Delicious naturally leavened Cranberry walnut Orange Sourdough Bread made with craisins, orange juice, orange zest and nutty toasted walnuts. Excellent nuts and fruit studded bread.
Cranberry and orange are ultimate combination when it comes to both if it joins with Walnut then it will be going to extra delight. I made with Cranberry Walnut Orange Sourdough Bread. Sweetness and tartness of dried cranberries perfectly mingled with fresh orange juice. Adding to orange zest adds extra layer of flavor. The nutty walnuts make it more decadent sourdough bread.
How to make this Cranberry Walnut Orange Sourdough Bread?
To make this recipe you need following ingredients
Leaven: I used young leaven made with my 100% active starter (50: 50 all-purpose flour and whole wheat flour)
Bread flour: This adds chewiness to the bread I think better to use bread flour rather all-purpose flour as it less protein compared to bread flour.
Whole wheat flour and rye flour: Whole wheat flour and rye flour adds nuttiness to dough.
Craisins/ dry cranberries: This adds classic tart and sweetness to the sourdough
Walnuts: Always use toasted walnuts as toasting can bring out more flavor.
Orange juice: I used fresh orange juice to soak the craisins
Orange zest: This is to add extra layer of flavor to the sourdough
Salt: Salt is not only helping in controlling fermentation but also helps to add the taste of the bread.
Water: This recipe used about 81.25% of hydration from both water and orange juice.
Points to remember while making the Cranberry walnut Orange Sourdough bread
Use young leaven mainly about 4 - 5 hours after mixing the starter.
2) Always chop the cranberries and walnuts otherwise you end up with big pieces which makes difficult for uniform spreading.
3) If you adjust the water content you can add cranberries + soaked orange juice into the recipe, otherwise stick to the recipe in which I drain the juice and added only soaked cranberries.
4) Orange zest - you can increase the amount if you want.
5) You need to autolyse the flours at least 1 hour maximum up to 5 hours. This will be easy if you mix both leaven and autolyse the flour
4) You can either mix in cranberries, orange zest and walnut along with flour or you can incorporate it into sourdough during coil fold like I did. If you are making in bulk quantities it will not be possible, so incorporate them directly into the dough.
5) Always add salt after 30 minutes of incorporating the starter into the sourdough.
6) Bulk fermentation about 5 hours and retard (overnight proof in refrigerator is about 14 hours).
7) Bake in pre-heated Dutch oven to higher oven spring.
8) Make sure to cut the bread after complete cooling.
Baking schedule
If you like this bread recipe please check these too
Cranberry Pecan Sourdough Bread
Pumpkin Cranberry Sourdough Bread
Light Rye Sourdough with Cranberry and Nuts
When it comes out of the oven it is darker color loaf just like chocolate chip bread with cranberries and walnuts peaking in between.
This is excellent delicious bread, each slice has the aroma of orange zest, tart, and sweet fruit along with earthy walnuts. You can eat as such or even toast with little butter.
If you try this bread, please tag me @nidhinikhil in Instagram or @zestysouthindian in Facebook I would love to see your creations.
Cranberry Walnut Orange Sourdough Bread
Ingredients
- Leaven
- 20 g Starter 100% hydration 50: 50 All-purpose flour and Whole Wheat flour
- 30 g Bread flour
- 20 g Whole wheat Flour
- 50 g Water
- Dough
- 330 g Bread flour
- 70 g Whole wheat flour
- 30 g Rye flour
- 90 g Walnuts
- 60 g Craisins
- 310 g Water
- 30 g Orange juice
- Zest of one orange
- 9 g Salt
- 94 g Leaven
Instructions
Make Leaven
- In the morning make your dough combine 2 tablespoons (15-20 grams) of unfed sourdough starter with 50g of water 30 g of bread flour, and 20 g of whole wheat flour. Mix until there are no dry bits of flour, cover loosely with plastic wrap and let sit out for 4-5 hours or until it doubles in volume.
Autolyse the dough
- Around 4 hours of Leaven making, Mix all the flours in 300 g of water in a large bowl. And mix by hand until there are no dry bits. Knead for 1-2 minutes until well combined. Cover and let rest for one hour.
Add leaven into the dough
- After autolyse with flour incorporate the leaven into the dough
- Then after 30 minutes add salt. Mix well and cover the dough again and set aside
Stretch and fold
- Then stretch and fold the dough every 1 hour for until 2 hours. This means grabbing the underside of the dough and stretching it up and over the rest of the dough. Perform a few of these turns each time you handle the dough.
Soak the craisins in orange juice
- About 1 hour remaining to laminate the dough, soak craisins in orange juice and set aside. When you are ready to use you need to strain the orange juice.
Laminate the dough
- One hour after last stretch and fold do a lamination of the dough. Means spread the dough into thin sheet and fold them into a letter fold. To this incorporate, Orange Zest, Walnuts and Craisins.
Coil fold
- If you are planning for 1 coil fold do that 2 hours of lamination. If you are doing 2 coil folds give 1 hour’s interval.
Shaping the dough
- Then transfer the dough lightly floured workspace and shape them into round Boule. Fold the third of the dough closest to you inward, and then stretch the dough out to the sides. Fold the right, and then left sides in toward the center. Fold the top of the dough inward, and then wrap the bottom part of the dough over it all. If you want, you can make pre-shape and set aside for 15 minutes and then make a final shape.
- Work this into a round shape, and place seam side up in a proofing basket lined well with flour.
Cold proof
- After transferring to Banneton, Let rise the dough overnight in the refrigerator. You can keep this cold retard up to 14 hours.
Score and Bake
- When you are ready to bake preheat oven to 475°F.
- Remove the dough from the proofing basket and score and transfer to Dutch oven and close the lid and immediately place the top back on and return to the oven.
- Turn the heat down to 450°F and cook for 25 minutes.
- After 25 minutes remove the top of the Dutch oven and rotate the pan. Continue to bake the bread for another 35 minutes, until the crust is deeply caramelized.
- If you want crackling crust after switching off the oven keep oven door ajar and keep the bread inside.
- once bread comes out of oven cool completely in the wire rack and cut it into slice and enjoy with some butter
Video
Notes
Nutrition
This is Swathi ( Dr. Ambujom Saraswathy Ph.D) from Zesty South Indian Kitchen who loves to explore cuisines from all over the world. Whenever possible I try to to give an Indian touch to several of the world cuisine, and has weakness for freshly baked bread. All the recipes you see here are created by me and approved after taste-test by my family.
Krystle says
This loaf comes out perfect every time and the flavor always brings back happy holiday memories.
Nicole says
Thank you for sharing this recipe
Claudia says
Love the combo of cranberries, walnuts, and orange in this sourdough bread—fresh and a bit zesty!
Paula says
This cranberry sourdough bread was magnificent! I know I'll want to enjoy it year round, but especially on Thanksgiving!
Vicky says
Just made this and it turned out so well! The orange zest adds such a bright flavor, and I love the texture from the cranberries and walnuts. Definitely a new favorite!
Kim says
This recipe was fabulous. The whole family can't stop raving about it.
Melinda says
This is one of my favorite flavor combinations! Cranberry and orange is such a great pairing and especially tucked inside tangy, chewy sourdough bread. I'm going to make a loaf of this to have on hand for overnight guests in a few weeks. I know it's going to be incredible toasted with plenty of softened butter and honey.
DK says
Woah this sourdough is amazing! Love the different toppings in the break and the dough was so chewy and perfect!
Heather says
I’m so excited! I’ve always been intimidated by sourdough recipes because they don’t seem to turn out for me, but this bread is awesome! It is definitely going to become a staple in our home. Love the combination of flavors! The only thing I did differently was to bake it at 450 degrees with the cover on for 25 minutes, then remove the lid, turn the temperature down to 350 and bake another 20 minutes, approximately(and it was still plenty dark) Thank you so much, Swathi!
Swathi says
Thanks for the feedback glad you liked it.
Amy Liu Dong says
Such a good and tasty loaf of bread to make for my family.
I'll be saving this recipe as my reference.
Tricia says
I’m a little confused. You give instructions to make the leven which turns out to be 120 grams. Then at the end of the recipe ingredients it says 94 grams of leven but it appears that you use all the leven. Could you please explain
Thank you very much.
Karen D says
Made this bread this morning. Baked at 450 for 25 minutes, removed the lid from my Dutch oven and baked for another 25 minutes. I got great oven spring but the edges of my bread burned. Most recipes call for lowering the oven temperature after removing the lid, but yours did not? Is there a reason for this? It was beautiful after the first 45 minutes. I wish I could post a photo. I have not cut it yet. Too hot, but I’m sure it will taste great.
Swathi says
You can reduce the temperature if you want. As evey oven is different.
Evelyn says
Thank you for writing such a clear recipe. I've tried alot of sourdough recipes and none have come out the way I expected. This recipe was precise and I followed it to the letter and it worked beautifully. The video was also very helpful.
Cynthia Peterman says
Great recipe! I've been trying to reproduce a loaf from Costco's bakery, and this is the closet I've come. Good rise, good color, nice and chewy. I found the laminating a bit rough; nuts and cranberries kept coming out. But that resolved in the final shaping.
I took a photo, but can't seem to post it.
Swathi says
Glad you liked it, thanks for the feedback. I appreciate that
lyne labrecque says
Hi!
Just to be sure I understand, after I laminate, it rests for 2 hours and then I do the Coil fold and immediately after, I can shape?
Swathi says
yes you can
Ann Chari says
Hi, Thanks for sharing your technique and recipes for many interesting sourdoughs. I read your 2 recipes and want to make them. In 2019, you wrote on the olive parmesan cheese sourdough that we don't need to preheat the dutch oven. And In this recipe you use the preheat approach. Do you have any reason that you can share why do you choose this approach for this recipe?
FYI, I tried the cold bake before i.e. cold oven, cold dutch oven, and cold sourdough in total for 45 mins. It turns out ok too even though the oven spring is not as high but very marginally. However, I find the bottom of the bread is too dark even though it's not bitter but it's black (and it depends on the dutch oven too..I got varied result in the same bake). Maybe I will try your approach of preheat the oven but use the cold dutch oven this time.
Swathi says
I bake both ways, if you can handle hot oven then go for pre-heating. that will be always wonderful.
Glenda says
What a stunningly beautiful loaf! It's almost to pretty to eat, but I'll bet the flavor is as amazing as it's appearance.
Dana says
This bread is seriously beautiful and delicious! Thanks for breaking down the recipe into easy to follow steps. Perfect flavor combinations for the upcoming holiday season, too!
Marlene says
Is it possible to extend the refrigerator proofing beyond 14 hours? I really want to make this but my schedule the next few days means I need to leave it in the refrigerator about 18-20 hours. Thanks!
Marlene
Swathi says
Yes you can it may have little tang of sourdough if it extends more than 14 hours.
Ryan says
Wow! This bread is amazing. I used my tried and true recipie for high altitude sourdough baking but incorporated the cranberries, walnuts, and orange zest per this recipe and the results are amazing. Thank you!
Swathi says
Thanks glad this combo worked really well for.
Renata Lemire says
What do you recommend as a sub for rye flour? I don’t have any? I’d like to try a hazelnut ‘flour’ it’s fine ground but not to the same extent as rye or other grain flours.
Swathi says
If you add hazelnut flour, then it will have different texture. if that is okay with you give it a try.
Renata Lemire says
My neighbor had some rye flour so I was able to make the recipe exactly as you suggested. It is delicious! It’s the first time I’ve added the add ins in the end the way you show with the lamination & I think it works way better than pulling them thorough in each fold.
Thank you. I’m going to try it with dried blueberries & lemon zest next.
Swathi says
That is wonderful, glad you liked it. Yes lamination always helps uniform distributions of add ins. If possible share me a picture I would love to see it. The dried blueberries and lemon zest will be wonderful
melissa major says
This looks like a wonderful nutty and zesty bread! It's been ages since I have made bread, I need to make this.
Ksenia Prints says
Such a classic flavor combination in this sourdough!
Catalina says
Who can resist to this amazing sourdough bread! I will make it for sure!
Mama Maggie's Kitchen says
This Cranberry walnut Orange Sourdough Bread looks sooo delicious! I will surely make this for my husband and son.
Lizet Bowen says
I hope my bread turns out as beautiful as yours!
Janeane M Davis says
This bread looks and sounds so delicious. I would like to make this for my family and serve it warm with loads of butter!
Sandy N Vyjay says
This seems to be a really nice recipe. I am sure the flavours of orange, cranberry, and walnut will take the sourdough bread to another level.
Nikki Wayne says
It sounds so delicious. I love both of these fruits .
Tomi Clark says
I have joined the pandemic baking craze and mastered sourdough. I keep a starter and can't wait to try this recipe.
Nikki Wayne says
It looks so nice. I'm sure this tastes great thinking about the flavors of it.
Anosa Malanga says
I haven't tried making bread yet. I am afraid to try and probably fearing not being able to successfully do it. Reading your post and seeing the recipe makes me feel a little sense of encouragement for me to try making one. Probably I'll try in the coming days.
Chef Dennis says
This Cranberry walnut Orange Sourdough Bread is making me crave right now! I am so excited to try making this.
Gervin Khan says
I am not really good at making bread but this one looks really delicious and would love to try this recipe.
Sondra Barker says
Sounds so yummy! Thanks for sharing.
Bri says
You strike AGAIN with another fabulous sourdough pairing!
Jess says
This is a gorgeous fruit and but sourdough bread! I can just taste the flavors through the screen!
Audrey says
Another great sourdough recipe!!
Claudia says
This sounds absolutely delicious. I love sourdough, and I think the combination of the cranberry and orange and the crunch of the walnut would be so good!