speed until dough is smooth and elastic
Form dough into a ball and place in a lightly greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size, about 1 ½ - 2 hours.
Gently deflate dough and separate into 12 pieces
Form each piece into a ball and then poke a hole in the center with your finger. Make hole larger by placing both index fingers into the center and then rotating in a circular fashion.
Place shaped dough on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper
Cover with a clean dish towel and let bagels rest for 30 minutes
Fill a stockpot ⅔ full with water and bring to a boil. Add brown sugar and stir to dissolve.
2 tablespoons brown sugar
Working with 3-4 bagels at a time, gently add each bagel to the boiling water. Cook for 1 minute and then flip bagels cooking for another minute.
Remove bagels and place back on parchment paper. Continue with remaining bagels.
Brush bagels with an egg wash just before baking
1 egg white, 1 tablespoon water
Bake in a preheated 400°F oven for 20-25 minutes
Cool on a baking rack
Notes
Simmering the blueberries releases some of the juice which will help color the dough.
Make certain you allow the blueberries to cool to 100-110°F before starting the dough. Too hot and you will kill your yeast.
The boiling step is necessary for making the bagel-like texture and chewy crust
Boil with the bottom side of the bagel down first. Then flip to cook the top side. It will actually work either way, but if you boil the top side first, you will notice a funny watermark on the top of the bagel. Boiling the bottom side first prevents this from happening.
Bake in a fully preheated oven
Allow bagels to fully cool on a baking rack before storing in an airtight container at room temperature