Who doesn't love a good bagel?  Nothing beats walking into a bakery and having the smell of fresh hot rounds of goodness greet you. 

I cross my fingers when I go into a bakery or grocery store hoping to see full bins of fresh, hot bagels.  Everything bagels are my favorite flavor, so it's a great day when I see them fresh out of the kitchen. 

How to make bagels at home is a fairly easy process, but be prepared to have some extra time to make them because there is a step-by-step process to follow to ensure a successful baked bagel recipe. I love that I can skip the overnight bagel recipe and enjoy these for breakfast or lunch the same day!

Related recipes: Air Fryer Everything Seasoning Salmon, Vegetable Quiche, The Best Deviled Eggs, Turkey Reuben, Chicken Noodle Soup, French Onion Soup

What you need to make homemade bagels from scratch

These are the helpful tools that help to make homemade bagels easier.

• Dutch Oven: I swear by my Le Creuset Dutch Oven. Nothing compares to cooking in this enamel coated cast iron cookware. It's perfect for baking and cooking and is just beautiful!
• Cooking Spider: This handy tool is also called a strainer and you can find them in the Sushi and steamer sections of cookware stores. They are great for fried foods or boiled items like cooking bagels! I like the bamboo handle spider variety because the handle stays cool and the strainer is big enough to flip and take out bagels and works on ravioli too! Plus, this spider strainer is under $10!
• Baking Sheet & Parchment Paper A baking sheet, like a sheet pan we use for our sheet pan fajitas is perfect for allowing plain bagels to rise and parchment paper works for keeping things tidy when baking bagels after putting on the everything bagel toppings.

Homemade bagel ingredients:

These are items easily found in your pantry

• Russet potato: medium potato (about 5 ounces), scrubbed clean.
• Olive oil: I like to use California Olive oil, but if you have vegetable or canola oil, that will work too. 
• Honey: Your favorite brand honey will go perfectly. 
• All-Purpose Flour: I use King Arthur flour as I find it to be the best. Be sure to use all-purpose. This works best with the yeast and salt that you are adding.
• Kosher Salt: I use Kosher salt in ALL of my cooking and baking now. I like the granular texture when I need a pinch. 
• Active dry yeast: This can be found in the baking aisle near the flour section. You can use active dry yeast or rapid dry yeast. Both will work in this recipe. 
• Egg: one egg is all you'll need for bagels to make an egg wash!
• Everything Spice mix: all measurements are in our printable recipe found below! 

If you like just a plain traditional bagel recipe,  follow all the steps up through the egg-wash topping.  

I like to sprinkle everything spice mix on our deviled eggs recipe– it's so good! 

How to make homemade bagels 

1. In a large heavy bottom pot ( I used my Le Creuset 9qt round) bring 2 ½ quarts water to a boil and cook potato (with skin on) until fork-tender, about 20 minutes.
2. Remove potato with a slotted spoon, or a tool called a cooking Spider– (this is the one I use and I love it!) reserving all water. When the potato is cool, remove skin and mash in a bowl until smooth adding a few drops of the cooking water if you need to.
3. Add honey and olive oil to the mashed potato and stir until creamy.
4. Combine flour, salt, and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer and with the paddle attachment, mix on low. Add potato mixture to flour and 1 cup of the reserved cooking water. Mix on medium speed for 10 minutes until the dough becomes stiff, yet workable (not sticky).
5. Turn the dough ball out onto counter dusted with flour and knead by hand until smooth and bounces back to the touch- about 5 minutes.
6. Drizzle a small bit of olive oil in a large bowl. Add dough and turn over to make sure it is coated with oil. Cover the bowl with a damp dishcloth and place it in a warm spot. Let rise until doubled- about 1-2 hours.
7. Punch dough down in middle, then remove to the counter. Roll into a log and cut into 12 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a ball and place on a tray lined with parchment paper. Cover again with a damp towel and let rise 30 minutes.
8. Make a hole in the center of the dough ball with your thumbs and gently work ring around, stretching center about 2 inches. Return to the baking sheet and cover again with a damp towel and let rest 20 minutes.
9. Preheat oven to 450.
10. Bring the cooking water you have set aside back up to a boil. Carefully drop bagels a few at a time into the water. Cook 30 seconds, flip and cook another 30 seconds.
11. Remove with a slotted spoon or your cooking spider and place it on a wire rack to drain. Return bagels to a parchment-lined baking tray.
12. Return bagels to oven and bake for 10 minutes.
13. In a separate small bowl, beat egg with 1 Tbsp. water; brush egg wash on top of bagels. Immediately sprinkle with the everything spice mix.
14. Return to oven and bake 10-12 minutes longer or until deep golden brown.

Serving suggestions 

Bagels make a great breakfast item, but can be enjoyed any time of day! They are delicious all on their own, but have you ever tried using them to make a hearty hearty sandwich?

Here are some ideas for you to try:

• Using a bagel cutter and knife, slice bagel and place in a toaster. Top with butter or favorite cream cheese.
• Create a custom breakfast sandwich with egg, cheese, and bacon.
• Lunch is delicious when a bagel is topped with turkey, brie, and lettuce, or try your favorite Chicken or Tuna Salad for a topping.

Tip: The overall process for making this recipe was pretty simple; however, time-consuming, so make sure you have a good chunk of time set aside. It takes about 2-3 hours to make a dozen, but the outcome is SO worth it!