Learn to make do-it-yourself blueberry bagels utterly from scratch. These bagels are chewy on the surface, smooth and dense on the within, and full of actual blueberries. Style testers stated they had been essentially the most flavorful blueberry bagels they’d ever had, and we agree—simply take a look at their attractive coloration!

There’s nothing fairly like a contemporary bagel, particularly when it’s heat from the oven, flippantly crisp on the surface, and full of blueberries inside! These do-it-yourself blueberry bagels are smooth, very chewy, subtly candy, and boast a beautiful, naturally violet hue. Better of all, they’re made with easy, actual substances and the dough will be prepped forward.
My workforce and I examined these blueberry bagels many occasions over the previous 2 months to get the feel excellent: not too dense, not too bready, and by no means gummy. The hot button is a sturdy but smooth dough, a fast boil earlier than baking, and loads of blueberries in each chunk. This was a tall order!
In the event you’ve ever made do-it-yourself bagels, the method can be acquainted to you. And if that is your first time, let me guarantee you: this recipe could be very doable, even for newbies.

Yeast Freshmen: Begin Right here
Reference this Baking with Yeast Information everytime you work with baker’s yeast. I embrace sensible solutions to all your frequent yeast questions.
Substances You Want:
- Contemporary or Frozen Blueberries: We’ll taste and tint the dough with a do-it-yourself blueberry discount. One thing just like this blueberry sauce topping, however not as thick. For the discount, you should use contemporary or frozen blueberries; I exploit frozen, that are handy and accessible yr spherical.
- Granulated Sugar: You’ll have to divide it in half; prepare dinner half with the blueberries, and add the remaining half to the yeast and water.
- Heat Water: Liquid for the dough.
- Yeast: Permits the dough to rise. I like to recommend an on the spot or energetic dry yeast.
- Vanilla: A teaspoon of vanilla extract enhances and enhances the blueberry taste.
- Dried Blueberries: Search for the sort which might be chewy, like raisins or dried cranberries. We haven’t examined these bagels with freeze-dried blueberries.
- Bread Flour: A high-protein flour is important for bagels. We would like a dense and chewy texture, not smooth and flaky like do-it-yourself cinnamon rolls.
- Salt: Can’t make flavorful bread with out it!

Step-by-Step: Make Blueberry Bagels
Cook dinner the contemporary or frozen blueberries with a bit of sugar till they break down right into a unfastened sauce, about 10 minutes. You need to have 1/2 cup (about 130g); don’t use greater than that within the dough. Let it cool barely earlier than including it to the dough (an excessive amount of warmth can kill the yeast).
The blueberry discount can be looser/thinner than a jam, and even thinner than blueberry sauce topping. That is what you’re going for:


Whisk collectively the remaining sugar, heat water, and yeast. Cowl and let it sit for about 5–10 minutes till foamy and frothy. Combine within the remaining dough substances, together with the cooled blueberry combination and dried blueberries, till a dense, barely cheesy dough types. If it feels dry, add extra water, 1 teaspoon at a time.


Knead the dough by hand or use a stand mixer. (Need assistance? I’ve a full visible information in my Knead Dough tutorial.)
After the dough has been kneaded, cowl it and let it rise till about doubled in measurement, about 2 hours:


Form Blueberry Bagels
Punch down the dough, then divide it into 8 sections and form into bagels. If in case you have a meals scale, it’s useful right here for dividing the dough evenly. Our bagels every weighed round 130g.
Poke a gap by the middle and gently stretch to about 1.5–2 inches broad. They don’t should be good!


Bagel Water Bathtub
Bagels should prepare dinner for 1 minute on all sides in a pot of boiling water. That is really crucial step in the entire recipe. Why?
- Boiling the bagels offers them their lovely shine. However seems to be aren’t every thing—this shine is definitely a results of the dough’s starches gelatinizing, which creates a crisp, shiny coating. I realized this from Cooks Illustrated.
- Boiling bagels cooks the outer layer of dough, which ensures they’ll maintain their form within the oven.
Add honey or barley malt syrup to the water tub. Why? The sugar provides further caramelization and crisp. Brushing the boiled bagels with egg wash does the identical. Don’t skip both!


As soon as your bagels are boiled and egg-washed, they’re prepared for the oven! Bake till these purple beauties darken on prime to a deep golden-brown shade.
Home made blueberry bagels are a type of baking tasks that really feel further rewarding, as a result of they style infinitely higher than store-bought. Slice, toast, slather with cream cheese, get pleasure from plain… nonetheless you want them, they’re at all times a win.


Description
These do-it-yourself blueberry bagels are splendidly chewy on the surface, smooth and dense on the within, and full of actual blueberries. The dough is flavored with a fast stovetop blueberry sauce and chewy dried blueberries. Made utterly from scratch with easy substances and unbeatable taste! Make-ahead and freezing directions included beneath.
- Cook dinner the blueberries: Place the blueberries and half of the sugar (2 Tbsp/25g) in a small saucepan over medium-low warmth. Cook dinner, stirring with a silicone spatula, till you’ve got a blueberry sauce, a bit of thinner than a jam, about 10 minutes. You need to have round 1/2 cup of sauce, or about 130g. Pour right into a heat-proof bowl and let cool barely (to about 110°F or cooler). Be happy to hurry it up by putting it within the fridge whilst you proceed.
- Put together the dough: Within the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment, whisk the nice and cozy water, remaining 2 Tablespoons of sugar, and yeast collectively. Cowl and permit to take a seat for 5-10 minutes till foamy and frothy on the floor. *In the event you don’t have a stand mixer, use a big mixing bowl and blend the dough with a wood spoon or silicone spatula within the subsequent step.*
- To the yeast combination, add 1/2 cup (130g) of the marginally cooled blueberry sauce (don’t exceed that quantity), adopted by the vanilla extract, dried blueberries, 1 cup of the bread flour, and the salt, then beat on medium velocity till included. Add the remaining flour and beat on medium velocity for two minutes, till the dough comes collectively and pulls away from the edges of the bowl. If it appears too sticky and clings to the edges of the bowl as a substitute of forming a tough mass across the dough hook or spoon, add extra flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, and proceed to combine till the dough pulls away from the edges of the bowl. The dough needs to be stiff. Whether it is dry or crumbly and breaks off in items, add extra water, 1 teaspoon at a time, mixing effectively after every addition.
- Knead the dough: When the dough has reached the correct consistency, beat on low velocity with the dough hook for a further 6–8 minutes, or knead by hand on a flippantly floured floor for six–8 minutes, till the dough feels easy and elastic. (In the event you’re new to bread-making, my Knead Dough video tutorial may help right here.) If the dough turns into too sticky in the course of the kneading course of, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of flour at a time on the dough or on the work floor/within the bowl to make a smooth, barely cheesy dough. Don’t add extra flour than you want as a result of you don’t want a dry dough.
- Flippantly grease a big bowl with nonstick spray, butter, or oil. Place the dough within the bowl, turning it to coat all sides within the oil. Cowl the bowl with plastic wrap or a clear kitchen towel. Permit the dough to rise at room temperature for two hours, or till doubled in measurement.
- Line two massive baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Form the bagels: When the dough is risen, punch it right down to launch the air. On a flippantly floured floor, divide the dough into 8 equal items, about 130g every. Form each bit right into a ball. Press your index finger by the middle of every ball and stretch to create a bagel form with a gap about 1.5–2 inches in diameter. Organize the formed bagels on the ready baking sheets. Loosely cowl the formed bagels with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and allow them to relaxation for five–10 minutes as you put together the water tub.
- Preheat the oven to 425°F (218°C).
- Water tub: Fill a big, broad pot with 2 quarts (1.9L) of water. Whisk within the honey or barley malt syrup. Convey to a boil over excessive warmth, then cut back warmth to medium-high. Drop 2 or 3 bagels in at a time, ensuring they’ve sufficient room to drift round. Boil the bagels for 1 minute, then use a spatula to flip every bagel over and boil for 1 minute extra. Utilizing a slotted metallic spatula, carry the bagels out of the water, letting the surplus water drain off. Place the bagels again on the lined baking sheets. Repeat with remaining bagels.
- Utilizing a pastry brush, brush the egg wash on prime and across the sides of every bagel.
- Bake for 26–half-hour, rotating the pans midway by, till the bagels have flippantly browned. Permit the bagels to chill on the baking sheets for 20 minutes, then switch to a cooling rack to chill utterly.
- Slice, toast, prime, no matter you need! Cowl leftover bagels tightly and retailer at room temperature for as much as 2 days or within the fridge for as much as 5 days. You’ll be able to freeze them for as much as 3 months.
Notes
- In a single day Make-Forward Directions: Put together the dough by step 5, however enable the dough to rise in a single day within the fridge as a substitute of at room temperature. The sluggish rise offers the bagels fantastic taste! Within the morning, take away the dough from the fridge and let the dough rise for 45 minutes at room temperature. Proceed with step 6. I don’t suggest shaping the bagels the evening earlier than as they’ll puff up an excessive amount of in a single day.
- Freezing Make-Forward Directions: Baked bagels freeze splendidly! Freeze them for as much as 3 months, thaw in a single day within the fridge or at room temperature, then heat to your liking. You can even freeze the bagel dough. After punching down the dough in step 7, wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap, then a layer of aluminum foil—or seal it tightly in a freezer bag. Freeze for as much as 3 months. Thaw in a single day within the fridge, then punch the dough down once more to launch any air bubbles. Proceed with the remainder of step 7.
- Particular Instruments (affiliate hyperlinks): Small Saucepan | Stand Mixer | Baking Sheets | Parchment Paper or Silicone Baking Mats | Meals Scale | Massive Pot (equivalent to a 5- or 6-quart Dutch oven) | Pastry Brush
- Yeast: Use on the spot or energetic dry yeast. If utilizing energetic dry yeast, the rise time could also be barely longer. 1 commonplace packet is about 2 and 1/4 teaspoons, so you’ll need a bit of greater than 1 packet of yeast. Reference my Baking with Yeast Information for solutions to frequent yeast FAQs.
- Dried Blueberries: Search for the sort which might be chewy, like raisins or dried cranberries. You’ll be able to skip them if wanted, however they add concentrated blueberry taste and chewy texture. With out them, the bagels can be milder in taste. We haven’t examined these bagels with freeze-dried blueberries.
- Bread Flour: Bagels require a high-protein flour. Bread flour is a should. Listed below are all my recipes utilizing bread flour in order for you extra recipes to make use of it up. All-purpose flour can be utilized in a pinch, however the bagels can be flimsy and never almost as chewy.
- Bread Machine: Place the dough substances into the pan of the machine. Program the machine to dough or handbook, then begin. After 9–10 minutes, the dough can be fairly stiff. Permit the machine to finish its cycle, then proceed with the recipe.
- Halve or Double: You’ll be able to halve this dough recipe by merely halving all the dough substances (don’t halve the water or honey for the boiling step). No modifications to the recipe directions. For greatest style and texture and to not overwhelm your mixer with extra heavy dough, I don’t suggest doubling this dough recipe. As a substitute, make separate batches of dough.

