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No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread

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This No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread is a delicious sweet bakery-style bread that’s perfect for the holidays! Make it perfect with my easy pro tips for homemade bakery-style bread!

No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread

No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread Pinterest

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No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread

If you’ve been following thebusybaker.ca for awhile now you’ll already know how obsessed I am with no knead artisan-style bread recipes! Way back when I first started my blog I shared this Easy No Knead Artisan Bread recipe with you and it’s a recipe I’ve made more than a hundred times I’m sure, with countless flavour variations.  My favourite variation yet is this No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread! It’s delicious for breakfast or with a cup of tea in the afternoon, and it is a simply gorgeous loaf of bread that everyone will love, especially for the holidays! And with my pro tips, you’ll be able to make it too!

No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread

Pro tip#1: Pre-heat your Dutch Oven pot before baking. This bread is baked in an oven-safe Dutch Oven pot which traps in steam, making the crust of the loaf extra crispy. Pre-heating the pot before baking helps make the crust even more crispy and golden brown!

If you’re looking for a great Dutch Oven pot for making bread recipes like this No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread, I will tell you that it’s one of the best investments you can ever make for your kitchen. Mine is a total beauty from Le Creuset (affiliate link) and I use it almost ever day throughout the year for soups, stews, sauces, curries, and of course for baking bread (if you want my original Dutch Oven Crusty Bread recipe, grab it HERE!).  A pot like this one is definitely a financial investment, but considering how much I use mine and considering its high quality, it’s definitely a worthy investment since it will last for 10, 20 or even more years. I’ve also used similar cast iron pots from other brands, like THIS ONE from KitchenAid and THIS ONE from Lodge Cast Iron (both affiliate links) if you’re looking for something a little less expensive but still high quality that’ll do the job well.

No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread

Pro Tip #2: Shape your loaf firmly but gently and dust the top of the loaf with flour. Creating a round shape will help the loaf bake evenly and dusting the top with flour will create that gorgeous, bakery-style appearance that everyone loves!

Pro Tip #3: Let the No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread loaf cool completely before cutting into it!! Resist the urge to slice the bread while it’s hot. Did you know that after removing a loaf of bread from the oven it continues to bake inside as it cools?? Slicing into this gorgeous loaf too early will cause the inside of the loaf to be under-cooked and gummy. Letting the loaf cool completely before slicing ensures the perfect fluffy texture when you slice into it!

No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread

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No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread

I hope you love this No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread recipe as much as we do! Let me know in the comments below, what’s your favourite bakery-style bread to make at home? I’d love to know!

 

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5 from 17 votes
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No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread

This No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread is a delicious sweet bakery-style bread that's perfect for the holidays! Make it perfect with my easy pro tips for homemade bakery-style bread! 

Course Baking, Bread, Lunch, Snack
Cuisine American, Appetizer, Baking, Bread, Comfort Food
Keyword No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 45 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 6 servings
Calories 399 kcal
Author Chrissie (thebusybaker.ca)

Ingredients

  • 3 cups all purpose flour, plus 3 tablespoons
  • 1/2 teaspoon instant yeast
  • 2 teaspoons sea salt
  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1 cup dried cranberries
  • 1 1/2 cups water at room temperature
  • 1/4 cup liquid honey, plus more for brushing on after baking

Instructions

  1. Start with a large bowl and a wooden spoon, and add your flour to the bowl. Measure the yeast and add it to one side of the bowl. Measure the salt and add it to the other side.
  2. Using a wooden spoon, stir the yeast into the flour on its side of the bowl first and then stir the salt into the flour on its side of the bowl. This will prevent the salt mixing directly with the yeast. Give the whole mixture a few good stirs to make sure everything is combined.

  3. Add the cranberries and walnuts to the flour mixture and toss well to coat, and to make sure they're distributed evenly throughout.

  4. Measure the water. Make sure the water is at room temperature; water that is too warm or too cold can kill the yeast and prevent the bread from rising at all. Add the honey to the water and stir with a fork to combine. 

  5. Pour the water in and stir with a wooden spoon. The dough will be rough and a bit sticky, but that's normal.

  6. Stir until all the flour is combined. This is not normal bread dough (there's no kneading involved in this recipe), so you don't need to be too concerned about the appearance of the dough at this point. Just make sure the ingredients are combined well.
  7. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap. It's a good idea to ensure there's adequate space left in the bowl for the dough to at least double in size. Place the bowl in a warm, draft-free place and let it rise for 12-18 hours.
  8. After the dough has risen for 12-18 hours, preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Place your Dutch oven with the lid on in the cold oven and let it heat up with the oven.
  9. Place a piece of parchment paper on the counter and dust it with flour. Rub flour on your hands and scrape the dough away from the sides of the bowl, gathering it in your hands as best you can (it may feel kind of fluid and not at all like regular bread dough) and forming it into a circular loaf on the parchment paper. Don't worry if it still looks a little rough in places. This lends to the rustic look of this loaf.
  10. Once you have it shaped, the dough needs to undergo a second rise (much shorter than the first). The goal is to handle the dough as little as possible at this stage because any amount of tugging at the rough can cause it to deflate after it has undergone its second rise. The next few steps will help prevent this. But don't worry if it deflates a bit. This bread dough is pretty forgiving.
  11. Sprinkle flour over the top of the loaf and loosely cover it with plastic wrap to prevent a skin from forming over the dough. The flour also prevents the plastic wrap from sticking to the dough so when you take it off at the end of the rise, it doesn't disturb the dough and wreck the rustic shape you've created. Let the dough rise for about 45 minutes. Your oven will also be preheating during this time (and so will your pot).
  12. Once 45 minutes have passed remove the plastic wrap from the dough and trim the parchment paper into a circle closely around the dough. If it doesn't look like the dough has risen that much, don't worry about it. The loaf will puff up a bit when it hits the heat of the oven.
  13. Remove the preheated pot from the oven and transfer the dough into the pot as carefully as possible by handling only the parchment paper. Place the lid on the pot and return it to the oven for 30 minutes. Don't open the oven during this time, and certainly don't take the lid off the pot; the crispness of the crust develops because of the steam that builds up in the pot during this 30 minutes.
  14. After 30 minutes have passed, remove the lid from the pot and continue baking for another 15 minutes. After the 15 minutes have passed, remove the pot with bread from the oven and place it on a wire rack to cool. You'll probably hear it crackling as it cools - this is normal.
  15. If you can, resist the urge to cut into the bread until it has pretty much cooled completely. The bread continues to bake on the inside even after it has been removed from the oven and cutting it too early could result in the inside becoming gummy or rubbery.
Nutrition Facts
No-Knead Cranberry Honey Walnut Artisan Bread
Amount Per Serving
Calories 399 Calories from Fat 63
% Daily Value*
Total Fat 7g 11%
Sodium 778mg 32%
Potassium 134mg 4%
Total Carbohydrates 77g 26%
Dietary Fiber 3g 12%
Sugars 25g
Protein 8g 16%
Calcium 2.1%
Iron 18.6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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Comments


  2. What a delicious flavor combination! The hardest part looks to be having the patience not to cut into right as it comes out! A true test of wills, haha!

    Reply


  7. I made this bread yesterday and I can say it is really, really tasty. And so easy to make. Will definitely be making this one again. Thank you for sharing yet another delicious recipe. I can hardly wait to have a slice of this bread toasted this morning for breakfast. 🙂

    Reply

  9. Beautiful cranberry walnut honey artisan bread. I have been looking for this perfect easy recipe for a while. I had use the Italian lady recipe, but crust is not crispy and lots of work like proofing first. Yours looks so easy. Only thing I have to get a Dutch oven. King Arthur Flour has one on sale on Black Friday . Out of stock now, but will be available December 3. Hope I can get one for same sale price.
    I looked all over your recipe, no mention of SIZE of the Dutch oven. Did I miss it! What size does your bread fit in?
    Thank you for your time.

    Reply

    • Yes, although I’d recommend slicing them in half or using a few less.They add moisture which can affect the consistency of the dough more than dried cranberries.

      Reply


  13. I’ve been wanting to bake in the fall and winter months. I am making a sourdough starter then saw your no knead bread. Just made the cranberry bread and found it fit my lifestyle well. With arthritis I did not want to knead, even though it’s a much loved practice. Winter is time to rest. My bread came out beautifully tastes wonderful and a great gift idea.

    Thank you for making it easier to bake again.

    Reply

  15. It wasn’t quite clear whether the pan needed to be greased or if the parchment paper was to be placed in the preheated pan …. I’m afraid I didn’t do either, so I’m worried my bread may stick to the pan 🙁 too late now, it’s in the oven baking .

    Reply

  16. This looked so good and easy! I used a 5-qt Lodge dutch oven, oven set at 425 rather than 450, and the bottom of the loaf burned black. Any suggestions?

    Reply

    • That has NEVER happened to me or anyone else I know of, and I’ve made this recipe and others like it many, many times. My guess is your oven has a hot spot or possibly uses a bottom element only. Try turning on the convection setting, if you have it, or moving up the oven rack. An oven thermometer might help too, so you can see exactly how hot your oven actually is. Good luck!

      Reply

      • This happened to me too. When I took the lid off at 30 minutes, the bread looked perfect. I set the timer for another 15 and when I went to take it out, it was dark on top. But that didn’t compare to the bottom which was black. 🙁 The bread was delicious, but we had to cut off the bottom which was unfortunate. I am almost positive that my oven temp is correct. I’ve never had any other issues with it and a thermometer always says it is. I have a gas oven and it does not have a convection setting. My guess would be that it’s my pot. I have an enameled cast iron dutch oven, but it’s a cheaper $40 one from Target. It’s very heavy, but my thought is that maybe it isn’t as thick on the bottom as a Le Creuset. Knowing that, do you think it would be better to cook it at a lower temperature, or for less time? I didn’t know if it would be fully cooked inside if I had taken it out at 30 minutes. It was so yummy, I’d love to try it again.

        Reply

        • I’ve made this bread in a cheap turkey roaster (super thin pan) once when I was in someone else’s kitchen and that’s all I had, and it still didn’t burn on the bottom. However I did use the convection setting on the oven, and I do on mine too (but not all the time). Unfortunately, I’m not familiar with gas ovens, which may be the issue. You could try turning down the temperature slightly and baking it higher in your oven. Or try your turkey roaster like I did!

          Reply

  17. I had an issue with the loaf spreading out (a LOT) on the second rise and baking, resulting in a much more flat and dry loaf. Any suggestions?

    Reply

    • This is likely because your dough was too wet. I’d suggest adding a little more flour next time – sometimes if our measurements are just a little off it makes a big difference.

      Reply

    • Just buy a Lodge 8 inch cast iron trivet. Put in bottom of Dutch oven when you preheat. Insert your dough on the parchment paper. No more overbrowning or burn. Has nothing to do with hot spots, etc.

      Reply

  18. I’m salivating at the sight of this bread. Is there any way to make it more keto-friendly? I sure hope so, I can’t wait to try it!

    Reply


  19. We are so happy with this recipe. It turned out beautifully. We enjoyed a slice this morning for breakfast and fighting the urge for a second piece. This recipe is a keeper!

    Reply


  20. I prepped this yesterday for Christmas morning today. It is gorgeous. My house smells wonderful! And I wish I could post a picture of how wonderful it looks. Thanks for this recipe. It’s my first ever Dutch oven bread. I’m super pleased!

    Reply

  21. In step 4 it says to mix water into flour – then in next step it says to mix honey with water, but doesn’t say what to do with it, I’m robably not reading correctly, but can you clarify please?

    Reply

  24. Im confused….In step 4, you say measure the water and stir into the flour. Then in step 5 you say to add the honey to the water and stir.

    Can you clarify please.

    Reply


  28. Okay, I have a few questions because my bread did not turn out that great. The instructions were so clear and I followed them closely. I really want to try again. I am new to baking bread and the attempts I`ve made in the past have been not so great either, so when I saw your super easy recipe, I was excited. I still am! I`m anxious to fix the issues. My bottom also turned out a bit burned and so did the top. I need to figure out the temp of my oven. I don`t have a convection oven or a convection setting on mine. Just a normal gas oven, which heats from the bottom mostly. I had the pot in the center of the oven, but the bottom still got a bit overdone and the dried fruit bits on top got too done. Hmph! Also, the inside was gummy even though I let it rest for an hour and a half after and made sure it was barely warm before slicing into it. So, it seems it was underdone, but overdone(the agony! lol ). The taste is FANTASTIC. So good, but the texture leaves much to be desired. Also, I used regular yeast instead of instant and it did rise some, but not as much as I would have hoped during the first or second rise.Is there a difference between regular and instant yeast? So, my bread was sort of flat, but did have a lovely crust on the outside. So many issues but I`m sure not due to your recipe. Anyway! If you or anyone else would like to chime in with some tips for a beginner, I`d appreciate it. Thank you!

    Reply

    • It sounds to me like there are a few problems. First, try baking at a lower temperature for a longer length of time. Gas ovens can run hot and have a more uneven temperature. This can cause the issues you mentioned. Also, using instant yeast will give the dough a better rise, and leaving it to rise for the full amount of time is important too. If you reduce the rise time you must increase the amount of yeast you use. For example, if I rise this bread for 3-4 hours I’d use almost one tablespoon of yeast. But the flavour is MUCH better if you use less yeast and rise for longer. Also, if your oven is hot on the bottom, bake the bread up one rack than you would typically. Let me know how try #2 goes! 🙂

      Reply

  29. im not sure i can wait 18 hours for a bread to rise. if you use warm water it wakes the yeast esp with adding a little sugar in it. But my question is….is it because to ferments the taste by waiting that long?

    Reply

    • The slow rise creates the delicious flavour of the bread, as well as the unique texture. It’s worth the wait 🙂

      Reply


  30. Ha ha I thought I invented this bread. I use the no knead recipe and add various seeds , grains,nuts and berries. My recipe doesn’t call for a second rise and I bake it in a parchment lined old speckled oval roasting pan. I have never had a failure and everyone loves the bread. I also use my KitchenAid mixer on stir to mix ingredients. So quick and easy.

    Reply

    • I wouldn’t suggest this – this loaf’s flavour comes from the slow rise. I wouldn’t recommend accelerating the rise at all as the loaf may not turn out as the recipe suggests.

      Reply


  33. It took me 4 tries, but I finally nailed – it’s as beautiful as it is delicious! I suggest adding 2 pics – what the dough looks like and what it looks like after the first rise – for those of us familiar with “normal” dough and not sticky dough like this. My 1st try burned on the bottom and didn’t rise well, so I reduced the heat to 425 and used convection bake for the 2nd try. The 2nd try, I let it rise too long and it collapsed before I got around to shaping it for the second rise, so it was tasty but kind of flat. The 3rd try, I still let it rise a little too long, but it turned out better than the first 2 tries.

    The 4th try is perfection! I used agave instead of honey because of the lower GI index of agave, 1-3/4 c of bread flour and 1-1/2 c of whole wheat flour, 1/2 tsp active dry yeast. I took more care with the rise time and found that after 11 hours it was ready to form. Baked it covered at 425° on convection for 30 minutes (in a preheated cast iron Dutch oven) and uncovered for 10 minutes. It’s gorgeous and has the best flavor yet! I doubt that it will last the day!

    By the way, the new parchment paper is only heat tolerant to 425°!

    Reply


  34. Has anyone tried dividing this into 2 loaves? If so, would you reduce the temp and bake it using the same time? Or bake it at the same temp for a shorter time? Or bake it at the same temp for the same time?

    I only have one dutch oven so the second load would have a 1.5 hr second rise. Would that be ok?

    Reply

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