Toaster Oven Pizza Bagels

Toaster Oven Pizza Bagels make a great appetizer, snack, or dinner. These quick and easy mini pizzas take just 15 minutes and have a crispy-chewy bagel crust thatโ€™s covered with gooey melted cheese. Add your favorite toppings and fire up the toaster oven tonight!

Two pizza bagels on a white plate.

Step-By-Step Instructions

1. Adjust the cooking rack to the middle placement and preheat the toaster oven to 375ยฐF on the BAKE setting. If your toaster oven only has two rack settings, use the bottom one.

Sauce-topped bagel halves on sheet pan.

2. Split the bagels or slice them in half and separate. Arrange the bagel pieces on a small sheet pan with the cut sides facing up. Use a spoon to spread a layer of the sauce onto each bagel half (about 1 tablespoon or more if you like a lot of sauce).

To add some extra flavor, I like to sprinkle Italian seasoning and a pinch of red pepper flakes over the sauce.

Overhead view of bagels with toppings and cheese.

4. Then top each bagel half with some shredded cheese (about 2 to 3 tablespoons per bagel) and add your favorite toppings.

5. Cook the pizza bagels until the cheese is melted and everything is warmed through, about 8 to 10 minutes.

If youโ€™d like more browning on the cheese and toppings, switch to the toaster ovenโ€™s BROIL setting for a minute. Just make sure to keep an eye on your bagels. They can go from golden to burnt super fast.

pizza bagels baking on a metal pan

5. Let your mini pizzas cool for a few minutes. Then add a sprinkling of parmesan and fresh basil leaves, and dig in!

Want to balance out all that cheesy goodness? Enjoy your pizza bagels alongside a large green salad drizzled with our zesty Italian salad dressing for two or this tangy dijon vinaigrette.

Two baked pizza bagels on a plate.

Pizza Bagel FAQs

Should You Toast The Bagel Before Assembling Your Pizzas?

It depends on how you like your pizza bagels. Pre-toasting and then baking the topped bagels results in more of a thin crust style texture (think lots of crunch with very little chew).

We like our pizza bagels to have soft and chewy middles so we donโ€™t toast them before topping.

If youโ€™re worried about soggy middles, instead of toasting the bagels, try broiling them:

  • After you split the bagels in Step 2, pop them into the toaster oven with the cut sides facing up. Select the BROIL function and press START.
  • Cook until the insides of bagels are golden, about 1 to 2 minutes (donโ€™t walk away).
  • Let the bagels cool completely before adding your toppings and baking.

This will help to keep the bagel’s soft doughy center from getting soggy without making the crust hard and crunchy!

Can I Use A Different Type of Bread For The Crust?

If you find yourself out of bagels, grab some English muffins, pitas, naan bread, tortillas, or even leftover sliced bread (pizza toast is super yummy!).

Recipe Tips and Variations

Get Saucy: Leftover marinara sauce, pizza sauce, pesto, or BBQ sauce will work. If youโ€™re jarred sauce is kind of meh, stir in some minced garlic or a little hot sauce to amp up the flavor.

Bowls of marinara sauce, shredded cheese, and chopped vegetables.

Feeling Cheesy: Mozzarella and parmesan are a traditional combo but you can change things up and add some spicy pepper jack or crumbled feta cheese.

Veg Out: Your options are pretty endless in this category. Black olives, roasted red peppers, artichoke hearts, and finely chopped fresh veggies (like mini bell peppers, broccoli, or mushrooms) all taste delish. One of my favorite combos is sliced jalapeno with pineapple. Basically, you do you.

Make-Ahead: You can assemble the pizza bagels and freeze them before baking. For helpful tips, check out these Homemade Bagel Bites. Theyโ€™re great to have on hand for a quick snack or lunch!

Cooked pizza bagel on a baking rack.

More Toaster Oven Pizza Love

Plate of pizza bagels next to a bowl of salad.

Toaster Oven Pizza Bagels

Yield: 4 Pizza Bagels
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes

From the toppings to the sauce, these personal pizzas are easy to customize. You can fancy them up with whatever leftovers youโ€™ve got in the fridge!ย 

Ingredients

  • 2 Bagels, split in half
  • ยผ cup (62 grams) Pizza Sauce or Marinara Sauce
  • ยผ teaspoon Italian Seasoning, optional
  • โ…› teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes, optional
  • ยพ cup (84 grams) Shredded Mozzarella Cheese
  • 4 Mini Sweet Peppers, thinly sliced (or 1/4 cup Chopped Bell Pepper)
  • 3 tablespoons Sliced Black Olives
  • Fresh Basil
  • Grated Parmesan Cheese

Instructions

  1. Adjust the cooking rack to the middle (or bottom) placement and preheat the toaster oven to 375°F on the BAKE setting.
  2. Split or slice bagels in half. Place haves with the insides facing up on a small sheet pan.
  3. Spread each half with 1 tablespoon of sauce and sprinkle with Italian seasoning and red pepper flakes if using.
  4. Cover each bagel with 2 to 3 tablespoons of cheese and top with the peppers and olives.
  5. Bake until the cheese is melted, about 8 to 10 minutes. Switch to the BROIL setting and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes until the edges are crispy and the cheese is bubbly and browned.
  6. Carefully remove from the toaster oven and let the bagels cool for a few minutes. Then top with fresh torn basil and Parmesan cheese and devour.

Notes

Nutritional information is an estimate for one serving of two pizza bagels.

Nutrition Information:
Yield: 2 Serving Size: 2 Pizza Bagels
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 423Total Fat: 15.7gSaturated Fat: 7.5gCholesterol: 38mgSodium: 760.5mgCarbohydrates: 48.4gFiber: 7.7gSugar: 8gProtein: 22.2g

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6 Comments

  1. Lovely, simple recipe, my kids would LOVE it ! Especially if I add some thin salami slices for them… their pizza always has to be with salami… ๐Ÿ™‚

    1. Thanks so much Adina! Pizza is such a reliable kid-pleasing recipe, maybe they can make their hard-working mom some for dinner one night ๐Ÿ™‚

  2. oooh, so colorful! a less beautiful rendition of this used to be one of my favorite elementary school lunches…it’s high time i revisit it as an adult!

    1. Haha Grace at my high school they just slapped some sauce and a slice of cheese on the top of a whole plain bagel and called it a day. The basil really helps to “adult up” the flavor. After many years of plant murder I just bought a basil plant – fingers crossed I can keep it alive ๐Ÿ™‚ I know you’ve got a green thumb — any tips?

  3. Simple and delicious: two of my favorite words! ๐Ÿ™‚ I love love love these and I know my kiddos will too! Thanks for sharing!