Pretzel Bagels

Every time I visit friends in NYC, I feel like I’m home again. I used to live and work there as a stagehand in the ‘90s. It was the first place I lived on my own after college. I’m definitely reminded how much I miss the food there – especially bagels. The pretzel bagels I share here are really good, and have a decent chew…but is it really a bagel?

Looking for bagel recipes online because I was missing the ones back in New York, and didn’t want to order a dozen of them online. I came across a super simple recipe – it only has 2 ingredients: Greek yogurt and self-rising flour (see Note 1). It’s marketed as a “healthy” bagel you can make at home, and I really liked the idea of something I can make super easily, and with no yeast! I split the recipe so I would end up with just 2 bagels.

But what came out of the oven wasn’t quite right. It was a bready faux bagel, without that chew I love in the traditional New York ones. I guess if you’re used to supermarket bagels, this would be ok?

Once you’ve been spoiled with New York bagels, you know you have to try again, so I did some research online and came across a standard bagel-cooking technique: boiling it before baking. Boiling it in alkaline water, treated with “baked” baking soda (see Note 2) before baking it, resulted in a bagel that’s… a lot like a soft pretzel? 

It’s still not a New York bagel, but I do love soft pretzels. It’s something that was uniquely “American” to me. Growing up in Japan, soft baked pretzels were something I’d only get to have at a mall during summer breaks in the US. So…was this actually a win? I didn’t get my New York bagel, but it was a super tasty pretzel faux bagel hybrid thing.

You can certainly still treat this as a bagel – a pretzel faux bagel, I guess? Slice them in half, and go savory with a cream cheese schmear and some cucumbers and lox, or go sweet with cream cheese, honey, walnuts, and some cinnamon, or some jam. Or make some herby ricotta dip as a lighter, alternative “schmear.”

They’re also awesome with salt and mustard!

For other bagel ideas, try my Stuffed Bagel recipe! You can also learn how to make your own easy Homemade Ricotta to make a faux “schmear” for these.

Notes:

1. All-purpose flour is just regular flour with the addition of baking powder and salt; my version actually uses my own blend for self-rising flour. To make your own self-rising flour, add 1-1/2 tsp baking powder and 1/4 tsp salt per 1 cup of your favorite flour – I actually like using bread flour for a more pretzel-y texture.

1. Baking your baking soda turns the baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) into sodium carbonate (an alkaline salt), and is a great substitute for the lye traditionally used when baking bagels. You can use regular baking soda, but taking the time to bake the baking soda will result in an even chewier bagel, because it’ll make the water you boil them in even more alkaline. Science!

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup self-rising bread / all-purpose flour* 
• 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
• 1/4 tbsp “baked” baking soda**
• Water
• Kosher salt
• Everything bagel seasoning

*Note: To make your own self-rising flour, add 1-1/2 tsp baking powder & 1/4 tsp salt to 1 cup of flour. Both bread and all-purpose flour work for this recipe.

**Note: To make “baked” baking soda, spread 1 cup of baking soda onto a lined baking sheet and bake at 250F for 1 hour.

Directions

Bake your baking soda in advance, by spreading 1 cup of baking soda onto a lined baking sheet and baking at 250F for 1 hour. Allow to cool, and store in an airtight container.

Start boiling a pot of water with 1 tbsp of baked baking soda.

Preheat oven to 400F.

In a bowl, combine the Greek yogurt and self-rising flour to form a dough. Let rest for 15 minutes. Lightly knead again.

Roll dough into 2 portions, and form into bagel, pretzel, or breadstick shapes.

Carefully place bagels into the treated boiling water for 10 – 15 seconds, until the dough floats to the surface. Flip and cook for another 10-15 seconds.

Remove bagels from water and transfer to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Take care to drain off as much water as possible when transferring. Sprinkle kosher salt and/or everything bagel seasoning.

Bake for 25 minutes until golden brown on top.

Remove from the oven and let cool completely. 

Slice to enjoy as a bagel – add cream cheese and your favorite accompaniments (lox, cucumbers, etc), or as a sandwich bun for breakfast sandwiches, or with cheeses and sliced meats for a picnic lunch.

If baked as a pretzel or breadstick, serve with mustard or dipping sauce of your choice.