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freshly baked golden brown cottage cheese bagels on parchment paper
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4.82 from 27 votes

Cottage Cheese Protein Bagel Recipe

These 3-ingredient cottage cheese bagels will be your new obsession. Make them in the oven or the air fryer and enjoy them as a healthy, savory snack (or part of a sandwich) any time of day!
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time25 minutes
Total Time35 minutes
Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Diet: Gluten Free, Vegetarian
Keyword: high protein
Servings: 4 bagles

Ingredients

  • 1 cup self-rising flour (Note 1)
  • 1 cup full-fat cottage cheese (Note 2)
  • 1 large egg beaten
  • Toppings: sesame seeds, everything bagel seasoning, shredded asiago cheese, or poppy seeds

Instructions

  • Preheat the oven to 375 and position the rack to the top position. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
  • Blend cottage cheese: Place the cottage cheese in the food processor or blender and pulse or blend on high until smooth, stopping to scrape down the sides as needed.
  • Add flour: Transfer it to a medium bowl and add the flour. Mix until completely combined and the dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl. Transfer the dough to a gently floured work surface and knead the dough 8-10 times, until smooth. Skip this step if you’re using gluten-free flour (there’s no gluten to knead).
  • Shape and season: Roll the dough into a ball and divide it into 4 equal balls. If you want them to be the exact same size you can weigh out each piece of dough to approximately 80g. Roll each ball out into a 6-7-inch rope, about 1-inch thick. Join the ends to make a circle and pinch the seam tightly to seal. Brush the tops with a beaten egg and top with your seasoning of choice.

Bake

  • Bake in the preheated oven until puffed and golden brown, 25-30 minutes. Allow to cool for 15 minutes before slicing and serving. Bagels stay fresh in an airtight container at room temp for up to 4 days.

Air Fry

  • Preheat the air fryer to 350 for 5 minutes. Spray the air fryer basket with nonstick spray and air fry for 10-12 minutes, until golden brown.

Video

Notes

Note 1. Flour. For gluten-free bagels, use 1 cup of a quality gluten-free flour blend with xanthan gum (I tested this with King Arthur’s). Mix it with 2 teaspoons baking powder and 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt. If you don't have self-rising flour, you can follow the same instructions as the gluten-free option, but use all-purpose flour.
Note 2. Cottage Cheese. A full-fat cottage cheese is best. I've also seen people make these with plain Greek yogurt.

Nutrition

Serving: 1bagel | Calories: 180kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 11g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 0.01g | Cholesterol: 50mg | Sodium: 182mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 2g | Vitamin A: 134IU | Calcium: 54mg | Iron: 1mg