You will love this delicious sourdough blueberry bagel recipe. These chewy bagels not only taste good, but they have the most striking purple color.
There is nothing like fresh bagels in the morning and these homemade sourdough blueberry bagels will be a big hit. Not only are they delicious, but they also have the most beautiful vibrant color.
Dark purple on the outside and bright purple on the inside, the color alone is exciting. Then topped with homemade cream cheese. Seriously delicious.
I tried this recipe so many times to get it just right. This recipe came about as part of the homeschool makers market, where my daughter was selling some homemade sourdough goodies.
We started by using my original recipe for easy sourdough bagels and added blueberries. While it worked well, I felt like it could be better. It still needed tweaking. I found that cooking down fresh or frozen blueberries added so much more of that berry flavor.
Since it’s blueberry season, and you can either pick some blueberries from a local farm or find great deals at the grocery store, I figured this would be the perfect time for this recipe.
Tips:
- This is a stiffer dough. It will come together though. Mix dough until it does.
- If you don’t have your own sourdough starter, you can check out this post, where I show you exactly how to make a starter from scratch.
- Boil a few bagels in the water at a time. Don’t overcrowd your pot.
- A stand mixer is much easier and less time consuming, but if you do not have one you can knead it with your hands.
- If you are sensitive to the taste of baking soda, you can also get that shiny brown crust with just using sugar.
- For more of a blueberry flavor, add dried blueberries to the dough. It’s double blueberry bagels.
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Why you will love this recipe:
Delicious: The best chewy bagels filled with blueberry goodness are super tasty breakfast treats.
Easy to make: Homemade bagels are way easier to make than you may think! Start the night before and they are ready to shape, rise, boil, and bake the next morning.
Can use fresh or frozen berries: Even when it is not blueberry season you can enjoy this recipe by using frozen berries.
Ingredients:
Active sourdough starter: This is starter that has been fed 4-12 hours before starting the dough. It should be super bubbly and about double in size. To check whether it is ready to make bread you can place it in a little bit of water. If it floats, it is ready to bake.
Water
Honey
Salt
Unbleached all purpose flour
Blueberries – Frozen and fresh blueberries.
Dried blueberries – Optional, but it adds a ton of blueberry flavor.
For boiling the bagels
Water
Baking soda
Brown sugar
Tools you may need:
Stand mixer with a dough hook attachment
Kitchen scale (optional)
Wire rack (optional)
Saucepan
Bench scale
FAQ:
Are sourdough bagels healthier?
Compared to regular bagels, sourdough bagels are a healthier option. Lower in gluten making them easier to digest, lower glycemic index, and more nutritious.
They do still contain mostly carbohydrates, so it is good to pair them with protein (like eggs, or meat) so that way they don’t spike blood sugar as much.
What is a sourdough bagel vs regular bagel?
Sourdough bagels are risen with the wild yeast from the sourdough starter compared to regular bagels which use commercial yeast to give them rise.
Why is sourdough bread good for you?
This is due to the wild yeast and bacteria in the sourdough starter breaking down the phytic acid and gluten in the grains. Not only are the grains more digestible, but also the nutrients in the grains are more bio-available for your body to absorb.
Can I just add blueberries to the bagels?
Technically yes, I have tried this multiple times and while it does work, you may have to adjust the amount of flour in the dough. I prefer using cooked blueberries.
Do you have to boil bagels?
Yes. This will give it that chewy crust on the outside caused by a gel forming from the boiling of the starch in the dough.
How To Make Sourdough Blueberry Bagels
Feed sourdough starter 4-12 hours before starting this recipe. Since this recipe doesn’t include any commercial active dry yeast, you will want your starter to be really nice and active.
Tip: You can tell your starter is active enough to use if it passes the float test. This is when you place a small spoonful of starter into a glass with a few inches of water. If it floats, it is ready. If it sinks, it is either not active enough or has already passed its prime.
Cook Blueberries And Create The Dough
Add the blueberries to a small saucepan over low heat. Once they start to get juicy, turn the heat up to medium and bring the mixture to a light simmer.
Stir constantly, until the liquid has reduced by half. Allow the berries to cool until they are no longer hot. A little higher than room temperature is fine, but you don’t want to kill the yeast in your sourdough starter when adding them to the dough
Add an active sourdough starter, water, honey, salt, cooked blueberries, dried blueberries (optional) and two cups of flour to the bowl of your stand mixer.
Mix until it comes together, about 10 minutes on low speed. This is a stiff dough and can be difficult to incorporate.
Add remaining flour, half a cup at a time. Use a dough hook and knead until the dough ball is smooth and pliable.
Add dried berries if desired.
Place in a large bowl and cover dough with a damp towel, plastic wrap, or beeswax wrap and let the dough rise at room temperature for 8 to 12 hours.
Shape
After fermentation, divide into 8 equal pieces.
Roll the bagel dough into balls, flatten them down a bit, and create the center hole in the middle of the dough with your finger. Stretch the hole a bit to widen.
Place the shaped bagels on a sheet pan or on a clean counter.
Cover with a tea towel and let the dough rest in a warm place for 1-4 hours or until puffy.
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the baking soda and sugar.
Using a slotted spoon or spider, add bagels to the boiling water and boil for one minute, flip, then boil for another minute on the other side.
Shake off excess water and place boiled bagels on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown on top.
Slice and serve. I love to serve it with homemade cream cheese.
Storage:
Store the bagels in an airtight container or bag at room temperature. They also freeze really well in a freezer safe bag for up to 3 months.
Make sure the bagels are cooled completely before storing. Storing warm or even slightly warm bagels increases the rate of spoilage.
Don’t store the bagels in the fridge as this can make them go stale quicker.
Baker’s Schedule:
8AM-12PM: Feed sourdough starter and allow to rise for 4-12 hours. This will depend on how warm your kitchen is and how active your starter is.
8 PM: Create dough. Allow to rise overnight with a lid.
6-8 AM the next day. Shape and allow to rise for 1-4 hours.
9 AM: Boil and bake. Enjoy
Find More Sourdough Recipes:
- Original Homemade Sourdough Bagels – Super versatile recipe. Add cheese, everything but the bagel seasoning, or sesame seeds.
- Sourdough Discard Bagels: This is a twist on the original. Use sourdough discard and commercial yeast to give this rise.
- Sourdough Hawaiian Rolls
- The Best Sourdough Dinner Rolls
- Sourdough Cinnamon Rolls: One of our favorite recipes ever.
- Easy Sourdough Waffles Recipe
- The Best Sourdough Pancakes
If you try this recipe and love it, I would love if you could come back and give it 5 stars!
Blueberry Sourdough Bagels
Ingredients
- ½ cup sourdough starter, bubbly and active (113 grams)
- 2/3 cup water, 158 grams
- 2 tablespoons honey, 21 grams
- 2 teaspoons salt, 10 grams
- 4 cups unbleached all purpose flour, 560 grams
- 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries, the difference is I am going to cook them first this time, so that way I don't have to adjust the flour/water ratio from the original recipe tis time.
- 1/2 cup dried blueberries, optional
For boiling the bagels
- 2 quarts water
- 1 tablespoon baking soda
- 1 tablespoon brown sugar
Instructions
- Feed sourdough starter 4-12 hours before starting this recipe. Since this recipe doesn't include any commercial active dry yeast, you will want your starter to be really nice and active.
- Add the blueberries to a small saucepan over low heat. Once they start to get juicy, turn the heat up to medium and bring the mixture to a light simmer. Stir constantly, until the liquid has reduced by half. Allow the berries to cool until they are no longer hot. A little warmer than room temperature is fine, but you don’t want to kill the yeast in your sourdough starter when adding them to the dough
- Add an active sourdough starter, water, honey, salt, cooked blueberries, and two cups of flour to the bowl of your stand mixer. Some people have no issue adding all of the flour right away. Others find it easier to add half now and half later.
- Mix until it comes together, about 10 minutes on low speed. This is a stiff dough and can be difficult to incorporate.
- Add remaining flour, half a cup at a time. Use a dough hook and knead until the dough ball is smooth and pliable
- Add dried blueberries if desired and knead in.
- Place in a large bowl and cover dough with a damp towel, plastic wrap, or beeswax wrap and let the dough rise at room temperature for 8 to 12 hours.
- After fermentation, divide into 8 equal pieces.
- Roll the bagel dough into balls, flatten them down a bit, and create the center hole in the middle of the dough with your finger. Stretch the hole a bit to widen.
- Place the shaped bagels on a sheet pan or on a clean counter.
- Cover with a tea towel and let the dough rest in a warm place for 1-4 hours or until puffy.
- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the baking soda and sugar.
- Using a slotted spoon or spider, add bagels to the boiling water and boil for one minute, flip, then boil for another minute on the other side.
- Shake off excess water and place boiled bagels on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown on top.
- Slice and serve. I love to serve it with homemade cream cheese.
Notes
- This is a stiffer dough. It will come together though. Mix dough until it does.
- Boil a few bagels in the water at a time. Don’t overcrowd your pot.
- A stand mixer is much easier and less time consuming, but if you do not have one you can knead it with your hands.
- If you are sensitive to the taste of baking soda, you can also get that shiny brown crust with just using sugar.
- For more of a blueberry flavor, add dried blueberries to the dough. It's double blueberry bagels.
- If you don't have honey, you can substitute it with sugar.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Missing the Blueberry flavor? 🙁 I made a double batch and they’re pretty and they taste good, but I don’t taste the blueberry. I followed the directions and let them proof on the counter over night. I made them first thing the next morning. To my family they just taste like plain sourdough bagels. Any tips on how to enhance the flavor besides adding in the dried berries?
Hmmm. Did you cook the blueberries down half. This gives it lots of blueberry flavor. My only other recommendation is to add the dried blueberries because it adds a lot of flavor. You could technically use fresh blueberries as well, but you will need to adjust the recipe and add more flour.
I will be making this recipe for the second time. My picky 6 year old enjoyed them so that is a huge win for me. I followed the instructions step by step but accidentally simmered 1C of frozen blueberries instead of 1/2C and it turned out great but I did have to add in more flour to my stand mixer as it was still sticky. I did not add in the dried blueberries since my daughter would not like the texture of it and it still had a delicious flavor.
oops, I just saw that it calls for 1.5 cups of cooked blueberries. I cup worked well but I will be adding more this time.
I made these today and I was a little concerned as it was very stiff so I thought I may have overworked the dough but they turned out well, even though my shaping technique needs work . My only thought is how do I make them to taste more blueberry flavouring.
How would you adjust this if using fresh milled flour? I can’t get any of my recipes to rise and they’re all so stiff when I use milled.
Freshly milled flour does call for more liquid because the fresh milled flour absorbs so much of it. That could be an issue you’re having.
So glad to have seen this! I can’t get 4 cups of flour in, I have to stop at 3. I’ll definitely add more water next go around! My bagels are small 😂 and overcooked with the 20 mins since I didn’t think to adjust the bake time with the less flour and smaller bagels.
I’ve tried other recipes but this one by far is the best. I did however have to add more flour to mine since my “frozen blueberries” ingredient was replaced by a homemade blueberry and strawberry jam I had stored in the fridge. That has lemon and sugar added so i guess I needed more flour for a stiffer dough
Hello, I made this last night to ferment over night but the dough doesn’t look like it has risen much. What should I be looking for as fat as growth after 12 hrs? Thanks
It should have about doubled in size.
Hi, can you add fresh blueberries instead of dried? Would this effect the consistency of the dough?
I have found the dried blueberries work best as an optional add in. If you experiment with it, let us know!
I made these and still wanted more of a blueberry flavor. So the next morning I made a blueberry reduction with a little bit of sugar. I then toasted the bagels and spread cream cheese and the blueberry reduction on top. Oh so good, next level!
Yum! That sounds amazing. Thanks for sharing!
I made these with the dried blue berries. Honestly, you need to add the dried blueberries for the added flavor! I bulked proofed it for 12 hours then shaped then proofed for about 3 more hours. Great flavor and I’ll make it again
Delicious! My twin grandkids think the color is awesome. One likes these toasted with butter. The other says toasted with cream cheese is best. Thanks, Lisa. I am making more today.