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
Superb. Nothing more needs to be said.
This was my first bread and it didn’t disappoint. I can’t wait to make it again with different add ins.
I have made the cranberry walnut bread twice, using dried cranberries and English walnuts, thinking about using black walnuts next time, has anyone else tried this? Put a little feta cheese and orange zest in the last loaf.
Thanks for the recipe! It’s my first time baking and it turned out great. The inside of the bread seemed a little gooey(?) is this normal or should I bake a little longer? Thanks in advance.
Hi Jennifer, thanks so much for giving this recipe a try! The bread is definitely chewy, but if it seems a bit underbaked, an extra minute or two in the oven should help for next time.
Hi – my dough did not rise much but I am at high altitude. Is there a high altitude adjustment I should make?
Thanks so much!
Hi Marcy! We wish we could help, but we have no experience baking at high altitude. We know some readers have found this chart helpful: https://www.kingarthurflour.com/learn/high-altitude-baking.html
Tastes like beer
can i use a cast iron dutch oven?
Definitely!
Can I use whole wheat bread for this?
Hi Mj, we don’t recommend using all whole wheat flour, but you can try substituting some of the all-purpose with whole wheat. The bread will be denser.
Can I use a 2qt dutch oven to make a half loaf. I usually use a 6qt but would like to make smaller loaves for gifts. Thanks
Hi Carol! We haven’t tried it, but let us know if you do. The 2qt may be a little small for a half batch.
I did try it and although I had to adjust the cooking time a bit they were perfect. I think this bread is foolproof. Thanks
Hi, my bread sticks to the baking paper. Can you able to advise? Thanks.
Hi Evelyn, you can try adding some flour or corn meal under the dough to keep it from sticking.
Hi sally, can I replace sugar with honey? If yes, what’s the amount required? Can’t wait to try this recipe. Thanks! 🙂
Hi Sherlyn, you could use regular sugar or even maple syrup in place of the honey. Hope you enjoy the bread!
My bread came out very dense. Any recommendations? Or any idea what I could have done wrong?
Hi Katelyn, How are you measuring your flour? Make sure to spoon and level instead of scooping to prevent too much flour in your dough. This could result in dense bread that doesn’t rise. Referencing this baking with yeast guide may be helpful in the future as well. Hope this helps!
Hi Sally,
Thank you for this wonderful recipe. I used 2 cups bread flour and 1 cup + 2 tablespoons whole wheat flour and followed recipe (** on active dry yeast, I used 3/4 teaspoon as this was showing the conversion for 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast). My dough has been fermenting for 11 hours now at room temperature (Northern Virginia). It will be 18 to 19 hours when I wake up in the morning and plan to bake first thing. I noticed the dough seem to rise faster than when I tried this recipe 2.5 weeks ago. What do you think is causing this? I do not want to wake up tomorrow with overflowing dough on my kitchen counter. I am using the largest pyrex glass bowl with lid to ferment my dough. Thank you. I look forward to hearing from you.
Hi CeeZim, it could be a couple factors. The temperature of your kitchen may be warmer, which is causing it to rise faster. Also, you can substitute active dry yeast at the same amount listed in the recipe with no other changes — the additional yeast may be causing it to rise faster too. Hope you enjoy the bread!
Dear Lexi, thank you for your quick response. When I woke up this morning the dough did not rise any further (which is what I hoped for). I followed the rest of the recipe instruction, baked it and completely cooled. Am having this for lunch now. It is yummy. I will be baking this often as it is now my hubby’s favorite bread. Thank you for sharing this recipe with the world. So easy to understand for me to follow the directions to the letter.
Cheers and post Happy 4th July! Our fireworks in the City of Alexandria was last night.
In your option, is it better with bread flour or all purpose ?
Thank you in advance!
I always use bread flour– I recommend that one if you have it!
I love this bread and make it frequently. It’s a serious competitor to Costco’s cranberry nut bread. I’m a Weight Watcher, and want to add it to “my recipes”. However, in order to get ‘points value’, I have to assign how many it serves, which I know is a ‘relative’ thing. Can you help? Thanks.
Hi Alyce, one loaf is typically about 8-10 servings. Hope this helps!
Yum! Made the bread with dried cherries and walnuts, my favorite combination. Thanks for this simple wonder bread recipe!
To take out the guess work in determining if a loaf is ready, what would be the internal temperature of a baked loaf? I read that if your thermometer reads at 220 degrees, the loaf is ready. As this bread has a lot of fruit and nut, I don’t know if this will hold true for this recipe.
Hi Cecilia, we usually say about 200 for yeasted breads.
So I’ve tried this recipe twice, bread is not rising. I did the Platinum yeast and let it set for 18 hrs ,but bread is “heavy”. What am I doing wrong?
Hi Jackie! How are you measuring your flour? Make sure to spoon and level instead of scooping to prevent too much flour in your dough. This could result in dense bread that doesn’t rise. Referencing this baking with yeast guide may be helpful in the future as well. Hope this helps!
Hi Sally, my parchment paper is up to 400 degrees. How long do I bake?
Also, do I put the parchment paper only on the bottom of the bread?
Or all around the bread then drop the paper with the bread in it and then in pan.
Thanks
Hi Madeline, we’re unsure of the exact bake time, but it will be a bit longer to compensate for the lower temperature. You’ll want the parchment paper on the bottom and up the sides, so that you can easily lift the parchment (with the bread) out of the dutch oven. See recipe photos for an example.
So good and so easy! I don’t have a dutch oven and my parchment only goes to 425, so I improvised using your tips (cast iron pan on bottom of the oven with boiling water and increased baking time of about 40 or so minutes in an 8 inch cake pan). I used the tap method and a thermometer to check for doneness and it turned out great. Scoring the wet/sticky dough was tricky – I found it easiest using my kitchen shears. I almost always have the base ingredients on hand, so I will definitely be making this frequently it is so easy. Thank you for the great recipe.
Could not be easier to put together and the results are impressive! Used a large stainless steel pot with lid. Not only does the loaf look like but it tastes as good as a loaf of cranberry walnut bread from a specialty bread store. Will make this often. Do you think I could swap raisins for cranberries and add cinnamon to the dough to get a cinnamon raisin type artisan bread?
Hi Jenny, we can’t see why not! Sounds like a delicious combo. Let us know if you give it a try.
Hi! Do you think I could substitute pumpkin seeds for the chopped nuts? My gut tells me 1:1 substitution would be fine, but don’t know for sure if it would affect the dough. I’m really excited to try this recipe as I make the artisan bread recipe often and it’s such a hit 🙂
Hi Stephanie, we can’t see why that wouldn’t work — let us know if you decide to give it a try!
I was wondering as I do not have a Dutch oven, could I use a casserole dish which has a lid, it’s the standard Corning wear type?
Hi Catherine! As long as it’s oven safe to high temperatures, it should be great. Otherwise see the section titled “No Dutch Oven? No Problem” in the blog post. Enjoy!
Hi!
I am wondering if you don’t mind checking the measurement for the amount of all purpose flour.
I followed the recipe in gram to be more precise, but 390g was far less than 3 cups. I needed to add more flour almost about 1 cup.
Hi Saera! How are you measuring your flour? Scooping will pack flour in too much, we always recommend spoon and leveling your flour. Here’s more on how to properly measure baking ingredients!
Made this for the first time today; it was pretty successful! I measured the ingredients by weight but my dough came out waaaay more wet than pictured. The dough did not hold its shape at all and immediately re-sealed after I tried to score it. Still, although it made a very thin loaf it was cooked all the way and the texture was not too heavy. Next time I think I will just use slightly less water if it’s as humid as it’s been.
I did mine in a stainless steel stock pot since that’s what we had that could go in an oven with a lid. Had to do 425 F for my paper, ended up being 30mins lid on, 10 off to get to 200 F internal temp. All of this worked well I think, would make again with the slight water adjustment.
Hello Sally, I made the Cranberry Walnut no Knead bread yesterday, baked it today and it was Fabulous! Thank so much for the recipe. Very easy to follow your instructions and so delicious! I will be making this bread very often. You are amazing! My husband loves it too. Thank you again!
Wonderful bread!
Hi Sally. I bake the cranberry and nut no knead bread today. Oh my goodness. I am so lazy to knead and my bread machine broke and I havent replaced it. Hubby and I sat in the verandah and just about polished it off with flashing of butter. So delicious and so easy. I used 200g white bread flour ans 190g brown bread flour and I used 25 g of chopped dried chopped apricots as I didn’t have enough cranberries. My biggest challenge was that I had to bake it in a gas oven, which I am not used to. I did bake it for 45 min instead of the 30min recommended as it didn’t sound hollow when I tapped it. But kn the whole mu new go to bread recipe. Now I’m going to try just a plain bread. Thanks again for all the extra tips as I don’t have Dutch oven either.
I have tried your recipe a few times and always turns out delicious. However, the last time the dough is very sticky even though I follow everything. When I pre-shaped the dough and let it rest, the dough didn’t hold the shape but molded to the bowl, plus the gluten strands also developed with the side of the bowl. The dough also didn’t slide of the bowl easily. So, I had to do several round of pre-shape.
Is this a sign that it’s not yet well proofed but I already proofed it more than 14 hours.
After I let it rest longer on the counter longer and pre-shaped it a few more times along with stretch and fold, it can hold the shape. Do you know what cause this issue?
For final proof, I put it in the fridge and it did help the dough to hold the shape better no more gluten strands develop. I did the poke test and don’t think it’s overproof. However, the crumb turned out very tight, it doesn’t rise as much as the dough expand on the side but still rise. Is it because I touch the dough too much? Not sure you have ever had this experience.
Hi Ann! This is a very different type of dough than a traditional yeasted bread. It’s wet and sticky and that’s completely normal – it’s a very hands off bread making experience! If it’s completely unworkable, feel free to add more flour on your hands and work surface. It’s best to follow the instructions in the recipe very closely for this method to work correctly. Thank you so much for giving it a try!
I baked this bread today. At 7 hours it was double in size and bubbly, so I went ahead and baked it according to the directions. Insanely delicious. When I took it out of the oven I brushed it with honey. I just had a slice with cream cheese. Yes yes yes.
I have the dough in a glass bowl. It has only been 7 hours, but the dough has doubled and is bubbly. Can I go ahead and bake it, or should I wait the full 12 hours?
Hi Alexis, We recommend waiting the full 12 hours for the best flavor. Hope you loved it!
Love this recipe! We have changed up the fruit and nuts for variety. So far:
Cherry pecan
Date walnut
Cherry almond ( with 1/2 tsp. Almond extract)
Raisin walnut (with 1 Tablespoon cinnamon)
All delicious! Thank you