Cinnamon Raisin Sourdough Bagels

5 from 3 votes

Cinnamon Raisin Sourdough Bagels

Cinnamon raisin sourdough bagels are chewy, naturally leavened, and full of sweet raisins and warm cinnamon flavor. They’re perfect toasted with cream cheese for an easy, delicious breakfast or quick snack the whole family will love.

Prep Time40

Cook Time30

Fermentation Time1

Total Time1 1 10

Course: Breakfast

Cuisine: American

Servings: bagels

Author: Amy Coyne

Equipment

stand mixer
baking sheet
medium pot for water bath
cooling rack
slotted spoon

Ingredients

Levain (1:1:1, about 3-4 hours at 78ºF)

55 grams sourdough starter ripe and active scant 1/4 cup
55 grams all-purpose or bread flour scant 1/2 cup
55 grams water scant 1/4 cup

Cinnamon Raisin Sourdough Bagels

150 grams levain, ripe and active heaping ½ cup, see recipe notes
300 grams water about 1 ¼ cup
60 grams maple syrup about 3 Tablespoons, see recipe notes
30 grams brown sugar about 2 Tablespoons
12 grams salt about 2 teaspoons
4 grams ground cinnamon about 2 teaspoons
625 grams bread flour about 4 ½ cups
5 grams diastatic malt powder see recipe notes, about 1 teaspoon
90 grams raisins reserved for the end of kneading, about 2/3 cup
cornmeal for baking sheet

Boil Bath:

1800 grams water about 8 cups
30 grams brown sugar about 2 Tablespoons

Instructions

Levain (1:1:1, about 3-4 hours at 78ºF)

Mix together 55 grams ripe active sourdough starter with 55 grams water and 55 grams flour. Cover and set in a warm place to rise. Once peaked, active and bubbly, it is ready to use.
Note: Ripe, bubbly, active sourdough starter can be replaced with the levain in this recipe if desired.

Cinnamon Raisin Sourdough Bagels

Mix the Dough: Set the bowl of a stand mixer on a kitchen scale. Add ripe levain, water, maple syrup, brown sugar, salt, ground cinnamon, bread flour and diastatic malt powder to the bowl. Start the mixer and knead the dough together for about 5-7 minutes until smooth. The dough should feel smooth, tacky to the touch and not overly sticky. After the doughhas been kneaded, add the raisins to the dough and knead again for about 1 minute until incorporated.
This dough can also be kneaded by hand for about 8-10 minutes until smooth.
Bulk Fermentation: Place the dough in a container and cover. Do your best to keep the temperature of the dough at 78-80ºF. I use a bread proofer in the winter to help the dough develop at the right temperature. The entire bulk fermentation will take about 6-7 hours. At the end of that time, the dough will have just about doubled in size. If the dough has not risen, move it to a warmer place and leave it to rise for a little bit longer.
Prepare a baking sheet with parchment paper. Sprinkle cornmeal on the baking sheet to keep the bagels from sticking.
Shape Bagels: Separate the dough into 8 equal pieces, about 150 grams each. Take each piece of dough and pull/pinch up the sides until it forms a ball. Roll the ball on the counter using your hand in a cupping shape (see video here) to seal the balls and create tension. Let the balls rest for a minute on the countertop before shaping into bagels. To make the bagel shape, take your finger and press directly into the center of the ball of dough until it goes through to the other side, creating a hole. Use your fingers to widen the center hole, moving the dough around in a circle as you stretch it. Let the dough relax and repeat with the next bagel. The dough will spread back out a little and the hole will close up a bit, don't worry. You will have a chance to widen it again before boiling and baking. Place the bagels on the baking sheet and cover with plastic wrap, a kitchen towel or a sheet pan cover.
Proof Bagels: Let the bagels rise on the baking sheet for about 2 hours at 78-80ºF. After about 2 hours the bagels will be puffed up and risen. They won't look completely doubled, but will be puffed up. If they don't look this way, let them continue rising for another 30 minutes to an hour and check again.
Refrigerate: Place the covered bagels in the refrigerator overnight for a cold fermentation. This develops flavor and makes it easy for you to boil and bake them in the morning. Be careful going over 12-16 hours in the refrigerator as they can more easily over-proof.
Note -Same Day Baking: If you prefer to boil and bake the bagels the same day, let the bagels rise until just about doubled. Skip the refrigeration and proceed with boiling and baking the bagels right away.
Preheat the oven to 425ºF.
Boiling: Place a small to medium-sized pot filled with 8 cups water on the stove and turn the heat to high. Have a slotted spoon and a cooling rack ready. As soon as the water comes to a boil, add brown sugar to the water. Gently widen the hole of the bagel again and place it into the boiling water. It should float within the first 10 seconds or so of placing in the water. Add as many bagels to the pot of water as you can without stacking bagels on top of each other (they should each have a little personal space in the water).
Boil for about 40 seconds and then flip. Boil for 40 seconds on the other side. Using the slotted spoon, remove the bagels from the boiling water and place on the cooling rack to drip dry for a minute before placing back on the parchment-lined baking sheet.
Baking: Bake for 25– 30 minutes until bagels are golden and baked all the way through. If your bagels are too dark on the bottom, place a baking stone or baking sheet on the rack underneath the bagels to help.
Cool: Let bagels cool for about 20-25 minutes before serving. Bagels can be stored for 12-24 hours at room temperature and then frozen. Enjoy!

Notes

This recipe makes 8 large bagels. If you prefer them a little smaller, you can separate them into 125-gram pieces and make 10 bagels instead.

Sourdough Starter: This recipe calls for a levain, but bubbly, active, ripe sourdough starter can be substituted if desired.

Pure Maple Syrup: Barley Malt Syrup is traditionally used in bagels, but it’s not an ingredient I often have on hand. I use pure maple syrup instead with great results. This imparts sweetness to the bagels. Do not use processed pancake syrup.

Diastatic Malt Powder: A small amount of this powder helps encourage fermentation, impart flavor and gives a caramelization color to the bagel dough when baked. If you want to make bagels without it, you can leave it out – substitute for bread flour instead and add a little extra time for fermentation to take place.

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