These new stuffed pizza bagels are the ultimate freezer find at Tesco

As well as being two of the US’s most popular exports, pizza and bagels are amongst Britain’s favourite comfort foods, so combining them feels like a stroke of genius. New York Bakery has achieved just this in a new frozen range, giving you a quick lunch or snack that’s ready in just a few minutes.

The stuffed pizza bagels launched across Tesco stores last week, priced at £3.50 per pack of two. Tesco Clubcard members can pick them up for £2.75 until 28 September, making this a particularly tempting time to try them.

The range includes three flavours, each named after a different New York neighbourhood:

• Little Italy Margherita – a classic combination for anyone who likes their pizza simple, cheesy and tomatoey.
• Brooklyn Deli Ham & Mozzarella – a comforting deli-style filling with plenty of melted cheese.
• Manhattan Pepperoni Melt – the one I’m most drawn to, with a rich, savoury pepperoni filling designed for maximum pizza-shop appeal.

This marks New York Bakery’s first move into the frozen aisle, expanding the brand into new meal and snacking occasions. The bagels are made using their signature method of boiling before stone baking, which gives them that classic chewy exterior and soft centre. This time, that familiar texture is used as a vessel for pizza-inspired fillings before being finished in the oven from frozen.

New York Bakery is widely recognised as the UK’s number one bagel brand, who appear to be occupying a constantly expanding space in most supermarket bakery aisles. I’ve long been a consumer of their products, from enjoying the sweet cinnamon & raisin bagel for breakfast, to using the savoury red onion & chive bagel as a vessel for cream cheese. More recently, new flavours such as the Everything bagel, protein boost bagels and sourdough bagels have also become lunchtime staples. So, I’m excited to hear about this new range which goes a step further to integrate the fillings both on top and inside the bagel, ready for you to heat up and eat.

As well as being drawn in by the colourful packaging, I like the idea of these as a halfway house between a toastie, a pizza and a filled bagel. They should work well when you want something more substantial than a snack but don’t have the time – or energy – to make lunch from scratch.

You could serve one with a crisp green salad for a speedy midweek meal, or add potato wedges and coleslaw if you’re turning it into a more generous dinner. They’d also make an easy after-school snack, particularly with vegetable sticks or a little pot of tomato dip on the side.

I’ll be diving for the pepperoni first, but the Margherita could be the crowd-pleaser. Either way, if you’re a fan of stuffed crusts, cheesy bagels or food that can go from freezer to plate with minimal effort, this new Tesco launch is worth looking out for.

Want to make these from scratch? Check out our recipe for homemade bagels or see our collection of bagel recipes for more filling and flavour inspiration. For another bakery treat, try Tesco’s new loaded cinnamon buns.