Combine warm water, honey and active dry yeast and let sit for 5 minutes until foamy. Then mix in sourdough starter/discard, salt and cinnamon. Finally add flour and knead until a smooth dough forms. Let proof for 2 hours. If omitting active dry yeast, increase the proof time to 4 hours.
Transfer the dough to your work surface and divide into 4 even pieces and roll into tight balls. Using your middle finger and thumb, poke a hole in the center of the dough balls and stretch until the hole is about 2 inches in diameter. Place bagel on a parchment lined baking tray, cover and repeat with the rest of the dough. Let rest for 30 minutes.
Make the brown sugar shell: mix together brown sugar, granulated sugar, melted butter, all purpose flour and salt (omit if using salted butter). Set aside
Air fryer option: Preheat air fryer by turning it on 400F for 5 minutesOven option: Preheat oven to 425F
Bring a pot of water and sugar to a boil. Boil bagels for 3 minutes, about a minute and a half per side. Transfer back to the lined baking tray and repeat with the rest of the bagels. Using a spoon, spread the brown cinnamon sugar mixture on top of the bagels, clumps are OK.
Air fryer option: Cook bagels in the air fryer for 15 minutes at 400F. Oven option: Bake for 25 minutes.
Let the bagels cool ~5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. The melted sugar mixture will spread and is HOT so be careful.
Storage: Store in a ziplock bag for up to 4 days or longer in the fridge.
Notes
*active dry yeast is optional if you are using active sourdough starter. After Step 1, let the dough rest for 30 minutes to hydrate and then knead again into a smooth ball and let proof for about 6-8 hours. Proceed with the rest of the steps as is.