Cottage Cheese Bagels (Air Fryer or Oven!)

Three cottage cheese bagels stacked on a wooden cutting board, sprinkled with sesame and poppy seeds. A butter knife with a wooden handle rests beside them, with a small amount of cream cheese on its tip.

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Cottage Cheese Bagels (Air Fryer or Oven!)

Can you believe these Cottage Cheese Bagels use just two ingredients? They are so easy and quick to make, high in protein thanks to the cottage cheese and taste amazing!

Prep Time10

Cook Time25

Course: Bread

Cuisine: American

Keyword: Cottage Cheese Bagels, Two Ingredient Cottage Cheese Bagels

Servings:

Calories: 131kcal

Author: Lucy Parissi | Supergolden Bakes

Equipment

Ingredients

For the bagels

1 cup (220g) cottage cheese full fat or low fat
1 cup (130g) self rising flour plus extra for dusting

Toppings (optional)

poppy seeds
sesame seeds
everything bagel seasoning

Instructions

Blend the cottage cheese

First you will need to blend your cottage cheese in a blender or food processor until it has a completely smooth texture. If your cottage cheese is thick, you will need to add a little water (1-2 tablespoons) to facilitate the blending. You want the same consistency as yogurt.
1 cup (130g) self rising flour

Make the dough

Add the blended cottage cheese and self rising flour to a mixing bowl and briefly beat together with a hand mixer fitted with dough hook. Stop mixing when you have a shaggy dough.
Knead the dough on a lightly floured worktop until smooth. Form into a ball and cut into four equal portions. Keep any dough you are not using straight away covered with a clean towel.

Shape the dough

Roll each dough piece into a ball and flatten to form a disk 8cm / 3 inch in diameter. Use a small round cutter (or the bottom of a piping tip) to cut a small hole in the middle.
Gather the dough from the bagel holes to create the final bagel. Poke a hole through the center the dough ball with your finger and gently stretch the center until the hole is about 1 inch in diameter.

Boil the bagels

Bring a large pot or wok of water to the boil. Carefully lower the bagels into the pot (don't crowd them - you may need to do this in batches) and boil for about a minute, using a chopstick to gently flip them over halfway through.
Use a slotted spoon to transfer the boiled bagels onto baking paper and immediately sprinkle them with any toppings you are using. You don't need to use egg wash, the moisture from the water will help all the toppings stick!
poppy seeds, sesame seeds, everything bagel seasoning

Oven Baking Instructions

Preheat the oven to 375°F / 190°C and bake the bagels for 25-30 minutes, flipping them over halfway through baking. Cool the bagels for at least 15 minutes before slicing.

Air Fryer Baking Instructions

Preheat the air fryer to 350°F (180°). Place the bagels directly on the air fryer basket (or use a silicone liner) and bake for 15-17 minutes, flipping them over halfway through so that they bake evenly. Cool on a wire rack before slicing.

Video

Notes

Storing and Freezing: Cottage cheese bagels are best eaten when freshly baked. You can however freeze them for up to three months. Slice cooled bagels in half and wrap with a layer each of plastic wrap and foil. You can pop them in the toaster oven and cook from frozen.
Why boil the bagels? This water bath method is used in traditional bagels giving them their shine and unique chewy texture. You can also add a teaspoon baking soda to the boiling water (a method used when making pretzels) – this makes the water more alkaline and gives them a deep brown color. You can skip this step if you like, but it really makes these cottage cheese bagels more chewy and much more like traditional bagels!
Make your own self-rising flour: simply sift one cup (130g) of all purpose flour with 1 3/4 teaspoons of baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon of salt.
Can I use low fat or fat-free cottage cheese? Yes! I have made this recipe with all types of cottage cheese. The only thing to be on the lookout for is how creamy or dense your brand of cottage cheese is. We want the blended cottage cheese to have the same consistency as yogurt so if it is really thick you may need to add some water.
Topping suggestions: you can use any type of seeds that are used on bagels such as poppy, sesame, pumpkin and so on. Avoid herbs or anything that burns easily.

Nutrition