Why do these stupid bagels float?!

[jasonr]

My bagel recipe tells me to put the risen bagels in the poaching liquid, and they're supposed to sink to the bottom immediately, and float to the surface after 2 minutes. But they never sink, even when I push them down with a metal spatula. WHY?!

[Alix]

Mine don't either. I just flip em after they boil for a bit. I think there is too much air in the dough. I tried punching them down and then putting them in the water...still didn't sink. Hope someone has an answer for you. I'd like to know too.

[Konditor]

Jason: Are you using an egg dough or an eggless dough? Also, do you cook them in plain or sweetened simmering water?

My eggless bagels are cooked in 4 quarts of water mixed with 2 tablespoons of honey. The proportions:

1 Tbsp dried yeast
1 tsp sugar + 2 cups lukewarm water
3 Tbsp oil
3 Tbsp sugar
1 Tbsp salt
4-5 cups flour

The bagels made from a richer egg batter are cooked in 2 quarts of water mixed with 2 Tbsp sugar. The proportions:

2 Tbsp yeast
2 cups water + 2 Tbsp water
2 tsp salt
¼ cup oil
6½ to 7 cups bread flour

Bring the pot of water to the boil, then reduce to a steady simmer. Lower the bagels individually into the water; they should rise quickly to the surface, at which point invert them; after turning, they’re boiled for an extra 3 minutes; removed from the pan, brushed with an egg wash and sprinkled with poppy seeds, then baked at 400° until ideally browned.

[jasonr]

I followed the recipe precisely. It calls for 1 gallon of water with 510g of honey. The dough is eggless. You bring the honey-water to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, and dump the risen eggs in. I checked the temperature of the water, and it was about 95 degrees Celcius when I put in the bagels. Why didn't they sink?

[jasonr]

Here are the ingredients, in case it helps:

Dough

1 1/2 ounces (40 g) fresh compressed yeast
1 quart (960 ml) warm water (105 to 115 F)
3 Tbsp (45 ml/55 g/2 ounces) Honey
2 ounces (55 g) sugar
2 TBSP (30 g) salt
4 pounds 4 ounces (1 kg 935 g) high gluten flour

Poaching Liquid

1 gallon (3 L 840 ml) water
1 1/2 cups (360 ml, 510 g) honey

The bagels turned out fine, but I still want to know why they didn't sink. So what the heck went wrong?!

[WayneT]

If the dough is risen it is obvious that there are bubbles inside. This will automatically make them rise.