Cottage Cheese Bagel Bites

By Heather | February 27, 2025 |

You will not believe how easy these 4-Ingredient little bagel rounds are to make! All you need is flour, baking powder, salt, and cottage cheese! Bake them up in the oven or the air fryer. I also highly recommend stuffing the Cottage Cheese Bagel Bites with cream cheese for the ultimate homemade bagel treat. Top them with everything bagel seasoning or just some salt. Kids and adults will enjoy bagel bites for breakfast or snacks.

Kids in the Kitchen:

Measure: There are only a few ingredients in this recipe, making it perfect for young kids to help with start to finish. Have kids measure the flour, showing them how to gently fill the cup with flour and level it off with the back of a butter knife.
Mix: Kids can carefully stir the baking powder and salt into the flour with a fork. Just remind them that all of the ingredients need to stay in the bowl or the recipe won’t be the same. That’s why it’s also always a good idea to use a larger bowl than you think you’ll need.
Messy! Anything with flour is pretty messy, so prepare yourself. Hands will get sticky with dough, but embrace the mess and just wash up after.
Top: If you want kids to skip the messy part with the flour, just let them brush the tops of the bagel bites with egg wash or water then sprinkle the top with the seasoning of their choice.

Subs and Tips for making Cottage Cheese Bagel Bites:

Gluten-free: I have not tested this recipe with gluten-free flour. However, I have seen similar recipes online that say you can substitute a cup-for-cup style flour blend in equal amounts. Make sure to keep dusting the dough with flour as needed if it gets sticky.
Whole wheat: I have not tested this recipe with whole wheat flour. I don’t think the bagels will be as fluffy, but you could use half all-purpose and half whole wheat if you wanted to.
Egg-free: Omit the egg wash if you want this recipe to be egg-free.
Cream Cheese: I like to use a block-style cream cheese for stuffing the bagels because it is easy to cut into 1/2 tablespoon-sized pieces. However if you only have cream cheese in a tub, you could spoon some into the center of each dough round for a similar effect.
Toppings: I like to get the Everything But the Bagel seasoning from Trader Joe’s, but I have also seen it in most grocery stores these days. Feel free to use any toppings you like for your bagel bites.
Air fryer: There are many different air fryers out there on the market. However, I’m completely in love with my Cosori TurboBlaze Air Fryer. It cooks faster and and it’s easier to use than any other air fryer I’ve tried. If you want to check it out, head to the link HERE. Use my discount code HEATHERS10 for 10% off if you decide to purchase.

Cottage Cheese Bagel Bites

Mini bagels bites made from just 4 simple ingredients.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 20

Cook Time 10

Total Time 30

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Servings 8 bagel bites

Ingredients

1 cup all-purpose flour or gluten-free flour blend
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup cottage cheese, any excess liquid on top drained I use low-fat Good Culture brand
1 egg, lightly beaten (optional) or water see note below
optional toppings, such as everything bagel seasoning, sesame seeds, or coarse salt
2 oz block cream cheese, cut into 8 equal pieces if stuffing bagels

Instructions

If using an air fryer, spray the basket or tray with oil spray. If using the oven to bake, preheat the oven to 375 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or grease with oil spray.
Mix the flour, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl.
Add the cottage cheese and mix with a fork until a crumbly dough forms. Use your hand to knead the dough in the bowl until starts to come together. If the dough is too dry and not sticking together, add another spoonful of cottage cheese. If the dough is super sticky, dust the dough with flour.
Dust the counter or work surface with a little flour, dump the dough out, and continue kneading it until a cohesive ball forms. It's ok if the dough isn't completely smooth.
Roll the dough into a log shape and cut it into 8 equal pieces.
If not stuffing the bagels, roll the peices into balls and place on the tray/ baking sheet.
If stuffing the bagels, press the dough into about a 3-inch circle, dusting with flour as needed. Place a piece of cream cheese in the center. Pinch the dough up around the cream cheese, making sure to seal the dough well so the cream cheese doesn't leak out while baking. Roll the dough around in your palms a little to form a ball. Place the balls in the air fryer basket or on the baking sheet.
Brush the tops of the bagel bites with egg wash or a little bit of water. Sprinkle on toppings, if using.
Air fry at 350 degrees until golden brown, 10 to 12 minutes. Bake in the regular oven until golden brown, 12 to 14 minutes. Allow to cool for 10 minutes then enjoy. (Bagel bites are best eaten fresh, but can be reheated in the microwave or air fryer for 15 to 30 seconds.)
Store bagel bites in the refrigerator for 3 to 4 days or freeze, individually wrapped, for two months.

Notes

The egg wash helps give the dough a nice golden brown color. However, the recipe will still be tasty if you omit the egg. You can use a little water to help the seasonings stick to the outside of the bagel bites instead.

Keyword air fryer, bagel, cottage cheese

Save to Pinterest!