Do you want a delicious bagel without all the hassle? This 3-ingredient bagel recipe is adapted from the famous Weight Watchers bagel recipe. You get all that true bagel goodness without the boiling and toiling that regular yeast risen bagels require.
And, best of all, if you are a Weight Watcher, these bagels are about 3SP each (that's 3 Weight Watchers Smart Points). You can add your favorite mix-in's or toppings using this amazing bagels recipe also!
What are 3 Ingredient Bagels?
3 ingredient bagels are made with live cultured Greek yogurt and self-rising flour, plus an egg for better texture and proofing. Since yogurt is a cultured, fermented food, it reacts with the flour and baking powder to create a type of quick fermented leavening.
The original Weight Watchers bagel recipe called for just the Greek yogurt and the self-rising flour, making these bagels a little gluey in the middle. By adding the egg to the dough, you get a proper 'bready' bagel interior. Brushing the shaped bagels with egg wash, gives you a proper bagel crust that poppy seeds, salt sprinkle, etc stick to better also!
I said you didn't have to boil these bagels. And it is true, you don't. But, if you do boil them for a few minutes in an alkaline solution (1 tablespoon of baking soda in a 3 quart pan of boiling water) you'll get a true bagel crust on them!
I used to work at a Jewish bakery many years ago, often watching the bakers boiling the bagels at 4:30 am for the bread case. While these Greek yogurt bagels are not quite the same as true yeast bagels, they are still amazing bagels!
Why You Will Love This Recipe
With just a few simple ingredients and absolutely no kneading or boiling required (unless you want), you can enjoy homemade bagels anytime! These 3-ingredient bagels are irresistibly soft on the inside with a chewy exterior - perfect for slathering with cream cheese, toasting up with butter, or topping off with your favorite savory spreads.
You can have these easy 3-Ingredient Bagels mixed and baked quickly. I've added sun-dried tomatoes for a tangy zing, and the Asiago cheese elevates the flavor profile.
Jump to:
- What are 3 Ingredient Bagels?
- Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Ingredients
- How to Make 3-Ingredient Bagels
- Serving Suggestions
- Substitutions
- Variations
- Equipment
- Storage
- Tips for Success
- Frequently Asked Questions
- Food Safety
- Some Other Recipes We Are Sure You Will Love
- Connect with Smells Like Delish!
- 📖 Recipe
Ingredients
You will need three basic ingredients, self rising flour, Greek yogurt, and an egg for the dough and to wash the formed bagels with before baking. You can then stir in any multitude of mix-ins from blueberries, cinnamon sugar swirl, or copy any of the popular bagels you see at Panera or other bagel companies.
Try sprinkling Trader Joe's Everything Bagel mix on these 3-Ingredient bagels, or do like we did and make them sun dried tomato bagels with Asiago cheese!
What you need to make 3-Ingredient Bagels:
- Self Rising Flour - (you can make your own by adding 1 ½ teaspoons baking powder and ¼ teaspoon salt for each cup of flour).
- Greek Yogurt - Get the plain, unflavored variety. Full fat or low fat, does not matter.
- Eggs - One for the dough for better leavening, another to brush the bagels with, right before baking, so you get the crusty exterior!
Optional Mix-in's: You can stir in any mix-in's you like, but today we are adding the following:
- Sun-dried tomatoes - cut into slivers.
- Asiago cheese - grated fine.
Full ingredient amounts and preparation instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
How to Make 3-Ingredient Bagels
Have you ever wanted to recreate the delicious bagels from your favorite cafe in the comfort of your own kitchen? Then these 3-ingredient bagels are just what you need! These light, fluffy bagels make the perfect addition to any breakfast or lunch. Inspired by the Weight Watchers bagel recipe, these are actually even better!
Get ready to impress guests, family, and friends alike with this easy-to-follow recipe that only requires a few simple ingredients.
If You Want to Boil Before Baking
If you want to include the boiling step before baking these bagels, prepare the water before you start the dough.
Fill a 3 quart sauce pan ⅔ full of water and add 1 tablespoon of baking soda. Heat the water to boiling, then reduce and hold the pot of water at just below boiling.
Step 1. Mix the 3 Ingredient Bagel Dough
- Preheat the oven to 375 F.
- Mix the self-rising flour, Greek yogurt, and one egg. Add the chopped sun-dried tomatoes and ⅔ of the Asiago cheese to the bagel mixture, or leave them as plain bagels.
Full ingredient amounts and preparation instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 2. Divide Dough Into 6 Balls
- Use a hand mixer to blend the self rising flour, Greek yogurt sun-dried tomatoes and Asiago cheese well. Work with your hands for a few minutes until the dough is cohesive and smooth on the surface.
- Transfer the dough ball to a lightly floured surface and divide into 6 smaller balls.
Full ingredient amounts and preparation instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 3. Shape into Bagels and Bake (or boil and bake)
- Form each dough ball into a bagel with a larger than normal middle hole. They will expand and the hole will be smaller after baking. They should look like bracelets. You can now jump to step to Step 10 if you do not plan to boil your bagels before baking.
- Turn the heat back up on the saucepan of water so that it come back to a low boil quickly. Carefully drop one or two bagels into the boiling water and keep on a the low boil. Unless you are using a really wide pot, only do two or three at a time as the bagels will expand.
- Once the bagels rise to the surface, continue boiling for 1 minute. Flip the bagels and boil for 1 more minute.
- Remove using a wide spatula and place on a baking rack for 2 minutes so excess water dries up.
- Place on baking sheet lined with either a Silpat mat or parchment paper.
Full ingredient amounts and preparation instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Step 4. Bake
- Brush the bagels with the second egg that has been beaten, and sprinkle the bagels with the remaining ⅓ cup of Asiago cheese.
- Bake for 25 minutes on an upper rack. Increase oven to 425 F for an additional five minutes of baking. Remove from oven and let cool on the baking rack.
Full ingredient amounts and preparation instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Serving Suggestions
If you love bagels, these amazing bagels are a fast and easy substitute to the long process of making yeast risen, boiled, and then baked bagels. These 3-ingredient bagels are perfect for serving with our Panera's Chicken Noodle Soup, Panera's Tomato Soup, or simply as Bagels and Lox on a Saturday morning!
Surprise your family when you bake these amazing bagels in minutes. They're only 3 Weight Watcher Smart Points each, and truly worth their 'weight' in gold!
Full ingredient amounts and preparation instructions are in the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.
Substitutions
If you don't have Self-Rising flour it's super easy to make. Simply add 1 ½ teaspoons of baking powder and ¼ teaspoon salt to each cup of regular all purpose flour.
Variations
Here are some additional variations using this 3-ingredient bagels recipe:
- Jalapeno & Cheddar 3-Ingredient Bagels - Brush the uncooked bagels with egg wash, place 6 slices of Jalapeno pepper on the top of each bagel. Then sprinkle grated cheddar cheese on each bagel generously, and bake.
- Cinnamon Raisin 3-Ingredient Bagels - After brushing with egg wash, sprinkle with homemade cinnamon sugar.
- Asiago Cheese 3-Ingredient Bagels - Mix in ½ cup grated Asiago cheese into the dough, and after brushing with egg, sprinkle a little more Asiago cheese on the tops before baking.
- Everthing 3-Ingredient Bagels - After brushing with the egg wash, sprinkle plain 3 ingredient bagels with an Everything Bagel seasoning blend and a sprinkle of salt.
- Pumpernickel 3 Ingredient Bagels - Reduce the self-rising flour by ½ cup, and replace with ⅓ cup Dark Rye flour, 1 tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder, and an additional ½ teaspoon baking powder. Mix the self-rising flour, rye flour, cocoa powder, and additional ½ teaspoon baking powder to blend. Follow the recipe otherwise.
Equipment
Equipment can have a big impact on how a recipe turns out. Good equipment makes any baking or cooking task so much more enjoyable. Below are some of my favorite pieces of equipment that I use when making these 3 ingredient Weight Watchers bagels.
Storage
Bake the dough as soon as you make it. Since these 3 ingredient Weight Watchers bagels are considered a 'quick bread', the dough needs to be baked, or boiled and baked as soon as the bagels are shaped. If these Greek Yogurt bagels fall, they won't rise again like yeast bagel dough will. Store any baked and cooled bagels in a plastic bag for up to 3 days, or refrigerate.
Tips for Success
- Boiling is an extra step, not required, but it does make for a more authentic bagel.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, but after they cool, slice them first, then freeze. It makes it easier for when you take them out of the freezer. You can literally pop each half in a toaster and defrost and toast at the same time. Text your toaster though to get the right heat setting, as toasters vary.
No, but if you do the crust is more authentic to regular yeast risen bagels.
One egg improves on the famous Weight Watchers bagel recipe, which tended to be too wet inside these Greek yogurt bagels. The egg improves the texture of the dough and leaving of the bagels during baking.
Food Safety
- Do not use the same utensils on cooked food, that previously touched raw meat
- Wash hands after touching raw meat
- Don't leave food sitting out at room temperature for extended periods
- Never leave cooking food unattended
- Use oils with high smoking point to avoid harmful compounds
- Always have good ventilation when using a gas stove
See more guidelines at USDA.gov.
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📖 Recipe
3-Ingredient Bagels with Sun Dried Tomatoes
Ingredients
3-Ingredient Bagel dough
- 2 cup Self-rising flour plus additional for kneading, shaping, etc.
- 1 cup Greek yogurt get a super thick brand of Plain yogurt like Fage or Trader Joe's
- 1 egg
For the Egg Wash
- 1 egg beaten with a teaspoon of water
Optional Mix-in's and Toppings
- 1 cup Asiago cheese ⅔ for the dough, ⅓ for sprinkling on bagels before baking
- ¼ cup Sun dried tomatoes cut or sliver very thin
Instructions
Boiling Preparation
- If you want to include the boiling step before baking these bagels, prepare the water before you start the dough.Fit a 3 quart sauce pan ⅔ full of water and add 1 tablespoon of baking soda. Heat the water to boiling, then reduce and hold the pot of water as just below boiling.
Prepare the 3-Ingredient Bagel Dough
- Preheat the oven to 375 F.
- Mix the self-rising flour, Greek yogurt, and one egg. Add the chopped sun-dried tomatoes and ⅔ of the Asiago cheese to the bagel mixture, or leave them as plain bagels.2 cup Self-rising flour, 1 cup Greek yogurt, 1 egg, 1 cup Asiago cheese, ¼ cup Sun dried tomatoes
- Use a hand mixer to blend the self rising flour, Greek yogurt sun-dried tomatoes and Asiago cheese well. Work with your hands for a few minutes until the dough is cohesive and smooth on the surface.
- Transfer the dough ball to a lightly floured surface and divide into 6 smaller balls.
- Form each dough ball into a bagel with a larger than normal middle hole. They will expand and the hole will be smaller after baking. They should look like bracelets. You can now jump to step to "Baking the Bagels" if you don't plan to boil them first.
Instructions for Boiling Bagels before Baking
- Turn the heat back up on the saucepan of water so that it come back to a low boil quickly. Carefully drop one or two bagels into the boiling water and keep on a the low boil. Unless you are using a really wide pot, only do two or three at a time as the bagels will expand.
- Once the bagels rise to the surface, continue boiling for 1 minute. Flip the bagels and boil for 1 more minute.
- Remove using a wide spatula and place on a baking rack for 2 minutes so excess water dries up.
- Place on baking sheet lined with either a Silpat mat or parchment paper.
Baking the Bagels
- Brush the bagels with the second egg that has been beaten, and sprinkle the bagels with the remaining ⅓ cup of Asiago cheese.1 egg
- Bake for 25 minutes on an upper rack. Increase oven to 425 F for an additional five minutes of baking. Remove from oven and let cool on the baking rack. Enjoy!
Notes
- Everything Bagel seasoning blend
- Poppy seeds
- Coarse Sea Salt
- Charnushka seeds, also known as Nigella seeds
- Cinnamon Sugar
- Jalapeno sliced and grated Cheddar Cheese
Nutrition
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