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    Home » Recipes » Homemade Bagels

    Red Velvet Bagels

    Published: Jan 29, 2023

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    These Red Velvet Bagels are a flavourful, sweet, & fun departure from regular bagels. The perfect festive bagel for Valentine's Day or Christmas brunch!

    A plate of homemade red velvet bagels.

    It’s just two weeks to go before “The big game”, but I’m taking a break from the game day foods work, to bring you another fun Valentine’s Day breakfast option: red velvet bagels!

    These sweet bagels have all the flavour of traditional red velvet cake ... just in a different format, and with cream cheese spread in place of the cream cheese frosting!

    I’ve already done Red Vellvet Brownies, Red Velvet Biscotti and Gluten Free Red Velvet Cookies - with red velvet muffins coming - so I figure bagels were bound to happen!

    This is another case of an idea I had that I didn’t think actually existed, until I was ready to post mine. I’ve certainly never seen any in any bagel place, after all!

    As it turns out, though, Einstein Bros. Bagel store debuted a new red velvet bagel a few years ago, and Sara Lee had limited edition Red Velvet Deluxe Bagels (with chocolate chips) a few years ago.

    Oh well!

    Anyway, these rich bagels come together quickly (aside from the wait times!) and easily.

    As pictured - and in the video we’ll add eventually - my husband made this batch, as a hand / arm injury made it too difficult for me, that day!

    As festive or thematic as these bagels may be, they’re great any time of year. Serve them with a generous schmear of cream cheese, and a mug of hot tea or hot chocolate!

    They’re a great way to add a bit of chocolate flavor to your morning 🙂

    A plate of homemade red velvet bagels, with a sliced red velvet bagel with cream cheese filling in front.

    This recipe uses only a few, simple ingredients. You likely already them, if you do much baking at all!

    The basics you will need:

    All Purpose Flour
    Granulated Sugar
    Cocoa Powder
    Active Dry Yeast
    Pure Vanilla Extract
    Eggs
    White Vinegar
    Salt

    .... not much to say, here!

    There are two other ingredients that I’d like to talk about, though, as well as an optional one:

    Milk

    I never have buttermilk on hand, so I generally cook and bake with the “use milk and add acid” method. On top of that, we generally avoid dairy milk when we can.

    So, I designed this recipe the same way - you can use whatever milk you like, as there’s the addition of vinegar in the dough.

    Personally, I tend to use unsweetened almond milk, as that’s what I have on hand.

    Food Coloring

    You’ll need some red food colouring, to get that great colour. Food coloring comes in 3 main formats:

    Liquid food coloring: Generally found in the baking aisle at the grocery store.

    Paste food coloring: Usually Wilton brand, you can find this style in craft supply stores and cake decorating supply shops.

    Gel food coloring: Comes in a few brands, also found in the larger craft supply chains (sometimes), and in cake decorating shops.

    I always use gel colors, as they give the most intense colour, without adding a ton of liquid. This is especially important when dealing with baked goods.

    Specifically, I recommend Americolor (what I used when I was in the USA), or ChefMaster (Which is the option more readily available here!).

    It is MUCH easier to get uniform colour if you introduce the food colouring with the yeast mixture, right up front - so try to use as much food colouring as you think you’ll need.

    If you have to add it after the dough has come together, it’ll need a LOT more kneading... and may still not come out totally even!

    Optional: Coarse Sugar

    I like to have some coarse sugar - generally sold as Pearl Sugar - on hand at all times.

    It’s a fun finishing ingredient for a lot of baked goods - you’ll probably be most familiar with its use on things like my Homemade Apple Turnovers, or on some of the muffins you can buy in bakeries.

    I use it on things like my Gingerbread Scones and even sprinkled on my Perfect Pie Crust sometimes. It brings a nice, sweet crunch to whatever you sprinkle it on.

    When it comes to bagels, I use it in place of coarse salt, when making certain sweet bagels - you may have seen it on my Heart Shaped Bagels, Gingerbread Bagels or Banana Nut Bagels, before this recipe.

    We generally don’t bother for this recipe, but it’s a fun option if you’d like a sweet, crystalline crunch on your bagels.

    To use, just sprinkle over your bagels after the egg wash, right before baking.

    A plate of homemade red velvet bagels.

    How to Make Red Velvet Bagels

    The full recipe is in the recipe card at the end of this post, here is the visual walk through.

    Make the Dough

    Measure warm milk into a glass measuring cup or bowl, stir in ¼ cup of the sugar until well combined. . Stir in yeast, allow to stand for 10 minutes – it should get very bubbly.

    A 2 part image showing a glass of yeast milk, before and after foaming up.

    In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, remaining sugar, cocoa powder, and salt.

    Pour in yeast mixture, vanilla, vinegar, and a copious amount of red gel food colouring, stir well to combine.

    A 5 part image showing the dough ingredients being mixed into a loose dough.

    Dump dough out onto a floured surface, knead until soft and elastic, 5-10 minutes.

    Alternatively, use a stand mixer with a dough hook for about 7 minutes, or until dough is smooth and elastic.

    Note: Depending on how much - and what type of - food colouring you use, you may find the dough to be too wet / sticky. You can add a little more flour if this is the case - it should be a little sticky, but easily peeled away from the bowl.

    Once dough is fully kneaded, place in a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and allow to rise for one hour, or until doubled in size.

    A 5 part image showing the dough being kneaded into a smooth red ball.

    Form the Bagels

    Once dough has doubled, dump it out on a clean work surface, and divide it out.

    We divided the mixture into 8 equal sized balls, for medium-large bagels – but you can make them smaller or larger by dividing into 6, 10, or 12 equal sized pieces.

    (My husband was making these as I directed him, he had to correct the sizes after he initially divided them into some very uneven balls!)

    A 5 part image showing the dough ball being divided into 2, 4, then 8 pieces, an the 8 pieces after making them even size.

    There are two main ways of forming bagels – with roll each lump of dough into a thick “snake” and secure the ends together, or roll each lump into a smooth ball before poking a finger though.

    Once you have a hole made, stretch the ring of dough out a bit to enlarge the hole. Personally, I prefer the latter, as pictured.

    A 5 part image showing the red velvet bagel dough pieces being rolled into balls then formed into bagels.

    Once you have all of your bagels formed, set them on a baking sheet to rise for another 10 minutes.

    As your bagels are resting, preheat oven to 350F, line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

    Boil and Bake the Bagels

    Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add the sugar, and stir well to combine.

    Turn heat down a little, allowing water to simmer rather than boil.

    2 or 3 at a time, drop your bagels into the simmering water, allow to cook for 1 minute, then flip each and allow to cook for another minute.

    Use a slotted spoon to remove the bagels from the water, draining well before placing on lined baking sheets - 4 per cookie sheet.

    A 2 part image showing 3 red velvet bagels boiling, then one being removed with a slotted spoon.

    Whisk egg together with 1 tablespoon of water, brush over the tops and sides of each bagel.

    A 2 part image showing the egg wash being mixed, then brushed over the bagels.

    Bake for about 38-40 minutes if doing 8 bagels, or 35-37 minutes (small - 10/12 bagels) or 40-45 mins (large, 6 bagels), until golden brown.

    Well... dark red, anyway!

    A 2 part image showing the 2 pans of red velvet bagels, before and after baking.

    Leftover bagels can be cooled to room temperature before being stored in an airtight container in the fridge.

    Best served reheated - either in a microwave, air fryer, or toaster.

    A plate of homemade red velvet bagels, with a sliced red velvet bagel with cream cheese filling in front.

    More Valentine's Day Ideas

    Looking to do something a bit different for Valentine's Day? Here are a few ideas!

    6 Inch Cheesecake
    Baklava Cheesecake
    Balsamic Mushroom Baked Brie
    Booze Bouquet Tutorial
    Chocolate Raspberry Pavlova
    Chocolate Ravioli
    Dark Chocolate Truffles
    Deviled Strawberries
    Fondant Chocolate Leaves Cake Tutorial
    Heart Shaped Bagels
    Heart Shaped Beer Pretzels with Jalapeno Jack Dip
    Mini Eclairs
    Mushroom Goat Cheese Braid
    Pepper Crusted Tuna with Wasabi Cream Sauce
    Phyllo Crab Triangles
    Red Velvet Brownies
    Savory Tomato Shortcake
    Traditional Raspberry Mousse
    Valentine's Day Deviled Eggs
    Valentine’s Day Pavlova

    Special Diet Treats

    Need it gluten free* or low carb? Check out these Valentine's Day recipes on my other blogs:

    Gluten-Free Crab Cakes
    Gluten Free Crepes
    Gluten-Free Fried Brie
    Heart Fruit Skewers with Raspberry Cheesecake Dip
    Keto Creme Brulee
    Low Carb Chocolate Mousse
    Keto Crab Cakes
    Low Carb Tiramisu
    Keto Cheesecake
    Seafood Cobb Salad

    * Some of the recipes in the first link section are inherently gluten free, too!

    A plate of homemade red velvet bagels.

    Share the Love!

    Before you chow down, be sure to take some pics of your handiwork! If you Instagram it, be sure to tag me - @CelebrationGenerationCA - or post it to My Facebook Page - so I can cheer you on!

    Also, be sure to subscribe to my free monthly email newsletter, so you never miss out on any of my nonsense. Well, the published nonsense, anyway!

    Finally, if you love this recipe, please consider leaving a star rating and/or a comment below, and maybe even sharing this post on social media!

    A plate of homemade red velvet bagels, with a sliced red velvet bagel with cream cheese filling in front.

    A plate of homemade red velvet bagels.
    Print Recipe Pin Recipe Save Recipe Saved!
    5 from 1 vote

    Red Velvet Bagels

    These Red Velvet Bagels are a flavourful, sweet, & fun departure from a traditional bagels. Perfect for Valentine's Day or Christmas brunch!
    Prep Time25 mins
    Cook Time13 hrs 40 mins
    Rising Time1 hr 20 mins
    Total Time15 hrs 25 mins
    Course: Bread, Breakfast, brunch
    Cuisine: German, Polish
    Servings: 8 Bagels
    Calories: 392kcal
    Author: Marie Porter

    Equipment

    2 Baking Sheets
    Parchment Paper

    Ingredients

    Dough

    • 1 ⅓ cups warm - not hot - Milk
    • 1 ¼ cup Granulated Sugar
    • 4 teaspoon Active Dry Yeast
    • 3 ¼ cups All Purpose Flour
    • ¼ cup Cocoa Powder
    • 1 teaspoon Salt
    • 1 tablespoon Vanilla Extract
    • 1 Tablespoon White vinegar
    • Red Gel Food Colouring

    Assembly:

    • ¼ cup Granulated sugar
    • 1 Large Egg

    Instructions

    Make the Dough

    • Measure warm milk into a glass measuring cup or bowl, stir in ¼ cup of the sugar until well combined. . Stir in yeast, allow to stand for 10 minutes – it should get very bubbly.
    • In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, remaining sugar, cocoa powder, and salt. Pour in yeast mixture, vanilla, vinegar, and a copious amount of red gel food colouring, stir well to combine.
    • Dump dough out onto a floured surface, knead until soft and elastic, 5-10 minutes.
    • Alternatively, use a stand mixer with a dough hook for about 7 minutes, or until dough is smooth and elastic.
    • Note: Depending on how much - and what type of - food colouring you use, you may find the dough to be too wet / sticky. You can add a little more flour if this is the case - it should be a little sticky, but easily peeled away from the bowl.
    • Once dough is fully kneaded, place in a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and allow to rise for one hour, or until doubled in size.

    Form the Bagels

    • Once dough has doubled, dump it out on a clean work surface, and divide it out.
    • We divided the mixture into 8 equal sized balls, for medium-large bagels – but you can make them smaller or larger by dividing into 6, 10, or 12 equal sized pieces.
    • There are two main ways of forming bagels – with roll each lump of dough into a thick “snake” and secure the ends together, or roll each lump into a smooth ball before poking a finger though.
    • Once you have a hole made, stretch the ring of dough out a bit to enlarge the hole. Personally, I prefer the latter.
    • Once you have all of your bagels formed, set them on a baking sheet to rise for another 10 minutes.
    • As your bagels are resting, preheat oven to 350F, line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

    Boil and Bake the Bagels

    • Bring a large pot of water to a boil, add the sugar, and stir well to combine.
    • Turn heat down a little, allowing water to simmer rather than boil.
    • 2 or 3 at a time, drop your bagels into the simmering water, allow to cook for 1 minute, then flip each and allow to cook for another minute.
    • Drain well, place on lined baking sheets.
    • Whisk egg together with 1 tablespoon of water, brush over the tops and sides of each bagel.
    • Bake for about 38-40 minutes if doing 8 bagels, or 35-37 minutes (small - 10/12 bagels) or 40-45 mins (large, 6 bagels), until golden brown.
      ... well, darker red, anyway!

    Notes

    Note: Nutritional information reflects ALL the ingredients used in the recipe, and therefore shows higher calories/sugars/carbs than in reality.
    Not all of the sugar used in the boiling water makes it into the bagels.

    Nutrition

    Calories: 392kcal | Carbohydrates: 82g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 3g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.003g | Cholesterol: 25mg | Sodium: 319mg | Potassium: 224mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 40g | Vitamin A: 96IU | Vitamin C: 0.02mg | Calcium: 67mg | Iron: 3mg

    A plate of homemade red velvet bagels, with a sliced red velvet bagel with cream cheese filling in front.

    A plate of homemade red velvet bagels.

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    Marie Porter


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