Pumpkin Spice Bagels
Packed with real pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice, these Pumpkin Spice Bagels are a fun addition to the fall baking lineup!
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Pumpkin Spice season. It’s a thing. From dog treats to potato chips to hummus, it seems that nothing is safe from being pumpkin spice-ified these days. But here’s the thing – I love pumpkin spice! There’s a reason why so many companies make pumpkin spice products. People like me buy said pumpkin spice products.
While I won’t be picking up any pumpkin spice hummus, I’m a sucker for pumpkin spice coffee and pumpkin spice baked goods. Thomas’ pumpkin spice English muffins? I grab a couple packages when they show up each fall. And then I grab some more. I might even hoard these in my freezer for cold January and February days…long after the limited edition pumpkin spice versions are gone.
Some years ago, I stumbled across a homemade bagel recipe that seemed fairly easy. I’ve made homemade Everything Bagels (they were amazing!), but that recipe requires the dough to hang out in the fridge overnight. Not a problem as long as you plan ahead. But a bagel recipe that doesn’t involve checking into a refrigerator overnight? I was intrigued!
I finally got around to trying that recipe out, and it was good. They were just plan bagels, and they were tasty. Mind you, they won’t be winning any awards in New York City for best bagels…but they were good enough to make again. That’s usually our rating system for recipes. Was it good enough to make again? In the case of those bagels, the answer was yes.
Pumpkin Spice Bagels
Since we’re in pumpkin spice season, I decided to do the logical thing and pumpkin spice-ify that bagel recipe. Adding pumpkin puree to recipes is tricky since it contains a lot of moisture. I think I went back to the flour jar about 4 times before I was happy with the texture of the dough. However, we got to the finish line, and the reward was a tray of these Pumpkin Spice Bagels!
While this pumpkin bagel dough does rest a few times, it’s only for 10 minutes each time. That’s the perfect amount of time to clean up the counter and get ready for the next phase of the recipe. I try to keep a clean kitchen as I work. All together, these bagels are ready for the oven in an hour or so. 15 minutes later, your house will smell like fall and you’ll be pulling a tray of hot bagels out of the oven. Yum!
One of the unique things about making homemade bagels is boiling the dough. Once the bagels are shaped, they get boiled in a baking soda + honey + water mixture for a minute or two. The reason bagels are boiled before baking is it helps set the exterior crust of the bagel. Boiling bagels also gives them that classic chewy bagel texture. In fact, the longer you boil the dough, the chewier the bagels will become.
The baking soda gives the bagels their golden color once they go into the hot oven – similar to homemade pretzels. The honey was a trick I learned about when we visited Montreal years ago. Bakers in Montreal boil their bagel dough in honey-sweetened water, and it adds a fun flavor to the exterior crust of the bagel.
Montreal bakers also bake their bagels in a wood-fired oven. I need to build one of those in the backyard. “But Laura…think how good those bagels would be! And building a wood-fired oven in the backyard is probably cheaper than a trip to Montreal.” I’ll let you know if that argument succeeds. (Hint: It won’t. I’ve already tried.)
Shaping homemade bagels is a bit of a learning process in itself. It’s been a while since I’ve made bagels at home, and some of ’em came out a bit wonky. Frankenbagels if you would. That’s ok. They tasted just as good even if they weren’t perfectly round. And, hey, there’s something to be said for that rustic homemade look, right?
If you’re looking for a fun and tasty idea for fall baking season, then put these Pumpkin Spice Bagels on the list. We enjoyed ’em both with a schmear of cream cheese as well as toasted with butter and a sprinkle of cinnamon sugar. (Speaking of cream cheese, try this homemade cream cheese recipe for a real treat!) Happy baking!
Did you make a batch of these Pumpkin Spice Bagels at home? Leave a comment, or snap a photo and tag me on Instagram (@Spicedblog) – I’d love to see your version!
Pumpkin Spice Bagels
Ingredients
For the Dough
- 3 cups bread flour
- 2¼ tsp active dry yeast i.e. 1 [¼-oz.] packet
- 1 tsp salt
- ⅔ cup warm water
- ½ cup canned pumpkin not pumpkin pie filling
- ¼ cup dark brown sugar
- 1½ tsp ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp ground cardamom
- ½ tsp ground nutmeg
- ½ tsp ground allspice
- ½ tsp ground cloves
- 1 Tbsp cornmeal
- 1 large egg white
For Boiling
- 8 cups water
- 2 Tbsp honey
- 1 Tbsp baking soda
Instructions
For the Dough
- Using a countertop mixer with a dough hook, add the flour, yeast, salt, water, pumpkin, brown sugar and spices; mix on low speed until just combined.
- Increase speed to medium and mix until dough is smooth and firm (~3-4 minutes).
- Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface; cover and let rest for 10 minutes.
- Lay a piece of parchment paper out nearby.
- Divide dough evenly into 9 pieces. Roll each piece into a rope about 8-9” in length. Slightly dampen both ends of the dough, and then wrap the dough around your hand so that the last 2” of the rope overlaps the first portion. Gently press the overlapping portion of the dough together and then roll the seam back and forth on the counter several times until sealed. Transfer the shaped bagels from your hand onto the parchment paper. (Note: After shaping, the bagels should be about 4” across with a 2” hole in the center.) Cover bagels and let rest for 10 minutes.
For Boiling
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- Using a large stock pot or Dutch oven, add water, honey and baking soda. (Note: The pot should be ~⅔ full of water. The mixture will expand when the bagel dough is added, so make sure to use a big enough pot!)
- Drop bagels into the boiling water 2 at a time. Let boil for 45 seconds, flip and let boil for 45 more seconds. Remove bagels with a slotted spoon and let dry on paper towels. Repeat process with remaining bagels.
- Spray a baking sheet with nonstick baking spray and then sprinkle cornmeal on top.
- Whisk the egg white with 1 Tbsp of water; brush the egg wash on top of bagels and place them on baking sheet. (Note: The bagels will not expand much in the oven so they can be near each other on pan.)
- Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until bagels are golden brown on top.
- Let bagels cool on pan for 5 minutes; transfer bagels to a wire rack until completely cool.
Looking for more tasty pumpkin spice recipes? Check out these other favorites, too:
Cant wait to make this soon for me i never had pumpkin spice bagels before perfect for my after office snacks love your recipes as always brightens up my day everyday after work
These bagels are a fun baking project, Ramya! I do hope you get a chance to try this recipe!
I bet these are fabulous! I’ve never made bagels before!
These are a “cheater” way to make bagels, but they still turn out pretty decent. Give it a try, Mimi! 🙂
These pumpkin spice bagels look amazing, and love how you shaped them! Must smell heavenly!
You nailed it, Michelle – the smell in the house while these bagels were in the oven was fantastic! We enjoyed these toasted with a bit of butter. Can’t beat that good pumpkin spice flavor!
David, these look yummy. I’ve not made bagels since moving to Sweden because I can’t find baker malt, but your honey and baking soda hack has inspired me. I wonder if baked sweet potato would work instead of pumpkin as canned pumpkin is hard to find here?
Hey Ron! So honey is a good substitute for baker’s malt. (Honey is what they use in Montreal…and then they bake the bagels over a wood fire. That’s still something I want to try…) I think a baked sweet potato would be similar enough to the pumpkin. If you can find real pumpkin, you could roast it and mash it, but it would make the process a bit more involved. Either way, I think you’re close enough to give this a try! As noted in the post, these bagels are a bit of a “cheater” version since they don’t rest overnight. They won’t be winning any bagel contests, but they certainly will be tasty!
These look amazing David! Lynne is more of a fan of pumpkin spice than I am so I’m sure she would love these. Although I am partial to the odd bagel myself now and then too!
Well I say you should make a batch of these, Neil! Lynne would be quite happy with you. 🙂
love all those spices David. we don’t call them pumpkin spices but i get what you mean. in fact we tend to think of them as christmas cake or pudding spices! :=)
Ah! I know pumpkin is often used in savory recipes down in your area, but I do recommend trying it in a sweeter recipe, too. These bagels were fun and quite tasty!
Interesting that you’ve got cardamom in there. I love cardamom. I have to also join you in admitting to loving pumpkin spice. I even have pumpkin spice air freshener that I stock up on in the fall so that my office can smell like pumpkin pie all year. Sad but true. The question is, will these pumpkin spice bagels go with my PSL?
I feel like cardamom is my new secret weapon whenever doing anything with the traditional baking spices. A bit of cardamom just adds an extra layer of flavor. Give it a try! And, yes, I do think these bagels would go well with your PSL…even if it’s the 3rd one of the day. 🙂
Pumpkin spice does seem to be everywhere these days! I do love it, though! It’s so warming and delicious. I bet all those spices add so much flavour to these homemade bagels. Wish I had one right about now, smeared with butter. I can only imagine just how good they smell and taste!!
I’m with ya, Dawn! I’m ok with pumpkin spice being everywhere. It’s delicious! I mean I do eventually get tired of it, but then I’m excited when pumpkin spice season comes around the next year. These bagels? Toast one up with a bit of butter, and they taste exactly like fall!
I’ve never made bagels from scratch, but now I’m inspired to try! Love these fall flavors.
Bagels are fun to make at home! Now this recipe is a bit of a “cheater” recipe since the dough doesn’t sit overnight. But they still come out quite well, and the fall flavors in this one are quite delicious. Give ’em a try on a chilly day, Marissa!
I like to use pumpkin spice, but I am not too crazy about spice-ified (gosh, loving this word! Lol) recipes or items; I’m not trat trendy at all. These bagels look terrific – what a smart idea to jazz up them with a pumpkin vibe. Their subtle sweetness should go so well together with pumpkin and sweet and warming spices. And they also look beautiful. I bet Montrealers are jealous right now 🙂
Sometimes pumpkin spice can be overdone. Take beers for instance. I enjoy a good pumpkin beer – especially if it’s a darker beer like a porter. But add in a bunch of pumpkin spice (or even worse put pumpkin spice all over the rim of the glass)? No thanks. Pumpkin spice does work in these bagels, though – they’re perfect for the season!
It is very similar to Turkish bagel. it was very nice
Thanks! I’m glad you enjoyed this recipe!
I’m sure these bagels are a hit for fall baking!
Oh these are great for fall baking! All the classic fall spices go into these bagels!