Chewy, golden-brown bagels, studded with raisins and warmly spiced with cinnamon, hot and crispy-edged when toasted and smeared with a creamy, tart smashed berry mascarpone, dripping and melting off the edges. Jump to Recipe
I could not believe that I had never made my own bagels before.
Dumbfounded by how much better these were than any store-bought bagel I had ever eaten. So much better. 100000x better. The depth of flavour, yeastier and more cinnamon-malt-like (in a good way), packed with more raisins, a crisper crust with a softer and chewier interior, speckled with small air-holes.
And then that topping. That topping is like heaven. Seriously. Less tangy and sweeter than cream cheese, given a hint of lemon, imbued with swirling fresh berries, and topped with the crunch and nuttiness of pistachios. We had difficulty in sticking to a single spoonful. Sticky fingers were forgotten in the rush to consume mouthfuls of the stuff, melding with the hot, crunchy edges of cinnamon bagel. Not a drop, a smear, was left on a plate. (But no, you don’t have to put quite as much on as there is in the photo.. well, you can. And you will enjoy it. But you don’t have to.)
Afterwards, I had numerous friends and family members informing me that this was the best bagel they had ever experienced. I agreed. And I couldn’t believe how wrong my previous perception was – that bagels were hard to make, impossible to get right, a huge effort in kneading and shaping and proving and boiling and baking. Because yes, you do have to do all those things – but it is really not hard, after the first time is not insanely time-consuming, and it yields 16 bagels (which freeze extremely well) and are a million times better than any bought from a store (even a high-end, gourmet bagel making store – at least in my experience).
The berry mascarpone will keep in the fridge for a few days, for you to whip out and coat your bagels with at whim. The bagels are a Peter Reinhart recipe (barely adapted from Smitten Kitchen): please do not be put off by the length of the recipe – much of it is notes to help you along.
You can either start the day (or evening) before and make the bagels the next morning, or start early in the morning and make the bagels that night. I chose the first option just for convenience (and because the bagels use up a whole lot of fridge space!). This was my timeline: make the sponge before dinner, and leave it for 2 hours while dinner happens. Afterwards, make the dough – this is easiest with a strong stand mixer and dough hook (as the dough is very stiff compared to other bread doughs) but can be done by hand. Divide it into pieces, rest them for 20 minutes, shape into bagels, rest them for 20 minutes. Check with the float test to see if they are ready for the fridge. Leave in the fridge overnight.
The next morning (or whenever you are ready to bake in the next 2 days), it will take around an hour total to boil the bagels and bake them for 10 minutes in the oven. AND YOU’RE DONE. Just like that, the house is filled with cinnamon-bread smells and sixteen hot bagels are on your counter. Success. And it is way cheaper than buying those same bagels, which from gourmet bagel makers in Auckland are around $12 for 6 – so 16 would cost you $32 – while these homemade ones cost a fraction of the amount + a little time and effort. So worth it. Trust me.
As a side note, there has been a bit of a debate lately about Montreal vs New York style bagels, with Montreal style being apparently chewier and crisper, slightly sweeter, do not traditionally contain salt and are baked in a woodfired oven. New York bagels are known as being fluffy and doughy, larger beasts that are sandwiched with thick layers of flavoured cream cheese. However, according to many sources, New York bagels as we know them have experienced a decline over the last 50 years with commercial mass production and were formerly much closer to a Montreal style in terms of chewy and crispiness. So, these bagels are a New York style, being poached in a alkaline water (that’s the baking soda), including malt (or honey) as a sweetener, and being oven baked rather than woodfired, but not as they are currently churned out in many 24hr bagel stores in NYC – no, these are MUCH better.
(Read HERE for more on this)
(Although, I also added honey to the boiling water just for that extra flavour, which is more traditionally a Montreal style thing – so I guess these bagels take the best of both worlds!).
I also made a savoury sesame version of these bagels the day before (yes, it was a big bagel making weekend), and may or may not put up that recipe this weekend. Just currently debating whether I wait until I can remake them with a more interesting topping (decisiveness is not my strong point when it comes to food), so if you have a preference or would really like to see them let me know! BUT in the meantime, make these cinnamon raisin bagels with berry pistachio mascarpone. You will not regret it.
- 1 tsp instant yeast
- 4 cups high grade flour (bread flour)
- 2 1/2 cups water , room temperature
- 1 teaspoon instant yeast
- 3 3/4 cups high grade flour
- 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
- 5 tablespoons sugar
- 2 3/4 teaspoons salt
- 1 tablespoon honey , brown sugar, or malt syrup
- 2 cups raisins , rinsed with warm water to remove surface sugar, acid and wild yeast and patted dry
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 200 g good quality mascarpone
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- 1/2 cup berries , fresh or frozen & thawed
- pistachios , roughly chopped
-
First day: To make the sponge, whisk together the flour, instant yeast and water in a large bowl until smooth and gloopy, similar to a thick pancake batter. Cover with plastic wrap and leave at room temperature for 2 hours, or until it becomes foamy and bubbly. It should rise to double its size and collapse when the bowl is tapped on the bench.
-
For the next steps you can either use dough hook on a stand mixer or do it by hand.
-
To make the dough, stir the additional yeast into the sponge mixture. Add 3 cups of the high-grade flour, cinnamon, sugar, salt and honey. Stir (or mix on low speed with dough hook) until it forms a ball. Slowly work in the remaining 3/4 cup of flour to stiffen the dough. In the last 2 minutes of mixing, add the raisins and stir to mix through.
-
Transfer the dough to a counter and knead for at least 10 minutes by hand, or 6 minutes using a dough hook. By this point it should be firm and stiff but still smooth and stretchy. All ingredients should be fully incorporated. If it seems too dry and rips, add a few drops of water and continue kneading. If it seams tacky or sticky, add a little more flour until it is smooth and satiny, but no longer sticky.
-
Divide the dough into 16 even pieces (around 95 grams each) and form into balls. Cover with a damp tea towel and allow to rest for 20 minutes.
-
Line 2 baking trays or tins that will fit in your fridge with baking paper and mist with cooking spray. To shape the bagels, roll into a long ‘sausage’ shape (~20cm long) and wrap around your fingers to form a circle, sealing the ends firmly. Try to make the bagels as evenly round as possible. The other way of shaping them is just to poke a hole in the middle with your thumb, widening it to approximately 5cm across.
-
Place the bagels 3-4 cm apart on the baking trays. Mist lightly with cooking spray and cover loosely with plastic war (or slip inside a plastic bag). Leave the bagels at room temperature for 20 minutes.
-
To check whether the bagels are ready to be retarded in the fridge, use the float test - fill a small bowl with cool-room temperature water. Place a bagel in the water- if it floats within 10 seconds of being dropped into the water, they are ready to go into the fridge. Pat the bagel dry, cover the pan, and place all the bagels in the fridge overnight or for up to 2 days. If it doesn’t float, return it to the pan and leave at room temperature, checking every 10-20 minutes until it floats within 10 seconds.
-
Second day: The following day (or when you are ready to bake the bagels), preheat the oven to 260°C. Bring a large pot of water to the boil (preferably with a wide diameter), and add the baking soda and honey to the water.
-
Remove the bagels from the refrigerator. Gently drop as many bagels as comfortably fit in a single layer into the water (I could fit 4 in my pot at a time). They should float within 10 seconds. After 1 minute 30 seconds, flip them over and boil for another 1 min 30 sec. If you like very chewy bagels, boil for 2 min each side, while if you don’t like them chewy, boil for 1 min each side. I found that 1 minute 30 was my favourite! They will increase in size during the boiling process.
-
As you boil the bagels, place them back on the baking trays. When they have all been boiled, place the baking trays in the oven. Bake for 5 minutes, then rotate 180° (so they cook more evenly). Reduce the oven temperature to 230°C and continue baking for 5 minutes, or until the bagels are a light golden brown.
-
Remove from the oven and let cool on a rack for 10-15 minutes. Serve with the berry mascarpone (see instructions below) and extra chopped pistachios. Smear on a fresh or toasted bagel and enjoy!
-
The bagels keep in an airtight plastic bag for a few days, and also freeze very well in an airtight bag - just pull out early to defrost (or microwave briefly), cut in half and toast.
-
Gently mix together the mascarpone, lemon zest and berries. Smear onto a toasted bagel and scatter with chopped pistachios.
Ahhh I love making homemade bagels! They are soo much better than store bought and while they do take awhile to make, the end result is worth it. Also, that berry mascarpone is gorgeous my friend!
So glad you agree, I just couldn’t believe I had never made them before! It will be becoming a regular thing, that is for sure. Thank you Nicole! <3
Homemade bagels are so beautiful, they look so tasty, and that mascarpone with berry and pistachios is so creative and delicious.
Thanks Katalina! The chewiness of the cinnamon bagels against the creamy berry mascarpone was definitely one of the best breakfasts I had had in a looong time <3
huh. I’ve never made bagels before. Never even thought about making them! Thanks for the inspiration!
Well would 100% recommend it Mimi! So worth it x
These look spectacular Claudia! I haven’t made bagels for ages but felt really proud when I made my first batch. The dough is a hard dough though so it put my mixer through a bit of a work out but it was worth it in the end 🙂
Thanks so much Lorraine! It was definitely a very stiff dough – my mixer managed to hold up but it was pretty close! And yes, totally worth it in the end 🙂
Oh far out, I am obsessed with bagels, and these look like absolute heaven! I also have a tub of mascarpone languishing in my fridge that I’ve been wondering what to do with – thanks for the inspiration!!
Thanks Cecily! Definitely a good use for mascarpone – the berries give it enough sweetness, but it isn’t too sweet against the bagels – so good! Also just had a divine banana bread with espresso mascarpone at a cafe the other day – would also recommend that as a use for it! <3
Hi! New reader here but I am so impressed with these bagels! And your photos are absolutely STUNNING!
Hi Jessica, thank you so much for stopping by!! Pretty new to the photography and food styling thing so thank you, that means a lot! <3
Ohhhh I haven’t had bagel in a few weeks! These look amazing <3
Thanks Shellie! Me neither actually since I have been at college, so looking back at this post makes me want to make them against so much! <3
Claudia these bagels are absolutely divine sounding – and your photography is gorgeous. I am completely inspired by this to create some bagels at home, they are among my favorite for breakfast. I have done a plethora of baked goods, including pretzels – but I can’t understand why I haven’t attempted this! On the most blissful side note – berry pistachio mascarpone sounds exceptional! Lovely post. ♥
Thank you Danielle, would love to know how it goes if/when you get around to making bagels! I was just so totally surprised by how easy and delicious they were – will be making them again very soon! X
Claudia, your bagels look FANTASTIC! Firstly, cinnamon raisin bagels are my favorite!! Their heavenly smell just makes you feel like all is right in the world. They already smell amazing when you just pop pre-made ones in a toaster, but when you make them at home in the oven…it’s a whole different thing…like you said sooo much better. Your bagels look absolutely perfect; I must try your recipe. And the topping – that is so creative and so scrumptious! Mascarpone is essentially just a sweeter cream cheese so the fact that you swapped the mascarpone in instead and did a berry pistachio mixture with it is genius. Plus it looks so incredibly beautiful. What a fabulous brunch idea too. I’m already planning all the ways I can surprise some family and friends with these. I love that it yields 16 bagels too…I eat bagels all the time so this is a definite time saver to have them ready to go in the freezer. Thanks for the descriptive details and the timeline you laid out…very helpful! You’re awesome, Claudia…keep up the amazing work!! <3 XO
Aw thank you so much Beeta, you are seriously the sweetest – so lovely to read your comments! I totally agree with everything you just said – yes to the cinnamon raisin, the mascarpone (much nicer than cream cheese in this instance), being able to make 16.. I need to make them again too! <3
Now those are some fancy bagels! I really have to try making homemade bagels sometime, it sounds very rewarding 🙂
It so is, would definitely recommend – nothing like eating your own handmade bagels <3
Oh. My.Gosh. What a stunning looking bagel. These are the most beautiful looking bagels I have ever seen. They are stunning, delicious and mouth-watering. Loved everything about these. 🙂
Thank you Anu! X
Hello! I’ve ALWAYS wanted to make my own bagels … looks like you’ve absolutely nailed it! And that berry mascapone topping … swoooon.
Hi Helen! Thanks so much for stopping by, and I would whole-heartedly recommend it – bagel making is the best 🙂 x
Homemade everything is WAY better! When I made my first bagels I was officially converted. For my Dad’s birthday one year I woke up at about 4 AM so that he could have FRESH bagels for breakfast. It was worth it. I love these and your styling is just amazing. The mascarpone looks divine. I’m in the mood for bagels now!
Totally agree with you – homemade bread, homemade ice-cream, pasta – you name it, it’s better! Waking up at 4am is serious commitment, I’m impressed – at least with this recipe you can prep it the night before so hopefully wouldn’t have to wake up quite that early!! Thanks so much Kathryn! <3
Holy cow! (I mean holy bagel)! What a delicious mess you’ve got here! This mascarpone cream on the bagels looks absolutely fabulous!
Thanks Ben! A delicious mess is such a good way of putting it – sticky fingers and lots of mascarpone everywhere but so yum! 🙂
Bagels-makers 🙂 always impress me, and I’ve seen so many posts with bagels and every time wanted to make those, but never made so far.. Your bagels look delicious! and that cream..mmmm yummy! 🙂
Thanks Mila! You should try it out for sure, homemade bagels are so good! 🙂
Wow look at that, I am so drooling now.
Thanks Raymund!
Claudia these bagels look amazing, I’ve never tried to make my own before but I’m definitely gonna give it a go now! Lovin that berry mascarpone too x
Thanks so much Michelle! Would love to know how bagel-making goes for you x
I am not ashamed to admit that I am almost drooling all over my keyboard 🙂 This looks insanely good! Your home must´ve smelled delicious for days!! Just lovely!
xo
Haha thanks Martina, lovely to hear from you! It did smell good, and even more so whenever someone decided to heat one up again for a snack! <3
Oh my gosh, these look delicious! I’ve also been meaning to do a bagel post and I think this is the push I needed. Beautiful pictures!
Thanks Julia! Would definitely recommend – it was so satisfying and not actually all that difficult. Would love to know what you think if you give bagel-making a try!
Hey Claudia,
If I’m planning to bake them on the same day, do they still need to be refrigerated before boiling or is that something to be done only if one is doing a 2- or 3-day version?
Hey Claudia,
I just finished making these. They look nothing like the picture. Not even close! What could I have done incorrectly?
Hi Rita! I’m so sorry to hear that, what did they end up looking like? Did you end up refrigerating them before boiling them, as that step is definitely necessary – it is hard to speed up the whole process to fit into one day. Did the bagels float at the points mentioned in the recipe? sorry to hear they didn’t turn out.