Homemade Raisin Cinnamon Bagels

I love bagels and thought it would be fun to make some. After trying several different recipes, I came up with one we really like. Once you try them you will not go back to store bought and they are not hard to make. But they do take a while to make so don't start if you are in a hurry. You can also add additional ingredients if there are special bagels you like. I put raisins, brown sugar and cinnamon in mine, which is my favorite. So let's get started.

Below are the Ingredients you will need to make the bagels. I listed water several times. The 1 1/3 cups is for the yeast and the rest to make the bagels. The other amounts vary depending on the size pot you are using.

For the Bagels:

1 1/3 cups warm water (not hot about 110 degrees if you are measuring)

1 package instant yeast (1 tablespoon)

1 tsp white sugar

2 cups bread flour

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

2 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons brown sugar

1 cup raisins

boiling water

4 tsp cinnamon

vegetable oil

4 quarts water

1 tablespoon honey

parchment paper

In a small bowl or measuring cup combine raisins and boiling water. Add enough water to cover raisins. You need to let them soak for about 15 minutes. The will plump up the raisins and keep them from being tough and drying out when you cook the bagels. Don't skip this step.

Some people are scared to make anything with yeast. It is really not hard you just need to make sure your yeast has a good date. Don't try this with old yeast. I also found out you can get gluten free yeast so you can make these gluten free with also using gluten free flour.

In a small bowl combine yeast, 1/3 cup warm water (not hot) and 1 tsp white sugar. Whisk together and let set at least 10 minutes until the top is covered with foam. While this is resting you can go to the next step and start mixing your dry ingredients.

In a large mixing bowl with the batter attachment combine bread flour, wheat flour, brown sugar, cinnamon and salt. Mix well. I usually let this mix while I am waiting on the raisins and yeast to be ready.

Now add remaining warm water (1 cup) and yeast mixture to flour. Mix well. Now drain your raisins. I save the water so if I need any extra I use the water from the raisins. Now change to a dough hook on your mixer and mix in raisins, mix 5 minutes. If the flour is not all mixed into the dough use a little of the raisin water until the dough forms a ball. If you do not have a dough hook mix raisins into dough on your counter top. Put a little flour on your counter and kneed the dough for about 5 minutes.

Grease mixing bowl and return dough and cover. Put in a warm place and let it set for 2 hours. If it is not warm in your home heat the over to 200 and turn oven off. Now open door and put bowl in oven. Should double in size. This is the long wait. It can actually stay a little longer if needed. I left it for 3 hours one time and it was fine.

Punch the dough down, place it on a lightly floured counter top or cutting board. Now use a knife to divide the dough into 8 pieces (or more, for smaller bagels). I cut it in half and then each half into fourths. Roll each piece of dough into a ball. Now punch a hole in the middle with your fingers. Don't worry if they are not perfectly round. Repeat with the remaining dough, and let the bagels rest for 15 minutes. While they are resting Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

Now for the strange part. You are going to boil the bagels in water before you bake them. You will need a pot big enough so you can heat the bagels and they will float. Add about 4 to 5 inches of water in the pot. I use one big enough to do 4 bagels at a time. You do not want the bagels to touch in the pot. Add 1 tablespoon of honey and bring the water to a boil. Drop the bagels in the water. Once they start to float boil them for one minute on each side. Remove the bagels with a slotted spoon and place them on the parchment-lined baking sheet. Now finish the rest of the bagels and you are ready to cook. Bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Rotate the pan 180 degrees and cook for 10 more minutes, until the bagels begin to brown.

Place the bagels in the oven and bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Rotate the pan 180 degrees and cook for 10 more minutes, until the bagels begin to brown. If you made smaller bagels you may need to reduce the cook time. The 25 minutes works great for 8 bagels. Now remove the bagels and try one when it is warm. It is really hard to beat a homemade bagel. If raisins and cinnamon are not your favorite you can just make the wheat bagels or try adding other items. Let me know what you try and I hope you enjoy.