I tried Hamelman's bagel recipe this weekend...and will never let go of it! But I do have a few questions:

1. High-gluten flour *not* bread flour...where do you buy this?

2. I felt the bagels lacked the flavor that my other recipes have. Should I add more salt?

3. I was very surprised that his recipe did not include malt powder IN the dough. Might adding it improve the flavor? Will that affect other ratios?

4. I noticed there was no egg wash and I felt they were much paler than other recipes. How can I improve this? Normal for this recipe?

I also tried "flipping" the bagles this go-round, although I don't have a bagel board. I'll admit, the shape was very nice. But it seems to be a small benefit. Anyone disagree? Any techniques you'd recommend?