Reinhart bagels - uneven cooking fiasco
I decided to try my hand at Reinhart's bagels from BBA. Followed everything, but the only changes were AP flour, and brown sugar, instead of syrup. I used two pans, rotated, etc. I'm also high altitude, but have yet to have a problem with my other bread. Now, in the picture - top left, the 'perfect' bagel. Top right - a bigger, darker, but still good bagel. The sad bottoms are mainly my concern. Bottom right, is a bit overcooked (I went so far as to use the broiler on these poor souls), but still with mushy spots. The bottom left is all mush on top, and cooked on the bottom. I'm not quite sure what went wrong, but I'm wondering if it had something to do with the boiling? I just have no idea. Anyone else have this problem, or know how to fix it? I used just a regular sized kitchen pot with a tbs. of baking soda. I didn't think that would make a difference, guess it might? Like I said, my first attempt at bagels, though far from my first bread baking. Thanks for any help.
Elisabeth