You'll love these soft and chewy Keto bagels! This easy low carb bagel recipe is made with Fathead dough, which means it's gluten free and grain free. Keto breakfast has never been more delicious.
Who else loves that moment when you bite into a freshly baked bagel that's still warm? I love that feeling when your teeth sink through the crunchy crust and then hit the soft and chewy inside.
Hold on, I hear you say. Bagels - all that wheat. They're a carb fest. They'll spike your insulin like crazy. And after this massive glucose surge your energy levels drop and you feel hungry again within a couple of hours.
Not if you make Keto bagels with Fathead dough!!
Fathead dough first appeared on a low carb blog called Cookys Creations as a pizza crust recipe. It called for a mix of cheddar and mozzarella, almond meal, and an egg. This low carb dough was then re-named after the guys from the Fathead movie posted about it on their blog.
I think Fathead dough is an absolute godsent for anyone on the keto diet. Mozzarella produces beautiful keto breads and even pastries! Especially when fresh out of the oven, Fathead recipes are fluffy, soft and light. Plus, they have a delightfully crunchy crust.
Admittedly, they don't taste EXACTLY like their wheat counterparts. But they are excellent substitutes. I have grated mozzarella on repeat order from the supermarket!
Here are some delicious recipes I have made with fathead dough:
- Keto Garlic Bread
- Keto Cinnamon Rolls
- Low Carb Tortilla Chips
- Genius Grain Free Pretzels
- Easy Low Carb Pizza
- Keto Croissants
How to make Keto bagels - step by step:
1.) Melt the mozzarella and cream cheese in the microwave or over the stove in a non-stick pan.
Now you have options - you can either proceed mixing the other ingredients in by hand or you can transfer everything to a stand mixer or food processor. I did not want to end up washing my bowl AND my mixer, so I continued manually.
2.) You mix your almond flour, psyllium husk powder and baking powder in a separate bowl. Then you add it together with a beaten egg to the melted mozzarella. Fold with a spatula, then use your hands and knead until you have a smooth dough.
Tip: The dough is very sticky when it is hot and there is THAT moment when you think it's never going to come together. It is easier to handle once it cools down.
To prevent it sticking to your hands, you can oil them lightly. I use a light walnut oil for this.
If you're using a mixer/food processor, just throw everything together and mix away until your dough is smooth.
3.) Form a large ball and divide the dough into six segments.
4.) Roll each segment into a log (ca 110 cm long) and form bagel shapes by pinching the ends together. Make them tall and leave a decent-sized hole in the middle because they will spread a little.
Place the keto bagels on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Then, sprinkle with bagel seasoning - for example poppy seeds, sesame seeds, or nigella seeds.
Bake for around 20 minutes at 180 Celsius / 356 Fahrenheit or until lightly browned.
Tip: Your dough should be room temperature when you shape it and put it in the oven. First of all, this makes it easier to handle and the bagels will retain their shape. If it is too warm it can result in your bagels flattening out in the oven.
If you are worried about the bagels flattening, you can also bake them in a donut pan.
5.) Wait until your bagels are slightly cooled, then enjoy with your favourite toppings!
Here are my top tips to make sure your Keto bagels are a success:
Sticky dough: Like I mentioned above, the dough is VERY sticky when the mozzarella is hot. That's why I fold the ingredients together with a spatula as much as possible. Only then I start kneading with my hands. OIL them lightly if necessary, with a neutral-tasting oil such as walnut oil.
Smooth dough: Make sure you knead your dough until it is very smooth and all ingredients are incorporated. If it gets too hard and difficult to work with, you can heat it up in the microwave for 10 seconds.
Almond flour: I used ground almonds for the bagels shown in the images. This is comparable to almond meal or coarser/regular almond flour in the US. If you don't have extra fine almond flour to hand, increase the amount stated in the recipe by 3-4 tbsp. This will also help retain the bagel shape and your bagels won't flatten out.
Keto bagels with coconut flour: If you can't or won't eat almond flour, you can substitute it with coconut flour. Simply replace the almond flour with ⅓ cup of coconut flour.
Fresh baking powder: Your dough did not rise? Maybe your baking powder is out of date! It should fizz when you put it in a glass of water.
The bagels firm as they cool down. They can be reheated in the microwave or lightly toasted.
You can store them in the fridge for up to a week or freeze them for up to 3 months.
Can you make dairy free low carb bagels?
Yes! Readers have replaced the mozzarella and the cream cheese with dairy free substitutes with great results. Try the “cream cheese spread” by Daiya or Kite Hill (available in the US and Canada). Daiya also produces a non dairy mozzarella shreds product. Note that I have not tried this yet myself.
Tried this recipe? Give it a star rating below!
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Recipe

Keto Bagels Recipe
from Sugar Free LondonerNote: The servings slider only changes the first amount in each line and not any subsequent amounts. Please make your own calculations where necessary.
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cup / 175g shredded mozzarella
- 1 cup / 100g almond flour extra fine. 1 ¼ cup / 125 g when using ground almonds / almond meal
- 1 egg, large, beaten
- 4 tbsp / 50g cream cheese
- 1 tablespoon psyllium husk powder
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- poppy / sesame seeds optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 Celsius / 360 Fahrenheit
- Melt the mozzarella and cream cheese in the microwave (1 ½ minutes on high) or in a non stick pan.
- In another bowl, mix the dry ingredients - almond flour, psyllium husk powder and baking powder. Add dry ingredients plus the beaten egg to the mozzarella. Combine with a spatula, then knead with your hands until you have a smooth dough. Alternatively, mix in a stand mixer or food processor.
- Form a large ball and cut into 6 segments.
- Form each segment into a log, lay them down in a circle and pinch the ends together to make bagel shapes.
- Place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Sprinkle with poppy seeds or sesame seeds.
- Bake for ca 20 minutes or until lightly browned on top.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
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Storm Anduaga-Arias
I really trust the recipes on this site and I want to make these bagels. The only issue is that I can't have dairy! Is there a baking expert that can help me out? What can I substitute for mozzarella and cream cheese?
Katrin
Hi, I have tried vegan cream cheese, which tastes just as good as dairy cream cheese. I'm not sure where you are based, but the 2 brands I have tested in the UK are violife (coconut based) and nush (almond based). I know that you can also buy vegan mozzarella shreds, although I have not tried it myself yet. There is a popular brand in the US that is mentioned in blogs called Daiya. I would test the recipe using the vegan alternatives and see if you like the result.
Mary
Would xanthan gum work as a substitute for husk powder?
Katrin
Hi Mary, I have never tried that but as it's only 1 tbsp I think it could work!
Diana
Hiya! Just made these..OMG! Best "bread" so far.
I did modify a bit because I didn't have psyllium husk...
Instead I used flaxseeds and chia.
Thank you for this great recipe, can't wait for my hubby to try!
Katrin
Great!!!! Hope he'll like them too 🙂
Jocelyn
Made these today and they are awesome
Jocelyn
Katrin
That's so good to hear! Thank you for the thumbs up 🙂
JJ
what if nut allergies?
Katrin
can you have coconut flour? You could replace the almond flour with 1/2 the amount of coconut flour. Or use sesame flour instead of the almond flour (I have not tried this but could taste quite good I think!)
Kate
Can you just put all the ingredients in the food processor at the same time (like with the fathead pizza dough)? (Seems like this should work but IDK). THANKS!!
Katrin
I haven't tried this, but if you have a high speed food processor that melts the mozzarella with its blades, it should work. If you try it, will you let me know the result?
Maggie
These are great, but are they suitable for freezing?
Katrin
I have never tried this, but I don't see why it should not work!
Carolyn Stoker
I freeze them all the time!
Arielle Spiller
Hello! Just made my bagels today, and they turned out beautifully. my only question is the size. One batch made 6 mini bagels, rather than full size. Is that what you get too? Or did I do something wrong? Thank you!
Katrin
Hi Arielle, the bagels are smaller than wheat bagels. They are WAY more filling than regular bagels, being made of mostly mozzarella (=fat) and almond flour (=fat). You absolutely did it right. But if you want the bagels to be the same size of regular bagels, you could make 3 large bagels with this recipe. You might adapt the baking time a little and keep them in the oven another few minutes, but it should work!
Ally
What happens if I don't have the husk powder?
Katrin
I think it makes the bagels fluffier. You can replace it with more almond flour though, it should still work. Psyllium is an awesome ingredient in low carb baking, if you bake regularly it's worth getting a pack 🙂
Marion
The only mozzarella available in my country is the 'wet stuff'. You know, bland white balls suspended in salty water. I know that in the USA, you can buy 'shredded mozzarella', which is actually a quite dry cheese which has been grated.
Which kind of mozzarella did you use in this recipe? The wet balls which were shredded or the grated dry stuff which I can't get over here?
If it's the last one, do you have a suggestion for a substitute?
Thanks!
Katrin
It's the dry stuff that you can buy grated. I don't have a suggestion for a replacement - it's beautifully bland, that's why it works so well. Any other cheese I can think of, Edam for example, still has more of a cheesy taste than mozzarella. Maybe you can get it on Amazon? Or a really large supermarket? I've lived in Germany, Spain and the UK and it's pretty much a staple.
Maggie
What a treat! Made this recipe today and can thoroughly recommend it. Bagels turned out beautifully. I topped them with everything seasoning - delicious.
Katrin
I'm so glad you enjoyed your bagels Maggie! And you can never go wrong with everything seasoning 🙂
Ursula
Where do you buy Everything seasoning? Can't wait to try these low carb bagels!
Bill
You can get the seasoning from Trader Joe’s!