Amazingly doughy and fragrant keto bagels are made with miraculous fathead dough. Ready in just 30 minutes, they will blow your mind!
Once you bite into the warm dough, it's very difficult to believe that these are made with almond flour and not with the real thing.
I used to mourn my beloved weekend morning ritual of a toasted bagel, a thick layer of cream cheese, and a potent cup of coffee. ☕
No more! These bagels are AMAZING. They are soft and doughy, and they taste just wonderful. This is truly a miracle dough and I am so grateful for discovering it.
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My inspiration
I made these keto bagels for the first time after using Fathead dough to make empanadas. The dough was so lovely, so golden and flaky and fragrant, that I just knew it would make amazing bagels.
So I went into the kitchen and started experimenting. I quickly found out that to make bagels with fathead dough, I would need to add more almond flour than I used for the empanadas. The empanada dough was extremely sticky. There was no way I could shape it into bagels.
I also learned that to get lovely, puffy bagels, I would need to add a leavening agent to the dough. So I added some baking powder.
It took a few tries, but it was well worth it. I now have a wonderful low-carb bagel recipe that my family really enjoys.
Ingredients
You'll only need six ingredients to make these keto bagels - don't you love recipes with a short ingredient list! Here's an overview of what you'll need. The exact measurements are in the recipe card below:
Shredded mozzarella: I use bagged pre-shredded part-skim mozzarella.
Cream cheese: Use full-fat cream cheese, not reduced-fat.
Almond flour: An excellent flour substitute that baked exceptionally well. Blanched finely ground almond flour works best. I don't recommend using a coarse almond meal in this recipe.
Baking powder: Please make sure it's fresh.
Egg: One large egg is all you need.
Sesame seeds: Optional, but I think they make the bagels look amazing! You can also use Trader Joe's Everything But The Bagel seasoning.
Instructions
The detailed instructions for making these bagels are listed in the recipe card below. Here are the basic steps - it's surprisingly easy to make them:
You start by microwaving shredded mozzarella and cream cheese until melted. Then stir them.
Now, add almond flour, baking powder, and egg and quickly mix everything together to form a dough.
Briefly knead the dough, then divide it into six equal parts. Roll each part into a log, then shape it into a bagel.
Dip the bagels in sesame seeds, then bake them for about 15 minutes in a preheated 350°F oven.
Expert tip
You'll want to work quickly, kneading the dough well before it cools and making sure it's completely uniform. However, if the dough has cooled and hardened and is impossible to knead, do not despair! Simply microwave it for a few seconds (start with 10 seconds) until it's pliable again.
Frequently asked questions
Fathead dough is a low-carb dough. Its main ingredients are shredded mozzarella, cream cheese, eggs, and almond flour. When baked, it becomes puffy, chewy, and fragrant. It's remarkably similar to real dough.
Not exactly. They are incredibly good, but they are different than regular bagels. Without gluten and yeast, it's obviously not the same.
This is also true for other fathead-dough-based baked goods.
So these keto soft pretzels are just wonderful. But they do not taste like real pretzels.
No. Coconut flour is extremely absorbent. It requires significant amounts of liquids and extra eggs. If you try to substitute it for the almond flour in this recipe, your bagels will be very dry.
It's best to look for a recipe that was originally written for coconut flour.
Topping suggestions
Naturally, like all bagels, these practically beg for a thick layer of cream cheese and perhaps some lox on top!
They're also very good with butter, sugar-free jam, peanut butter, chocolate hazelnut spread, and walnut butter. You can also use them to make a keto breakfast sandwich.
My dad makes these bagels regularly (hi dad! ❤️). He reports that they're excellent with feta cheese. Here are dad's bagels:
Variations and substitutions
There are three ways to vary the basic recips:
- Season the bagels - similarly to what I do when making the above-mentioned pretzels. You can add a bit of garlic powder and onion powder, for example. Try ¼ teaspoon of each. Mix them into the almond flour before adding it to the mixture.
- Vary your toppings. Instead of sesame seeds, you can use poppy seeds, coarse salt, or Everything Bagel seasoning.
- You could try a sweet version by adding ½ teaspoon of ground cinnamon and a granulated sweetener to equal ¼ cup sugar. Mix them into the almond flour before adding it to the mixture.
Storing leftovers
These bagels are best enjoyed warm and fresh. If you have any leftovers, freeze them right away, as soon as they are cool. Thaw them gently in the microwave.
It's best to freeze them because they don't keep very well in the fridge. They tend to deflate when stored and lose their fluffiness.
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Recipe card
Amazing Keto Bagels
INGREDIENTS
- 1 ½ cups shredded part skim mozzarella (6 oz)
- 1 oz cream cheese cubed
- 1 ½ cups blanched finely ground almond flour (6 oz)
- 1 tablespoon baking powder (gluten-free if needed)
- 1 large egg lightly beaten
- ¼ cup sesame seeds or any other topping
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place the mozzarella in a medium microwave safe bowl. Top with the cream cheese cubes. Microwave for 30 seconds. Stir, then microwave for 30 more seconds.
- Stir again, and add the almond flour and the baking powder. Stir to incorporate as best as you can - dough won't come together yet at this point.
- Add the egg, mixing it in with a rubber spatula and then with your hands. Work quickly, kneading the dough well before it cools and making sure it's completely uniform.
- Divide the dough into 6 equal parts. I use my kitchen scales to make sure the bagels are all the same size.
- Knead each part briefly, then roll into a 7-inch log, starting in the middle and rolling outwards, as shown in the video. Press the ends together to shape into a bagel.
- Dip the tops of the bagels in the sesame seeds.
- Arrange the bagels on the prepared baking sheet. Bake until golden brown and fragrant, 15-17 minutes.
WATCH THE VIDEO:
NOTES
NUTRITION PER SERVING
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Vered DeLeeuw, LL.M., CNC, has been following a low-carb real-food diet and blogging about it since 2011. She's a Certified Nutrition Coach (NASM-CNC), has taken courses at the Harvard School of Public Health, and has earned a Nutrition and Healthy Living Certificate from Cornell University. Her work has appeared in several major media outlets, including Healthline, HuffPost, Today, Women's Health, Shape, and Country Living. 