These crispy, cheesy pizza bagels are quick and easy to make and are way better than store-bought bagel bites! With just 5 simple ingredients, they’re perfect for a quick lunch or snack.
When I was a kid, my mom used to buy the occasional box of frozen bagel bites. It was a HUGE treat at the time, and it didn’t happen very often.
Looking back, I can see why. Those boxes weren’t cheap, there weren’t many bagel bites inside, and my sister and I could easily eat the whole box without thinking twice!
I’d love for my kids to have the same “fun foods” that I had growing up, but knowing how unhealthy some of those foods are – and the fact that my daughter is sensitive to gluten – means having to come up with Plan B.
For us, Plan B is this homemade pizza bagel bites recipe!
HOMEMADE PIZZA BAGEL BITES RECIPE
If you are a busy mom (or person) who’s trying to eat real food on a budget, you’re in luck – this homemade pizza bagels recipe is just for you!
- Easy to make
- Tastes WAY BETTER than store-bought
- Much healthier than store-bought too
- Ready in under 30 minutes
- Just 5 simple ingredients!
Plus, it’s all the fun of a homemade pizza night, with a whole lot less work and a lot less time!
BAGEL PIZZA RECIPE INGREDIENTS
You need just 5 simple ingredients for this easy homemade bagel pizza recipe, and if you love pizza, you probably already have these on hand:
- Self-rising flour (you can buy this, or make your own with this easy hack)
- Plain Greek Yogurt. You can also use store-bought mini bagels instead of making your own with the flour and yogurt, although many brands have added sugar which will add a bit of sweetness to your pizza bagels.
- Pizza sauce. Here’s how to make homemade pizza sauce.
- Shredded mozzarella cheese. You can also substitute cheddar or Parmesan cheese, but mozzarella gives that classic pizza flavor.
- Pepperoni (or other desired toppings). Mini pepperoni works well!
My kids LOVE pepperoni pizza bagels, so we haven’t made any other flavors, but that shouldn’t stop you from using your favorite pizza toppings!
Sausage, olives, mushrooms, bell peppers, fresh basil, ham, pineapple… the sky’s the limit! You can even have a choose-your-own-adventure pizza bagel bar and let everyone pick their own toppings before you bake them all up on the same baking sheet.
HOW TO MAKE SELF-RISING FLOUR
Self-rising flour isn’t something I normally keep in my pantry, so I choose to make my own with this super easy hack:
Combine 1 cup of flour with 1 ½ tsp baking powder and ½ tsp salt. Stir and use in place of self-rising flour for the bagels!
(If you want to know more about self-rising flour, check out this self-rising flour tutorial.)
HOW TO MAKE PIZZA BAGELS
Learning how to make pizza bagels is so easy, you’ll wish you had done it sooner!
If you don’t have the mini bagels prepared, you’ll want to do that first:
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 375F.
Step 2: Combine the flour and Greek yogurt in a large bowl (aim for one size larger than you think you need) and mix together using your hands.
Step 3: Divide the dough and shape it on a silpat mat.
Step 4: Bake the mini plain bagels and let them cool for a few minutes.
See the recipe card below for detailed bagel instructions.
While the bagels are cooling, bump up the heat in the oven and prepare your toppings. Then this healthy pizza bagel bites recipe comes together REALLY fast!
If you are using store-bought mini bagels for pizza bagels, start here.
Step 1: Heat the oven to 400F.
Step 2: Slice the bagels in half horizontally and place them cut side up on a baking sheet.
Step 3: Layer the sliced bagel halves with pizza sauce, sprinkle cheese, pepperoni slices, and desired toppings.
Step 4: Bake the pizza bagel bites for 5-8 minutes, or until the cheese is golden and bubbly.
Step 5: Let cool slightly and enjoy!
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
HOMEMADE BAGEL BITES TIPS
Top the bagels themselves: When making your own mini bagels for this bagel pizza recipe, you can add toppings to the bagels before baking them. Think sesame seeds, dry minced onions, garlic powder, or Italian seasoning. This will add an extra boost of flavor to your bagel pizzas.
Pre-toast store-bought bagels: Store-bought bagels are softer than homemade bagels, so you may want to lightly toast them before adding toppings to avoid soggy homemade bagel bites.
Don’t go overboard on the toppings: Mini pizza bagels don’t have a ton of surface area to begin with, so chop your toppings small and just do a sprinkling of toppings on each bagel pizza. You’ll get the flavor without the toppings sliding off during baking.
Be adventurous with your toppings: One of the perks of making homemade pizza bagel bites is that you can experiment with all sorts of flavors! Try barbecue sauce and chicken, add freshly chopped basil, or even drizzle a bit of Hot Sauce, or add chopped jalapenos for bagel bites with a kick!
Broil the pizza bagel bites: You can place the homemade bagel bites under the broiler for 1-2 minutes at the end of the cooking time for extra crispiness, but if you do, don’t leave the oven unattended! They can go from crispy to burned really quickly.
WHAT TO SERVE WITH MINI PIZZA BAGELS
I usually stick with a side of salad for these mini pizza bagels. It’s easy to throw together, and we still get our veggies in!
- Kale Caesar Salad
- Greek Quinoa Salad
- Delicata Squash Salad with Apples and Cranberries
- Chicken Southwest Salad
For dessert, you can serve these healthy and delicious Black Bean Brownies.
BAGEL PIZZA FAQS
How long do you cook bagel bites in the microwave?
I haven’t made these bagel pizzas in the microwave but cooking for 30-90 seconds (depending on your microwave) should do the trick! However, they won’t turn out as crispy in the microwave as they do in the oven.
Are bagel bites healthy?
The bagel bites you get from the store have a long ingredient list with additives and preservatives we try to avoid. But these homemade bagel bites have just a few simple, real food ingredients – much better for you!
OTHER FAST KID-FRIENDLY RECIPES
- Homemade Hamburger Helper
- Corn Dog Muffins
- Homemade Fish Fingers
- 15-Minute Homemade Alfredo
- Easy Salsa Verde Spinach Chicken Enchiladas
- Skillet Pizza Veggie Pasta
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These crispy, cheesy pizza bagels are quick and easy to make and are way better than store-bought bagel bites! With just 5 simple ingredients, they’re perfect for a quick lunch or snack.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 25-28 minutes
- Total Time: 40-43 minutes
- Yield: 16 pizza bagel bites 1x
- Category: Breads
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 4–6 Tbsp pizza sauce
- 4–6 Tbsp mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 4–5 large pepperoni, cut into smaller bite-size pieces (or other toppings as desired)
Mini Bagel Ingredients:
- 1 cup Greek yogurt (recipe)
- 1 cup self-rising flour (recipe)
- Toppings as desired, such as sesame seeds or minced onions (optional)
- 1 Egg, whisked (optional)
Self-rising Flour Ingredients:
- 1 cup flour (+ ¼ cup, if using einkorn)
- 1 ½ tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
Instructions
Mini Bagel Recipe:
1. Preheat the oven to 375F. In a large bowl, combine the yogurt and the self-rising flour. Using your hands, mix the ingredients until you have a mostly smooth dough.
2. Using a dough scraper or knife, divide the dough into four equal pieces. Lightly flour your working surface. (I HIGHLY recommend using a Silpat mat for this.)
3. Working with one piece of dough at a time, roll the dough on the mat in a back and forth motion until you have a rope about 5-6” in length.
4. Place the dough onto a baking sheet (I use these USA baking sheets) and shape into a bagel, wrapping each end over the other and tucking the ends underneath the bagel.
5. Brush the top of the bagel with the egg (if desired) and top with desired toppings (optional).
6. Bake for 18-20 minutes. Let cool for 15 minutes before enjoying!
Pizza Bagel Bites Recipe:
1. Copy steps to make mini bagels through baking.
2. Increase temp to 400F.
3. Slice bagels in half horizontally and place cut-size up on a baking sheet.
4. Spoon pizza sauce over each of the bagel slices. Then cover with mozzarella cheese and pepperoni (or other toppings, as desired).
5. Bake at 400F for 5-8 minutes until the cheese is golden bubbly. If desired, broil for an additional 1-2 minutes.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 mini bagel
- Calories: 271
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