Yeasted bread has never been easier. This simple method produces the most beautiful and crusty cranberry nut no-knead bread with very little hands-on work! If you’re new to working with yeast, reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs.
I originally published this recipe in 2017 and have since added new photos and a few more success tips.
“Homemade bread” and “easy” are terms that don’t typically go hand-in-hand. When you think of homemade bread, you think difficult, right? This recipe, however, will completely change that thought. I realize that’s a pretty big promise, but I’m confident your perception of homemade bread will switch from “nope! too much work” to “wow, I CAN do this.”
One reader, Kris, commented: “This is an excellent recipe—bread made easy. Delicious bites full of flavor from the cranberries and walnuts. Will keep this forever. ★★★★★”
Another reader, Linda, commented: “This recipe is fantastic. The bread had a wonderful crust and great flavor. The instructions were super thorough at explaining everything for a novice bread maker. ★★★★★”
Why You’ll Love This Cranberry Nut No-Knead Bread:
- Just 7 simple ingredients
- Hardly any hands-on time
- Variety of textures: crispy crusty exterior, soft and chewy interior, and plenty of dried cranberries and nuts in every slice
- An egg-free baking recipe and dairy-free recipe
- Tastes incredible warm with a swipe of honey butter.
This bread, like my homemade artisan bread, seeded oat bread, pizza bread, asiago-crusted skillet bread, and olive bread, has all the bells and whistles of a fresh-from-the-bakery cranberry nut bread, and takes very little effort. If you are new to working with yeast, or simply feeling a little lazy, this recipe is for you.
Making this loaf will leave you plenty of time to loaf around. 😉
Just 7 Ingredients for This Cranberry Nut Bread
You don’t need a lot of ingredients to make homemade bread, and you might already know that if you’ve tried this sandwich bread recipe. You only need 7 ingredients to make this bread:
- Flour: Flour gives the bread its structure. You can use all-purpose or bread flour. I typically reach for bread flour because it yields a slightly chewier bread.
- Salt: Pick up some coarse sea salt; I find the flavor is lacking with regular table salt.
- Yeast: You can use instant or active dry yeast, but I highly recommend an instant (aka “rapid rise” or “quick rise” yeast). I always use Platinum Yeast by Red Star, which is an instant yeast with dough improvers. You don’t need much here—only 1/2 teaspoon—because of the long rise time.
- Nuts: Walnuts or pecans—baker’s choice!
- Dried Cranberries: I love the chewy texture of dried cranberries here. Don’t use fresh or frozen cranberries, because this dough is too wet. Raisins would work too, or try chopping up dried apricots or dates.
- Water: I normally encourage you to use warm liquid with yeast because it helps the yeast work faster. For this recipe, you want the water to be about 95ºF (35ºC), because we’re encouraging a nice slow rise to build flavor. An instant-read thermometer takes the guesswork out of this.
- Honey: Honey adds flavor and helps give the bread its springy, sponge-like texture.
By the way, if you enjoy honey in your homemade bread, you’ll love this no-knead honey oat bread because the flavor really stands out. The process is also very similar to today’s easy bread recipe. And both breads are delicious warm or toasted and topped with this easy homemade honey butter.
Overview: 5 Steps to Make No-Knead Bread
This no-work, no-knead, professional-bread-at-home concept originated with Jim Lahey of Sullivan Street Bakery in NYC. It’s all very basic ingredients, but his method is unique, which includes an 18-hour rise time. 18 hours?! Yes! Don’t be nervous, this 18 hours gives the dough a chance to ferment. And the fermentation time requires absolutely nothing from you. Just set it on your counter and forget about it until the next day. We use this same method for homemade English muffins. In both recipes, the magic happens when you’re not looking!
Step 1: Stir ingredients together. Don’t even break out your mixer.
This will be a super sticky dough. Remember, do NOT be tempted to add more flour. It will stick to your hands. That’s nothing a quick wash can’t fix!
Step 2: Cover the dough and ignore it.
Let the dough rise at room temperature for 12–18 hours. This recipe is very forgiving. Any normal-ish room temperature is fine. You’ll know that the dough is finished rising when it has about doubled in size and air bubbles have formed on top. Like this:
Step 3: The dough will still be super sticky after rising. That’s ok! Using lightly floured hands, form the sticky dough into a ball and place on a large piece of parchment paper. Score the top with a sharp knife, kitchen shears, or bread lame, then allow to rest for 30 minutes.
Step 4: Preheat a 5- to 6-quart Dutch oven. You’ll bake the bread in a pre-heated (super-hot!) Dutch oven, which helps form a crusty exterior. If you don’t have a Dutch oven, you can use any oven-safe heavy-duty pot with a lid.
Step 5: Bake for about 35 minutes. For an accurate doneness test, the bread is done when an instant-read thermometer reads the center of the loaf as 195°F (90°C).
FAQ: Why Bake No-Knead Bread in a Dutch Oven?
Baking the bread with the lid on traps steam inside the pot, creating that perfectly crisp crust. A lid is the secret to this bread recipe’s success! You won’t regret picking up a Dutch oven.
No Dutch oven? No problem.
While baking the bread in a Dutch oven is key to this bread’s texture, you can get around it. Instead, place the rounded dough on a parchment paper-lined or generously floured nonstick baking pan. No need to pre-heat the pan like you do the Dutch oven. While the oven preheats and the scored loaf is resting, boil a kettle of water. After the oven is preheated, place scored dough/baking pan on the center rack. Then place a shallow metal baking/roasting pan or cast-iron skillet (I usually use a metal 9×13-inch baking pan; do not use glass) on the bottom oven rack. Carefully and quickly pour 3–4 cups of boiling water into it, and then quickly shut the oven door to trap the steam inside. The steam helps create a crispier crust. This is exactly how I bake 4-ingredient artisan bread.
Step 6: Enjoy a slice of warm, fresh bread you won’t believe you made from scratch.
This lightly honey-sweetened cranberry nut bread is fabulous for breakfast, toasted with butter or honey butter. Or serve it alongside a charcuterie board with a soft cheese like brie or goat cheese, or this white cheddar cranberry pecan cheese ball (yum!).
This recipe is brought to you in partnership with Red Star Yeast.
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Crusty Cranberry Nut No Knead Bread
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 20 hours
- Yield: 1 loaf; 10-12 servings
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Yeasted bread has never been easier. This simple mixing method produces the most beautiful and crusty cranberry nut no-knead bread with very little hands-on work! If you’re new to working with yeast, reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs.
Ingredients
- 3 cups + 2 Tablespoons (390g) bread flour or all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled), plus more as needed
- 2 teaspoons coarse sea salt (I find the flavor lacking with regular table salt)
- 1/2 teaspoon Platinum Yeast from Red Star instant yeast
- 3/4 cup (95g) chopped walnuts or pecans
- 3/4 cup (105g) dried cranberries*
- 1 Tablespoon (21g) honey
- 1 and 1/2 cups (360ml) warm water (about 95°F (35°C))
Instructions
- *No need to grease the bowl, and do not use a mixer in this step because the dough is too sticky for a mixer.* In a large bowl using a silicone spatula, stir the first 5 ingredients together. Mix the honey and water together, then pour on top. Mix to combine. (Note that in the video below, I add the honey to the dry ingredients instead of mixing first with water, but you can do it either way.) The dough will be very sticky; don’t be tempted to add more flour, you want a sticky dough. Gently shape into a ball as best you can.
- Cover tightly. Set on the counter at room temperature (honestly any normal room temperature is fine) and allow to rise for 12–18 hours. The dough will double in size, stick to the sides of the bowl, and may have air bubbles on the surface.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and, using lightly floured hands, shape into a ball as best you can. It doesn’t have to be perfect. Transfer the dough to a large piece of parchment paper. (Large enough to fit inside your pot and one that is safe for high heat. I use this parchment and it’s never been an issue.) Using a very sharp knife, kitchen shears, or a bread lame, gently score an X into the top. Place the ball of dough + parchment inside a bowl so the dough doesn’t spread out as it rests. Cover dough lightly with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and let it rest for 30 minutes.
- During this rest, preheat the oven to 475°F (246°C). (Yes, very hot!) Place your Dutch oven (with the lid) or heavy-duty pot in the oven for 30 minutes so that it’s extremely hot before the dough is placed inside. After 30 minutes, remove the Dutch oven and carefully place the dough inside by lifting it up with the parchment paper and placing it all—the parchment paper included—inside the pot. Cover with the lid.
- Bake for 25 minutes with the lid on. Carefully remove the lid and continue baking for 8–10 more minutes until the bread is golden brown. How to test for doneness: Give the warm bread a light tap. If it sounds hollow, it’s done. For a more accurate test, the bread is done when an instant-read thermometer reads the center of the loaf as 195°F (90°C).
- Remove pot from the oven, carefully remove the bread from the pot, and allow to cool on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes before slicing.
- Cover and store leftover bread at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Notes
- Make Ahead & Freezing Instructions: The dough takes up to 18 hours to rise, so this is a wonderful recipe to begin 1 day ahead of time. To freeze, bake and cool the bread, wrap in a layer of plastic wrap, then a layer of aluminum foil, and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator, and then allow to come to room temperature before serving. You can also freeze the dough. Mix the dough together as instructed in step 1. Wrap the sticky dough in lightly oiled plastic wrap and place in a freezer-friendly container. Thaw at room temperature, then let it rest/rise as instructed in step 2. Proceed with step 3 and the rest of the recipe.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Glass Mixing Bowl | Lodge Cast Iron Dutch Oven or Le Creuset Dutch Oven | Parchment Paper | Bread Lame | Instant-Read Thermometer | Cooling Rack
- Dutch Oven: Use a 5- to 6-quart (or larger) Dutch oven or any large oven-safe pot with an oven-safe lid. If your Dutch oven is smaller than 5 quarts, you can halve the recipe (instructions remain the same, just halve each ingredient) or make the dough as instructed in step 1, shape the dough into 2 balls instead of 1 ball, and bake them one at a time in your smaller Dutch oven. While the 2nd dough waits, lightly cover and keep at room temperature. The bake times in the recipe above (25 mins and then 8–10 mins) will both be a little shorter for the smaller loaves.
- No Dutch oven? See post above for alternative.
- Flour: You can use either bread flour or all-purpose flour here. Bread flour will produce a slightly chewier bread. Feel free to substitute up to 1 cup (around 130g) of the flour for whole-wheat flour. Do not use all whole-wheat flour, as the bread will taste quite dense and heavy.
- Yeast: If you don’t have instant yeast, you can use active dry. I’ve never had a problem using active dry yeast in this recipe, and with no other changes needed. Works wonderfully!
- Cranberries: Dried cranberries (or raisins) are best for this wet dough. I do not recommend frozen or fresh cranberries.
- Parchment Paper: If your parchment paper has a maximum temperature that’s lower than the temperature called for in the recipe, bake the bread at that temperature. Bake the bread a little longer to compensate for the lower temperature.
- Reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs.
- Recipe adapted from Red Star Yeast, method originally from Jim Lahey.
Reader Comments and Reviews
I came across this Cranberry Nut Bread recipe to try to replicate Costco’s Cranberry Nut Bread and it is very much the same. My husband and I love your bread recipe. I have made it several times and because my oven is a bit off at times with temperature, I can only bake it for 20 minutes in the Dutch oven on the middle shelf. Would it stay moister longer if I add a small amount of oil to it?
Hi Donna! A bit of oil to the dough or brushed on top of the bread before baking? You can try 1 Tbsp in the dough if you’d like.
Will it work with fresh cranberries? I have a huge bag of them and would love to try this bread recipe
Hi, Lana! I highly recommend using dried cranberries in this recipe. I haven’t made it with fresh or frozen cranberries, so I can’t say for certain if they will work. If you do give it a dry, please let me know how it turns out!
This just came out of my oven and my first loaf I have ever made! Fantastic and easy recipe!! We don’t like walnuts so I substituted white chocolate chips. The loaf came out beautiful!! Thank you so much for the recipe 🙂
Hi !! LOOOOOOOOOOOVE this bread I’ve made it many times and my guests have always asked me where I got the recipe from to which I reply : Sally, she’s the best !! I do have a question that need to be answered asap because I am prepping to make the bread for New Year’s day and I would like to make a larger loaf , like 1 and 1/2 doses . Can you , or anyone please help me out with the baking time on this ? Thank you so very much and Happy New Year to all !!!
This bread is definitely yummy. I got much better results using King Arthur flour, not all flour is the same. I tried both kinds of flour and I am a believer in KA. Thanks for the recipe. We all loved it.
This recipe was perfect! I think this was the first time I followed a recipe and it came out exactly like the pictures. My family loves this bread!
I love this bread and am going to try to bake a half loaf – any suggestions on the time in the oven? Maybe half the time?
Hi, Heather! I’m unsure of the exact time, but start with half and just keep a close eye on it.
Hi Sally, thank you for responding. I baked it for 15 minutes with the lid on and then approx 4 minutes with the lid off. It looks amazing! It’s a gift that I can’t wait to give today. Merry Christmas!
I can’t wait to try this! ive never made bread before so this will be a great start. My question is how can I make smaller loaves that bake at the same time? Is there a bakers pan for this?
Hi Karen, absolutely! You can follow the baking pan method outlined under “No Dutch oven? No problem.” Instead of making one large loaf, simply divide the loaf up into the number of loaves desired. Bake time will be less and depend on the size of your loaves. Hope you enjoy this recipe!
I used this recipe to add cranberry to my Thanksgiving dinner. I practiced ahead of time and was very glad I did. The first batch didn’t bake all the way through and was just okay. I made it again a couple days before Thanksgiving and both the top and bottom burned after the 8 minutes with the lid off. The flavor, however, was better, so I made it for a third time for the actual dinner. I pulled the bread out after only 5 minutes after removing the lid, and it was perfect! I would just be careful with baking times. The leftover bread is great for french toast!
Hi Sally, this recipe is wonderful, the bread just as the one sale at Costco. Thank you!
My sister picked up a loaf of Costco Cranberry Walnut Bread last week. I made her a loaf of this bread last night and baked my loaf this morning. Per my sister “This bread rivals the Costco loaf, No……actually it’s better than that $7.99 loaf of bread.” Will definitely definitely be adding this recipe to my favorites. Thank you very much for sharing.
(Tweaks we did: we used a good shake of cinnamon and used pecans with few walnuts we had. I may cut back a little on the salt next time.) other than that perfect loaf, looks, taste and appearance.
Thank you! The bread was GORGEOUS and DELICIOUS! It didn’t last very long as everyone loved it so much!
I had a follow up question since the holidays are coming up. Do you think this recipe could be made into individual loaves of bread? I think it would look so cute but I don’t know how to adapt the cooking time (if possible at all). Have you tried it? Do you have a suggestion?
Hi! Im excited to try this recipe – I’m hoping to make and give to my childrens teachers as a Christmas gift (and perhaps our neighbors, too!) along with some cinnamon butter. YUM!
Question – if I need to make a dozen loaves, do I need to make them all individually? I know I need to bake them individually (I may have 2 dutch ovens..if I can fit them in my oven side by side, perhaps 2 at a time), but can I mix/rise them in batches of 2 or 3?
Thanks!!! Happy Holidays!
Hi Katie, What a lovely holiday present! Unfortunately I really do recommend making one loaf at a time for the absolute best taste and texture.
Hi Sally,
l love your recipe! It’s very easy and most important, super delicious! Thank you so much for sharing :–)
I can’t wait to make this bread! BTW if you are gluten sensitive, how would you adapt with the same results?
Hi Helen, I have not tested this recipe with gluten free flour but let me know if you try!
Hi,
Love your recipe! Wondering, have you ever substituted molasses for the honey? Thank you very much.
I haven’t tried it, but I think molasses would be delicious.
I’m still in awe that I made bread. This is delicious, we stood at the kitchen counter slicing & eating it. I used raw hazelnuts instead of walnuts and they added sweetness too.
Definitely a keeper!
I have made this several times and it’s a big hit. I was wondering if I could add a teaspoon of cardamon to give it more of a holiday flavor? Thanks.
Absolutely. I think that would be delicious!
OMG. This was exactly as described with wonderful crust on all around & tender inside & easy to make. I can’t stop eating it! Thanks so much.
I read online that you should use 1.25x the amount of yeast if using active dry yeast and dissolve it in water first so I tried that and the bread came out great! Awesome recipe – thank you 🙂
Hi Sally, I recently got given a 3.487QT casserole cast iron oven safe pot with lid – and unfortunately I’m unlikely to be able to get a 6QT size one. So I really wish to finally try your recipe even if it’s a tiny half size loaf! So I plan to just experiment (at my own risk haha!) by making a half size – do you think I should half all the ingredients and proceed?
Or secondly – make the full amount and in step 2 weigh the dough and divide the dough in half just use half? I’m thinking the second option is a bit risky as it might rise too much in the pot in the oven… curious your thoughts. Thank you, and happy weekend!
I’m excited you can try it! I would recommend making the entire recipe and freezing half of the dough for another time. See Recipe Note #1 for freezing instructions – before you freeze it, cut in in half to bake one half and freeze the other. Enjoy!
Thanks Sally for your help! Well it turns out I managed to exchange my smaller casserole pot for a larger 5.3L (5.6Qt) size one and I just used it today for your Jalapeño Cheddar No Knead bread and it fitted and baked well, thankfully!
This changed my life! I was skeptical at first bc my dough was extremely wet/sticky, but it came out perfectly. My kids and husband ate the whole thing. Making another one within 24 hrs! thanks so much for this amazing recipe! I no longer have to spend $8 for this kind of bread at the bakery!
I have made this bread three times in a row yesterday. The first time I did it exactly as described, weighed my ingredients, use a liquid measuring cup for the water and it was soo much wetter than the dough you have pictured. It went past ‘very sticky’, it wasn’t abled to be handled at all, And I able to take a shape. The second batch I left out a quarter cup of water and it looked more like your picture. Thinking I was crazy or my scale was wrong I tried again with a new scale and again if I had added all the water it would have been significantly more wet than your picture. I stopped two tablespoons shy of the full amount. My dough was still wetter and stickier than yours. I’m not sure if this is normal or if it’s like pie dough where you add as needed due to weather but I’m at a loss. It doesn’t seem like others have had this issue.
Hi Ahnna, I’m happy to help. If the dough seems a lot stickier than what I have pictured, adding more flour helps. It’s supposed to be soft and a little sticky. The great part is that we don’t have to knead the dough, so stickiness shouldn’t be much of an issue.
I just finished making this bread and am disappointed. I don’t know what went wrong. The dough didn’t rise and when it was baked, it was very dense. I let it rise for 15 hours at room temperature, but the volume just wasn’t there. Any ideas?
Hi Debbie, if the dough never rose it could be one of two things. Either the yeast itself wasn’t good which doesn’t happen very often but unfortunately it can happen. Or the water was too hot and killed the yeast.
Will this work in a 5Q dutch oven?
I recommend a 6 quart or higher dutch oven or any large oven-safe pot with a lid!
Would I be able to swap out the cranberries and walnuts for olives instead?
Yes, absolutely!
Hi Sally, can you add other add-ins such as spices and cheese? Would you add it at the same point you added the nuts and cranberries? Thanks for you wonderful recipes.
Hi Debbie! Yes, add the add-ins when you would add the nuts and cranberries. I published a no knead jalapeño cheddar bread if you want to check that one out!
I tried and I really loved it. so easy. I always struggle with yeast but this one is a keeper.
thank you
This is so good toasted with butter. Thank you for this simple and delicious recipe!
Hi Sally, my breads turned out beautiful and tasty. I wanted to make the bread, so added same amount of dough(except cranberry and walnuts) later. The bread inside is bicolour. Thank you so much for sharing the wonderful recipe. I baked four, shared with friend and in law, now i have one left.
Baked this today, and it was delicious! Mine turned out just like your picture. I reduced the temperature to 450, and baked 30 minutes, then 10 with the lid off. There’s only about half left 🙂 Thanks for the great recipe!