I’m sure you’ve realized by now that I have a thing for breakfast food, especially baked goods. It doesn’t matter if it’s scones, muffins, toast, coffee cake, etc., you’ll most likely find one of them in my house at any given time.
However, I’ve realized I don’t make many bagels. I don’t know why. They are so easy and they can be made with so many flavor combinations. One of my favorites is a cinnamon sugar bagel.
These bagels have cinnamon in the base and a cinnamon sugar swirl that is mixed throughout. To make the flavor even richer, a cinnamon sugar glaze lightly covers the tops of them. An easy whipped honey cinnamon cream cheese is the perfect pairing to these bagels.
If you’re someone who hasn’t made bagels before, you may think that the long list of ingredients and instructions means they’re difficult to make, but the actual process is actually quite easy. Just mix, let rise, shape, let rest, boil, and bake. That’s it!
If you are someone who doesn’t like to work with yeast breads because of the time that is involved with rising, you really should give these a try.
When you take the first warm, chewy bite, you realize that the time it takes to make these cinnamon sugar bagels worth it!
- For the Bagels
- 3 1/2 C bread flour
- 1 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 1/4 tsp Platinum or Instant Dry Red Star Yeast
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 1/2 C water, warmed to 120-130F
- For the Cinnamon Swirl
- 1/4 C sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- For the Water Bath
- 8-10 C water
- 2 tbsp brown sugar
- 1 tbsp sugar
- cinnamon sugar for garnish, optional
- For the Cream Cheese
- 8 oz cream cheese, softened
- 2 tbsp honey
- 1/4-1/2 tsp cinnamon, depending on preference
- In the bowl of your stand mixer, combine 2 1/2 C flour salt, yeast, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Add in warm water and beat until dough just starts to come together. Add remaining flour and beat until dough comes together. Swap out paddle attachment for a dough hook.
- Knead on medium-low for 8-10 minutes or until dough is smooth and elastic.
- Shape dough into a ball and place into an oiled bowl. Cover and allow to rise in a warm location until doubled in size, about an hour.
- Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface (my dough barely needed any flour to prevent it from sticking). Gently press into a thick rectangle.
- Stir together cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl. Sprinkle cinnamon sugar over the top. Fold rectangle in half and cut into 8 pieces.
- Press each piece of dough together and roll into a ball. If cinnamon sugar falls out, just roll the dough in it. Press your finger through the middle of the ball of dough and stretch and shape the dough out until the hole in the middle is about 1 1/2 inches wide.
- Place on a baking sheet sprayed with non-stick cooking spray or lined with a silicone mat. Repeat with remaining dough. Allow to rest for 25-30 minutes or until puffed but not double in size.
- Preheat oven to 400. While dough is resting, bring water and sugars to a boil over medium heat in a large saucepan.
- In batches, boil bagels 45-50 seconds per side. Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Sprinkle with more cinnamon sugar, if desired.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Carefully flip them after 8-10 minutes to help with even cooking/rising.
- Allow to cool on a wire rack before serving.
- Prepare whipped cream cheese by placing cream cheese, honey, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Beat with an electric mixer for 2-3 minutes until light and fluffy.
Tiff
Monday 23rd of August 2021
Ummmmm, I don't like to leave negative reviews, but these bagels were not that great. They have lots of cinnamon and sugar in them so I was expecting a burst of flavor. They tasted like nothing. They had less flavor than the plain bagels I usually make. My children refused to eat them. I wanted to leave this review since I know I look at reviews for recipes when I'm searching so I wanted to be honest here. Delicious in theory, not so great in reality.
Shantay
Thursday 7th of September 2017
Made these tonight. They were ok. I expected them to be a little bit sweeter. I didn't try them with the cream cheese spread, however. That may have made a huge difference.
Kelly
Wednesday 26th of February 2014
These look amazing Jessica! love bagels but have never made them at home and can't wait to try these with that cinnamon cream cheese! Pinning!
Jocelyn@Brucrewlife
Monday 24th of February 2014
I heart these cinnamon sugar bagels!! Could you just make a dozen extra and send them on over?? ;) And that cream cheese-swoon!!!
kate | Food Babbles
Friday 21st of February 2014
Cinnamon bagels are my all-time favorite and yours sound amazing! I love the addition of that lovely whipped honey cinnamon cream cheese. Such a nice touch!