This No-Knead Cranberry Walnut Bread with Honey is a delicious bakery-style bread that’s sweet and delicious! Make it perfect with my easy pro tips for homemade bakery-style bread!
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The BEST No-Knead Bread Recipe!
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!
How to make Cranberry Walnut 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.
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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!
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I hope you love this No-Knead Cranberry Walnut Bread with Honey 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!
KITCHEN PRODUCTS I RECOMMEND:
Looking for even more delicious bread recipes? You’ll LOVE these:
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Garlic Butter Dinner Rolls
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Healthier Cornbread
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Pumpkin Cornbread Muffins
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Easy No Knead Artisan Bread
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Easy No Knead Cinnamon Raisin Artisan Bread
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RECIPE VIDEO
Watch the video below to see exactly how I make this delicious bread recipe. You can find more delicious recipe videos on my YouTube channel.
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No-Knead Cranberry Walnut Bread with Honey
Recipe: 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
- 2 tablespoons liquid honey, plus more for brushing on after baking or other vegan honey substitute
Recipe: Instructions
- 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.
- 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.
- Add the cranberries and walnuts to the flour mixture and toss well to coat, and to make sure they're distributed evenly throughout.
- 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.
- Pour the water in and stir with a wooden spoon. The dough will be rough and a bit sticky, but that's normal.
- 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.
- 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.
- After the dough has risen for 12-18 hours, preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit (if you're using convection, 410 degrees. If your oven runs hot, 400 degrees). Place your Dutch oven with the lid on in the cold oven and let it heat up with the oven. If your dutch oven is black or dark-coloured on the inside, set your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit instead of 425. I recommend a 6 or 7-quart dutch oven for this recipe.
- Place a piece of parchment paper on the counter and dust it with flour so the dough doesn't stick to the paper. 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. If your dough is very fluid, simply add an extra 1/4 to 1/3 cup of flour to the dough as you shape it.
- 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.
- 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).
- 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.
- 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.
- 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. Brush a little extra honey on the top of the bread now, if desired.
- 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.
Recipe: Notes
Quick rise method:
- Add 2 1/2 teaspoons of active dry yeast instead of the amount listed in the recipe.
- Rise for 2 hours and follow the recipe directions after the rise time as written.
No Knead Bread Troubleshooting Tips:
- If you find your dough is too wet and fluid, add an extra 1/3 cup all purpose flour and stir until a shaggy dough appears. The dough should be slightly sticky but not wet. You can do this after the first rise as well, before you shape the loaf.
- Add 1 tablespoon of Vital Wheat Gluten to the dough with the flour to create a very voluminous dough that rises beautifully every single time and isn't too dense (optional).
- I recommend a 6 or 7-quart dutch oven for this recipe, but any covered pot that's oven-safe can be used for this recipe.
- If the bottom crust of your bread burns or becomes too hard or tough, it's likely that the bottom burner of your oven is too hot OR you're using a pot that's black on the inside (these conduct heat more efficiently than one that's a light colour on the inside). Try lowering your oven temperature by 25 degrees, using the convection setting, or using a different pot that's light in colour on the inside.
- Every person's oven is different, so it's a good idea to check on this bread about 15 minutes into the baking time if you know your oven runs hot, if you're using a gas oven, or if you are using the convection setting.
- Use an oven thermometer to make sure your oven temperature is correct. If your oven runs hot, lower the temperature of your oven by 25 degrees to be sure you don't burn the bread.
- Don't forget to dust the bottom of your pot with flour, or dust the parchment paper with flour (if you're using parchment paper as directed) so the bread doesn't stick.
- During the last 15 minutes of baking if you notice the bread is becoming too brown simply remove it from the oven early.
Recipe: Nutrition
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated, using Spoonacular, for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
Love this! It looks beautiful too
Thanks so much!!🙂
I’ve been making this for months but proofing it in my crockpot pressure cooker for 4 hours on the yogurt setting. I bake it in my white Corning Ware dish on an airbake cookie sheet to prevent the bottom from burning. I often adjust the oven to 425 and just make sure the center of the bread reaches 190-200 degrees. If the top is getting too brown, put a piece of tinfoil loosely on top. Comes out perfect! And my family loves it!
Thanks so much for your tips Janine!! So glad it turns out perfect!!
Amazing results. I followed directions to a T and it was perfect!
Tip: put the honey on top of finished bread.
Thanks so much Izzy!!😊
I am heading into my kitchen to make the bread! I have been trying the no kneed for a while now and there are a couple of things I was doing that were not helping with the outcome of the bread. Your tips were VERY helpful and I will let you know how it turns out. I joined your list and am now following on Facebook and Instagram.
Thanks very
Renee
Great! So glad you found the tips really helpful!!🙂
I USE TO BUY CRANBERRY NUT BREAD AT A LOCAL BAKERY FOR $4.25 A LOAF. NOT ANY MORE! INSTEAD OF BRUSHING HONEY ON THE TOP, I ADD 1\4 CUP HONEY AND 1\8 CUP OF MOLASSES TO THE WATER. LOVE THE FLAVOR!!
So glad you like this bread more than the store bought bread!!🙂
Hands down the best bread recipe I have made. Thank you for the pro tips, I found them exceptionally helpful. This is going to be my go to bread recipe for the holidays. Thanks again.
We’re so happy you enjoyed it. It’s so nice to know our bread will be part of your holiday feast! Thank you for taking the time to leave your feedback!
Can this be made without the Dutch oven? I assume the crust will not be as crisp but it would still be okay?
Yes, you can use any heavy bottomed oven safe pot! Happy baking!
Help! Next time you measure your sea salt can you let us know how many grams it came out to? I use coarse sea salt from Spain and maybe my 2 tsp is less than your 2 tsp? After 12 hours I got an alcohol smelling gloop that wouldn’t roll into a ball because it was so watery no matter how much flour I add to try to get it to stay in the shape of a ball. I baked it anyways but it didn’t rise much in the final proof… also my kitchen might be warmer than yours… already after 6 hours the dough was bubbling and 2.5 to 3 time the original size. How to know when the dough is READY to go o to the second step of shaping and 2nd rise? (I used half tsp of SAF instant yeast)
There is a blue button that says Metric at the bottom of the ingredient list. If you click on it, all of the measurements will automatically convert to metric. As for your bread not working out, there are many things you could try, so i suggest that you read my troubleshooting tips and tricks, in the notes, at the bottom of the recipe card. Hope this helps!☺️
Wow! I never write a review. I had too for this recipe. Delicious, and tasty. A most putting the honey on top.
Thanks so much Jennifer for your great review!!🙂
This was my 1st time making a no-knead bread and this recipe came out great with a couple changes. Instead of cranberries and walnuts, I used dried tart cherries and unsalted pumpkin seeds, a tasty combination. Based on other’s reviews about the crust getting overdone, I lowered my oven temp to 400 degrees and baked for 35 mins with lid on then removed lid and did final 15 minutes. The crust came out beautifully brown all around. I let it sit on cooling rack for 90 mins till completely cool before cutting into it. The middle was beautifully baked. I will definitely make this again!
I’m so glad you liked it!
I’ve learned that measurements need to be very precise when baking. Do you have the flour measurement in grams or does it not really matter for this recipe?
Hi Peter! Yes, you can choose from the recipe box: US Customary – Metric.
It’s fabulous. Always a huge hit at my house
Glad to hear that Carol! Thanks for your feedback!
I’m really looking forward to this yummy no-knead bread variety, but I’m concerned about the stickiness of this dough even after adding more flour. I’ve made Jim Lahey’s recipe before with no problems. How will the sticky texture affect the consistency of the bread if baked that way? I used corn meal on my parchment paper to each removal, along with sprinkled flour. It’s in the oven for the first 30 minutes, so I’m hoping all is fine. Thanks
Rustic artisanal bread dough is supposed to be more wet and sticky. If the dough keeps its shape after you form it into a ball, you should be good. Happy baking ☺️
I just made this bread substituting dried cherries and pecans and oh my! It is wonderful!! Next loaf will be cranberries & walnuts. Thanks for the recipe. Love it!!!
You’re welcome Jan!! That sounds like a delicious addition!🙂
I’ve made two half batches. The first batch I let rise overnight for about 15 hours and it was way over-fermented. I did use warm water and active dry yeast, but I don’t think it would have made that much of a difference. It didn’t give off the delicious bread smell as it was baking and didn’t rise as it was proofing or baking in the oven. It was tasty, but oddly, too sweet. The second time I used room temp water, half the honey, and let it rise for 5.5 hours. It still smelled a little over-fermented and still didn’t rise in the oven, but it came out so much better! Both times I used convection bake at 420F. I determined the second rise based on summer in NYC, 75-80F indoor temp, and if it looked doubled. I think I could have cut off the second rise about 30-60 minutes earlier and it would have come out even better.
Thanks for the information! A hot summer day would definitely affect rising time!
Hi — I double-checked the metric equivalents and I believe the recipe is incorrect in stating 2 TBSP of honey = 84g. According to many websites, 1 TBSP honey = 21g, therefore the recipe (in metric) actually calls for 4 TBSP of honey. The extra honey might affect the outcome — both to the activation of the yeast, and to the potential burning at the high heat required for no-knead breads. Go with 42g of honey.
Thank you for pointing out our error, Arlene. We’ve updated the recipe card!
This is my second time making this bread and I love it! It’s delicious and so simple to make. I will be making this for my family, can’t wait for them to try it🙂
Thank you Marah!! Glad you like it!
First attempt working on a no knead artisan bread. Didn’t have a dutch oven, but substituted it with a springfoam pan with a foil cover and it worked! Also, i used bread flour instead of all-purpose flour and the bread still came out prettily. Thank you for the recipe 🙂
Glad it turned out delicious! You’re welcome!!🙂
This is the first bread I ever baked. Turned out great!! A little darker than intended due to missing the slam sounding.
Happy to hear it turned out so great!! Thanks Dave!🙂
My second attempt making bread ever and this came out wonderfully! I didn’t have parchment paper so I took a chance with foil. Worked out great! As a matter of fact it probably helped keep the bottom from getting to brown. However it probably didn’t get as “crispy.” The only issue I had was that the foil got a bit stuck in the folds of the bread on the sides but it was only minor. So pleased!
So glad you liked it!
Hi! First off, excellent recipe!!!
Is it possible to make this bread without the parchment paper? Can I pour the dough directly into the dutch oven?
Also, I love this recipe but every time I’ve made it, the bottom of my bread turns completely black and burnt, even with the parchment paper at the bottom of my dough. I’m using a Le Creuset dutch oven. The dutch oven is placed on the rack as far away from the bottom, I’ve placed another baking sheet below the dutch oven, and I’ve tried lowering the temperature. I’ve also calibrated my oven. HELP! What am I doing wrong???
Do you have a convection setting on your oven? If so, I’d recommend this. It sounds like your oven has a bottom burner and this can cause the bottom to burn. And to make the bread without the parchment paper, simply dust the bottom of the pot with flour.
Can I make like your other bread recipe without a pot? I have made your no knead bread at least 5 times! Always perfect! Would like to make your Cranberry Walnut Honey bread the same way! Thank you
You can! It won’t turn out exactly the same, but if it works for you with the other recipe this one should work too! 🙂