Fresh, soft and warm, these homemade bagels with cheddar cheese are simple to make and absolutely delicious with butter or cream cheese!
Today you’re going to learn how to make bagels with just a few simple ingredients. If you have a fear of making bagels.. you’ll get over it quickly because they are so simple to throw together.
Yeast bagels are definitely a different process than regular sourdough bagels.
While they might seem complicated to make at home, they are actually rather simple. Homemade bagels are quite cheap – not to mention, you can brag that you make your bagels “from scratch”.
Isn’t that a great perk?
Homemade Bagels – Ingredients
Making bagels requires that you start with a bagel dough. Bagel dough is a very lean dough with just a few simple ingredients:
- Warm water – for the yeast, a liquid for the dough
- Yeast – allows the dough to rise. I recommend Red Star Active Dry Yeast.
- All Purpose Flour – you can also use Bread Flour, but I feel like they both work rather well int he recipe for a high protein flour.
- Brown Sugar – most regular bakeries that make bagels use malt syrup as a dough sweetener but since that can be hard to find, brown sugar works great as a replacement.
- Salt – flavor, of course
These simple ingredients make up what is called a lean dough. This lean dough is what works quite the same for pizza dough, and no knead bread.
Preparing the dough
Making bagels requires that you combine all the ingredients and mix the dough by hand or using your mixer. Since bagel dough is quite heavy (dense), it might be easier to bring it together just until it combines using your dough hook.
Then dump it out on a floured surface and knead for a few minutes. Cover and allow to rise for 60-90 minutes. Punch it down and then divide and shape into bagels.
Shaping bagels is much easier than you might think. Separate the dough into eight equal balls. Then poke your finger through the center of each ball and widen the hole to a good 1.5 – 2 inches. That’s it.
Your bagels will be bumpy and lumpy and not very pretty – that’s ok! They don’t need to be perfect.
Homemade Bagels Water Bath
Once you shape the bagels, you’ll want to give them a bath for 1 minute on each side in a pot of boiling water. This cooks the bagel inside and gives it a nice shine.
Add a little honey (sugar) or malt barley syrup to the boiling water to help give the bagels a little extra crisp. Then, brush the bagels with egg wash and your choice of topping:
- Poppy Seeds
- Everything Bagel Seasoning
- Sesame Seeds
- Cheese – shredded cheddar, asiago, Monterey Jack, etc.
Then bake for 15-18 minutes in a preheated oven and enjoy with your choice of butter, cream cheese, jam or even for your next sandwich.
Homemade Bagels
Ingredients
Bagel Dough
- 1.5 C warm water (100 - 110 degrees F)
- 3 tsp active dry yeast
- 4 C all purpose flour or bread flour
- 1 Tbsp packed brown sugar or granulated sugar
- 1 tsp salt or more, to taste
Water Bath
- 1/4 C honey or malt barley syrup
- 2 quarts water
Egg Wash
- 1 egg white + 1 Tbsp water
Instructions
Prepare the Dough
- Mix the warm water and yeast in the bowl of your stand mixer and allow to sit for 5 minutes.
- Add the flour, brown sugar, and salt and beat on low speed using the dough hook attachment for approx. 2 minutes.
- Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 1-2 minutes. The dough will be heavy and stiff.
- Place the dough back in a lightly greased bowl and turn the dough to coat all sides in oil. Cover and let rise for 60-90 minutes. During that time, line two large baking sheets with parchment paper or use a silicone baking mat.
Shape the Bagels
- When the dough is done rising (doubled in size), punch it down and divide into 8 pieces. Shape into a ball and push your finger in the middle to make a 2" diameter hole. Shape them and set them on your parchment - loosely cover.
Water Bath
- Combine two quarts of water with the honey or malt barley syrup. Once at a boil, drop the bagels in the water, 4 at a time.
- Cook the bagels for 1 minute on each side.
- During this time, preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
- Remove the bagels from the water bath and set on the baking tray. Brush with egg wash, and your choice of topping.
Bake
- Bake the bagels for 15-18 minutes at 425 degrees F or until golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and allow to cool before enjoying.
Notes
- To store: Cover tightly and keep at room temp for one day. Or refrigerate for up to 5 days. Reheat to soften.
- Don't have a mixer? Mix the ingredients in a large bowl and knead, by hand, for 10-15 minutes.
Nutrition
Did you try this recipe? Make sure to rate the recipe, and leave a comment below to let me know how your bagels turned out!
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