Homemade Blueberry Bagels

ByElien Lewis
Jump to Recipe

This blueberry bagel recipe makes amazing homemade bagels. They’re chewy bagels, lightly sweet, and a pretty purple. Made with frozen or fresh blueberries. This blueberry bagel recipe has been updated as of March 6, 2024.

a ripped in half purple bagel.

Fresh bagels are perfect for breakfast or brunch, and adding blueberries to the bagel dough makes this recipe extra special. The blueberry flavor is very mild in these bagels. You can add dried blueberries to the dough if you want it more pronounced.

They’re delicious when served with cream cheese, fresh or lightly toasted.

Blueberries in bagels – Cooked or not cooked

Juicy blueberries bring color, flavor, and moisture to the bagel dough. In this recipe, you can use frozen blueberries or fresh blueberries.

I initially cooked and reduced the berries before adding them to the dough. This has had mixed results with readers who sometimes cooked it too much, so the blueberries became too syrupy or dry. I now cook the berries on very low heat, for just a very short time just to release their juices – no further than that. This gives a more intense purple color to the bagels than adding them to the dough as is.

However, retesting these two options shows there’s only a very slight difference in the end result, so if you want to skip the cooking of the berries, go right ahead! Below is a side by side of a dough made with cooked berries vs. not cooked berries.

bagel dough.

The bagel dough

Bagels are usually made from lean dough. This means it’s a dough where there is no fat added to it. They use quite a stiff dough, too, with low hydration. The end result is bagels that are a bit chewy and thick, and less airy than other yeast bread.

A good bagel should have a decent amount of toothsome chew to it. Use high-gluten flour for the classic chewy texture – this is a flour with a protein level between 11-13%. 

This is best done with bread flour. Some all-purpose flours have a protein level of over 11% in which case you can use that sort of all-purpose flour for these bagels too.

purple bagel with cream cheese inside.

The ingredients

Find the ingredient amounts for these delicious blueberry bagels listed in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post. Here is a rundown of what you will need.

  • Blueberries. Fresh or frozen blueberries work in this recipe.
  • Warm water
  • Active dry yeast or instant yeast
  • Granulated sugar – just a little to enhance the sweet blueberry flavor.
  • Bread flour or strong all-purpose flour
  • Salt
  • Vanilla extract
  • Optional dried blueberries – for extra blueberry flavor.
  • Honey, maple syrup, or brown sugar. For poaching. Poaching the bagels in sweetened boiling water prior to baking gives them a golden and chewy crust. The added honey or other sugar gives them a beautiful golden sheen with no need for egg wash.

Equipment

This simple recipe can easily be made by hand, though for extra ease, use a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment.

Method

  1. Cooking the blueberries – This pre-cooking step is optional, but it intensifies the color of the bagels. If skipping it, simply add whole blueberries (fresh or thawed) to the dough when mixing.
  1. In a small saucepan over low heat, add the blueberries. Let the berries heat up, stirring occasionally until they release their juices. Take it off the heat and let them cool down.
  1. In a large bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine water, yeast, and sugar and stir. Add in the flour, salt, blueberries, and vanilla.
purple dough being mixed.
  1. Add in the flour, salt, blueberry mixture, and vanilla. Use a fork or switch the stand mixer onto low speed, to combine it into a thick dough. The dough should be very thick but also slightly sticky.
a bowl of purple dough.
  1. Keep it kneading or mixing for around 10 minutes for optimal gluten development.

Rising

  1. Once the dough is kneaded and strong, form it into a ball. Place the dough ball into a large oiled bowl and cover it with plastic wrap or a damp towel. Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in size.
a bowl of purple dough.
purple blueberry dough pieces.
  1. Punch the dough down and pull it from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface.
  1. Cut the dough into 8 equal pieces (a kitchen scale works well to ensure even bagels) and shape each piece into a ball. Let these dough balls rest for 5 minutes.
shaped bagels.
  1. Use your thumb and index finger of both hands to push a hole into the center of each ball of dough, then roll the dough ball around your fingers in a circular motion to widen the hole. Aim for a large hole as it will shrink back in size once it sits.
  1. Place the shaped bagels on a prepared sheet pan lined with a silicone mat or parchment paper and let them puff out a bit, for around 30 minutes while the oven preheats and a pot of water is brought to a boil.
  2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and preheat the oven to 425°F/220°C and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Once the water is boiling, stir in honey or brown sugar.
  3. Dust any excess flour off the bagels and drop them in the boiling water one at a time. Boil 2-3 bagels at a time.
  4. Let them poach in the water for 1-minute total, flipping them after 30 seconds. Remove the bagels from the water using a slotted spoon. Drain the boiled bagels on a wire rack and continue with the rest of the bagels.
poached bagels.

Baking

  1. Place the bagels on the lined baking sheet. Bake them in the oven for around 20 minutes or until olden brown. If they are baking unevenly or your oven has hot spots, turn the oven tray around after 15 minutes of baking.
  2. Remove the baked bagels from the tray and let them cool on a cooling rack for 30 minutes before slicing and serving.
  3. The bagels will initially feel hard as they come from the oven but will soften as they cool to room temperature.
3 bagels stacked.

Storing

Store leftover bagels in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Bagels freeze very well too which will prolong their life. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw frozen bagels at room temperature, in a toaster, microwave, or low-temperature oven.

bird's eye view of blueberry bagels.

Related recipes

Try these sourdough bagels or cinnamon raisin bagels, pumpkin bagels,or strawberry bagels next! Or check out these blueberry recipes:

a ripped in half purple bagel.

Blueberry Bagel Recipe

Yield: 8
Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Additional Time: 2 hours
Total Time: 2 hours 45 minutes

These chewy blueberry bagels are lightly sweet and a beautiful deep purple. Add 1/2 cup of dried blueberries or freeze-dried blueberries to the dough for extra blueberry flavor.

Ingredients

  • 185g (1 1/4 cups) fresh or frozen blueberries, thawed
  • 135g (1/2 cup + 1 Tablespoon) lukewarm water (plus more as needed)
  • 1 1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast or instant yeast
  • 2 Tablespoons granulated sugar
  • 440g (3 1/2 cups) bread flour, plus extra for dusting
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon salt

Poaching

  • 2 litres water
  • 1 Tbsp honey or brown sugar

Instructions

  1. Cooking the blueberries – This pre-cooking step is optional, but it intensifies the color of the bagels. If skipping it, start the recipe at step 2, and add whole blueberries (fresh or thawed) in step 3. In a small saucepan over low heat, add the blueberries. Let the berries heat up on low heat, stirring occasionally and pressing them down until they become super juicy. Don't let the liquid reduce. Take it off the heat and let it cool down.
  2. Combine water, yeast, and sugar and stir in a large bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. If using active dry yeast, let this sit for around 5-10 minutes until it becomes foamy, if using instant yeast this step can be skipped.
  3. Add in the flour, salt, blueberries, and vanilla. Use a fork or switch the stand mixer to low speed to combine it into a thick dough. It should be very thick and slightly sticky. If the dough is too dry, add a tablespoon or two of water as needed.
  4. Keep it kneading or mixing for around 10 minutes for optimal gluten development.
  5. Form the dough into a ball once it is kneaded and strong. Place the dough ball into a large oiled bowl and cover it with plastic wrap or a damp towel. Let the dough rise in a warm place until doubled in size.
  6. Deflate the dough and pull it from the bowl onto a lightly floured surface.
  7. Cut the dough into eight equal pieces (a kitchen scale works well to ensure even bagels) and shape each piece into a ball. Let these dough balls rest for 5 minutes.
  8. Use both hands’ thumb and index finger to push a hole into the center of each ball of dough, then roll the dough ball around your fingers in a circular motion to widen the hole. Aim for a large hole, as it will shrink back in size once it sits.
  9. Place the shaped bagels on a prepared sheet pan lined with parchment paper and let them puff out a bit for around 30 minutes while the oven preheats and a pot of water is brought to a boil.
  10. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and preheat the oven to 425°F/220 °C. Line a large baking sheet with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper. The combination of the sweetness in the bagels and the hot oven can make the bottom of the bagels quite dark. I line my pan with a silicone mat to add a layer of insulation. Using a light coloured pan can also help avoid this - or placing another baking pan underneath the one holding the bagels.
  11. Once the water is boiling, stir in honey or brown sugar.
  12. Dust any excess flour off the bagels and drop them in the boiling water one at a time. Boil 2-3 bagels at a time.
  13. Let them poach in the water for 1 minute total, flipping them after 30 seconds. Remove the bagels from the water using a slotted spoon. Drain the boiled bagels on a wire rack and continue with the rest of the bagels.
  14. Place the bagels on the lined baking sheet.
  15. Bake them in the oven for around 20 minutes or until golden brown. If they are baking unevenly or your oven has hot spots, turn the oven tray around after 15 minutes of baking.
  16. Remove the baked bagels from the tray and let them cool on a cooling rack for 30 minutes before slicing and serving.

Notes

Updated recipe

I initially cooked the berries down before adding them to the dough. This has had mixed results with readers who sometimes cooked it too much, so the blueberries became too syrupy or dry. I now cook the berries on very low heat for a very short time to release their juices – no further than that. This gives the bagels a more intense purple color than adding them to the dough. (See the post for a picture.) This means the added water in the recipe has been decreased since the blueberries aren't reduced. The original recipe used 160g of water.

Retesting these two options shows a very slight difference in the result, so if you want to skip the cooking of the berries, go right ahead!

Extra blueberry flavor

The blueberry flavor in these bagels is very mild. Add 1/2 cup of dried blueberries or freeze-dried blueberries to the dough for extra blueberry flavor.

*The cup sizes given are US cups. Please note that these are smaller than metric cups, for best results use grams.

Recommended Products

As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 8 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 227Carbohydrates: 47gFiber: 2gProtein: 7g
© Elien
Cuisine: American

I'm Elien, a lover of all things cooking, baking, and butter! I am a self-taught baker, author, and foodie. You will find me spending most of my days either recipe testing in the kitchen, photographing food in my living room, or out in the garden. I'm so happy to have you here!

Similar Posts

58 Comments

  1. I am impressed! I was on the hunt for the perfect bagel recipe, I previously tried one recipe two different occasions. When I stumbled upon this recipe I was skeptical at first because a lot of the blueberry recipes I researched didn’t call for vanilla extract. While making this recipe, I almost forget to add it in and boy, am I glad I did. I believe that with the addition of salt really brought this bagel to life. This bagel was soft, crispy and fluffy, all elements that create a great bagel. I will definitely be using this recipe to create jalapeño cheddar and cinnamon raisin.

    Reply

    1. Are these bagels supposed to be chewy?
      Mine are light with a crispy chewy crust and a soft light chewy crumb.
      The ones in Australia are much more dense so I’m not sure what the texture is suppose to be like.

  2. I wanted it make blueberry bagels but add chia seeds and flax seed meal. Does this recipe allow us to add these ingredients, and if so, when is it best to add them?
    Thank you!

    Reply

    1. Heya, you could add in those ingredients though I would add just a small amount.they can be added along with the blueberries 🙂 they will absorb water so add a splash more liquid as needed.

    1. Hey Ashley, the storage instructions are in the post above 🙂 They store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

  5. Hello. Is there nutrition information?
    Also, I love this recipe and I make it all the time! I get so many compliments on my bagels!

    Reply

  6. Lovely texture! Very soft and chewy which I loved!! But not nearly enough blueberry flavour for me. So will add dried blueberries next time with an additional tablespoon of sugar!
    And in my opinion, they definitely need an egg wash, I tested one without, and it was horrible color that hardly browned, maybe just my oven. Will definitely make these again with some minor adjustments. 4/5

    Reply

  7. I love this recipe, but I had to lower the oven temp and the cooking time. I know my oven runs hot, but even when accounting for that, they’d be burnt if I cooked them for 25 minutes at 220°. Otherwise, delicious!

    Reply

    1. Mine also, I made it twice in a row and the second time I made them bigger (6 per recipe) and still had to cook them faster about 15 mins, at around 200.

      They are delicious though. And mine become golden without egg wash.

  8. I made these today. Kinda awesome. I used wild blueberries and the flavor was excellent. Chewy blueberry love. Easy to follow recipe. I’ve made other bagels just not blueberry. Highly recommend

    Reply

  9. Delicious! Perfect results. A beautiful and strong dough. I used both frozen and freeze dried blueberries. The bagels have deep purple chewy interior and a crisp crust. I fermented the bagels overnight in the refrigerator after shaping. Thank you for sharing this recipe.

    Reply

  11. My bagels turned out super dark purple not light and slightly browned as yours are shown. Wondering why this happened? Did I steep the blueberries for too long? Thanks!

    Reply

  12. These bagels are the absolute BEST!! I serve them toasted with cream cheese, fresh strawberries and blueberries. YUMMO! I’m currently baking my third batch of these, a weekly staple now😊

    Reply

  16. I added frozen cherries in place of frozen blueberries. I wanted a cherry vanilla flavor. I’m hoping they turn out!

    Reply

  17. These were perfection! I followed the recipe exactly except for putting the ingredients in my bread machine on the dough cycle for the kneading and rising steps. The bagels came out beautiful and the exactly right texture. Will be making these often!

    Reply

  19. About how long does it usually take for the dough to double in size on the first rise? I know it can differ depending on temp. I’m just looking for an estimate. I believe I let mine go too long last time I made them.

    Reply

    1. Heya the first rise it can take around 1- 1 1/2 hours. If your dough overproofs on the first rise it isn’t so bad, it’s the second rise you’ve got to watch that they don’t puff too far or they can become flat once baked.

  20. Made this recipe 3 times now:

    1st time: I used what they call in South Africa cake flour (their all purpose), the dought was hard as a rock and I don’t remember if I used a scale, so I think the measuring cups were the main culprit. They still turned out eatable but not the greatest they also had a very strong yeast taste so I don’t know what I did there.

    The second time I weighted the flour and kept 20g aside to add if needed instead of putting it all at once, I added 2-3 tablespoons of water, and it got a little sticky so I sprinkled more flour as I kneaded (I don’t think it was 20g). I don’t think I kneaded for 10 min (I don’t have a mixer so I knead by hand and last time I kneaded by hand for 10 mins my bread came out dry.) These turned out AMAZING, but too small for me. And would love more blueberry flavor ( I don’t think they sell dry blueberries here 🙁 )

    So the third time I doubled the recipe, and made 12 out of them to freeze same process, except I decided to try the blueberries as is. I let them thaw, warmed them up quickly in the microwave to room temp, squeezed some of the juice out and put it in the measuring cup for the water and then proceeded as needed. I still added 2 tbsp of water but then had to put a lot more flour in them. For the first time they looked like the picture before baking. WOW now they are perfect, taste more like blueberries (when I cooked them in the pot most of the thickened juice would stick on the pot and the flavour then stayed out of recipe, specially for a small batch)

    Other note my oven is always hotter than recipes and is convection oven, it takes about 15 mins to bake these. Third time lowered the temp to 200 to get less crispy crust.

    Reply

  21. I am curious how much much the bagels should rise in the 30 minutes? Should they be double what they were when first shaped? My house tends to be cool so I rise in oven with light on, but I still sometimes have to leave breads to rise longer than they say. I’m making now and excited to taste the finished product!

    Reply

  22. Made these for the first time today. The dough doubled in size. They didn’t puff up much after I shaped them. I let them sit for 30 min. When I baked them they didn’t puff up any more? Should they get a little bigger during baking?

    Reply

  23. Hi, could I please get a copy of the previous recipe where the blueberries were reduced as it was my go to recipe! I haven’t made them for a few months but am hesitant to use the updated version as they were so perfect before!
    Is the only difference the 160g of water and reducing them? Or have any of the other quantities changed?
    Thank you so much!

    Reply

  24. This was my first time making bagels! I’ll be adding the extra blueberries next time for sure! My bagels seemed to be a little dense and like they should have been a bit bigger? Any ideas on trouble shooting this?

    Reply

    1. Heya, they are meant to be slightly denser but if you think they’re too dense and small I would let them rise a little longer before boiling 🙂

  25. I made your recipe last week and I LOOVEEE them!! But I am wondering if I can use this recipe for raspberry/strawberry/plain bagels?

    Reply

    1. Hey! I have a strawberry and a plain bagel recipe on the blog too that you could use! Just pop bagel in the search bar 🙂 so pleased you loved the them!

  26. Have made a few time ! I add blueberry extract instead of vanilla . My house loves them .. now I’m trying with gluten free flour this week for a friend

    Reply

  27. Hello, can I replace with whole wheat flour? I seemed to remember someone else asking the question, but I cannot find it.

    Reply

  28. I made these yesterday and my husband and I are so impressed. Has a great soft chew with the harder exterior. Great recipe!

    Also, I did cook the berries on low until they released some juices. No problems here!

    Reply

  30. Love these bagels! I’ve made this recipe several times and my kids always love it. I cook down my blueberries first and use honey while poaching.

    Reply

  31. This is such a great recipe. So delicious even after we slice and freeze them. I’ve made this recipe so many times and it’s my daughter’s favorite one. Today they decided they wanted a mixed berry bagel. We added strawberry but it is so sticky. Wish us luck!

    Reply

  33. These came out so good! Way better than store bought! Will definitely be making them again. Thank you for the recipe!

    Reply

  34. How long should we leave to rise for? I left for an hour in a warm spot near a rad and the dough barely rose 🙁

    Reply

    1. Hey, it usually takes my dough about an hour, depending on room temperature. If yours didn’t rise, perhaps your yeast is old, or the water added to the yeast was too hot?

  35. Hi. I’m making these tomorrow and I am a 50 year veteran Baker. The hydration in this recipe seems to be low, very low. Has anybody had to add water into the mixer to get the proper consistency of dough? I know the finished dough is supposed to be stiff. Thanks

    Reply

    1. Hey Dan, the blueberries add quite a bit of water too which will increase the hydration. Adding more water to the recipe will create a softer and more open crumb bagel so you can do that if that’s what you prefer 🙂

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *