Cranberry Walnut Sourdough Bread

This chewy but soft sourdough loaf is perfect for the holidays! Serve with a smear of cream cheese, or use it in your charcuterie boards, there are so many ways you can use this fun loaf of bread! I personally think it would make amazing french toast, too!

I love a good loaf of bread with mix-ins! Sometimes adding extra ingredients into your dough can cause issues with how it behaves and rises, but this easy loaf is perfect for beginner sourdough bakers! Like my roasted garlic sourdough and my jalapeño cheddar sourdough loaves, this recipe makes an easy to work with dough that gives great results without being fussy.

Overview of the recipe

Here is a brief description of how to make this recipe. For the full set of ingredients and directions, please scroll down to the recipe card below. This is just to help you get an idea of the baking process.

Prepare your starter

1. Feed your starter and let it rest in a warm place until nearly doubled in size.

Make the dough

1. In a large mixing bowl, combine all the ingredients until fully mixed.
2. Cover the bowl and allow the dough to rest for 30 minutes.

Stretch and Fold

1. Grab the section of dough closest to you and pull it up as high as you can and then fold it over to the opposite side of the bowl. Rotate the bowl 90 degrees and repeat. Repeat this until you have done a stretch and fold on all four “sides” of the bowl.
2. Cover and allow to sit for 30 minutes.
3. Repeat the stretch and folds until you have done four or five of them, every 30 minutes, for two to three hours. You will know you are done when the dough feels silky and supple, and holds it shape well and looks plump and jiggly.

Bulk Ferment (first rise)

1. Cover the bowl plastic wrap and let it sit in a warm place for 3-4 hours, or until it has noticeable expanded but not quite doubled in size.

Shaping

1. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface.
2. Divide the dough in half, and then shape each half into a round or oval shape (depending on the shape of your proofing baskets).
3. Place each shaped dough, seam side up, in a floured proofing basket or bowl lined with c clean towel.

Final Proof (second rise)

1. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and let it proof for 1-2 hours, until slightly puffed. You could also cover and refrigerate overnight.

Baking

1. Preheat the oven to 450 F and place a dutch oven with the lid on tin the oven to preheat. Make sure to preheat for at least 30 minutes to make sure the dutch oven is fully heated.
2. Carefully turn the dough out onto a piece of parchment paper. Score the top of the dough with a sharp knife.
3. Carefully transfer dough (on the parchment paper) into the preheated dutch oven. Cover and bake for 20 minutes.
4. Remove the lid and bake for an additional 20-25 minutes, until the bread is golden anbrown.
5. Repeat with the second loaf.
6. Cool the bread on a wire rack until completely cool, at least 2 hours before slicing into to help set the crumb and prevent gumminess.

Baker’s Schedule

Knowing how long a recipe will take you is important before you start baking. This helps you know when you need to start preparing your sourdough starter, understanding how long a recipe will take, and when you can expect to be done by.

• Preparing Stater – 6 to 8 hours
• Mixing the dough – 10 minutes
• Autolyse – 30 minutes
• Stretch and folds – 2 to 3 hours
• Bulk Fermentation – 3 to 4 hours
• Shaping – 10 minutes
• Final Proof – 1 to 2 hours
• Baking – 40 minutes
• Cooling – 2 hours

From start to finish, this recipe should take you between 15 hours and 20 hours, including the time it takes your starter to become active through when the bread is fully cooled. Remember that these timelines are guides and that the temperature and humidity of your house will affect how your sourdough starter will behave. Please watch your dough and not the clock.

Storage & Reheating:

To store, wrap the cooled bread in a clean kitchen towel or a paper bag and keep it at room temperature for up to 3 days. For longer storage, slice the bread and then freeze the slices in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 3 months.

To reheat, thaw frozen slices at room temperature, then toast or warm them in a 350°F (175°C) oven for 5-10 minutes. To refresh the whole loaf, spritz it with water and bake at 350°F (175°C) for 10-15 minutes.

If refrigerating, the bread will stay fresh for up to a week, but note that refrigeration can dry out the bread faster than room temperature storage.