Sourdough Walnut Raisin Bread | Incredibly Delicious

As an avid Sourdough baker, I am always looking for new and fresh ways to bake sourdough bread. This recipe for Sourdough Raisin Walnut Bread is so delicious and a wonderful loaf to serve as toast or french toast. Also, so great when eaten fresh with butter!

This is a great bread for toast along side eggs for breakfast. With it’s crispy crust and chewy crumb, your family will love this bread!

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This particular recipe is for an artisan loaf and is crunchy on the exterior and chewy on the inside. It also has a bit of sweetness with the addition of honey. The addition of the crunchy walnuts make for such a fun loaf!

When baking with sourdough it is important to make sure your starter is active. This just means it has been fed within the last 4-12 hours. Or, it was fed, became active and has been in the fridge. This is the method I use.

I get a lot of questions about using my starter straight from the fridge. It works remarkably well and by keeping my starter in the fridge I don’t have to feed it as often and have no discarding at all.

Why Sourdough?

Sourdough is a process of fermenting your bread dough with a sourdough starter. This process breaks down the gluten and proteins that can sometimes be hard to digest for gluten sensitive people. In order to get the most benefits of the fermentation process, you need to let your dough ferment for at least 12-24 hours.

As you can see, the process of sourdough can be very helpful for many people. If you’re new to sourdough and want to make your own starter, here’s my step by step instructions: How to make a Sourdough Starter

It’s easy and fairly quick to do. The great news is that once you have an active starter, as long as you maintain it, it will last for as long as you want it. There are starters that have been handed down through generations.

What you will need for this recipe

Flour

For this loaf I am using a combination of freshly milled flour and all purpose Kamut. You could also use bread flour, all purpose flour, or whole wheat flour.

The grain mill I use: Nutrimill Classic Grain Mill

Sourdough Starter

Use active sourdough starter for this recipe. Active starter is starter that has been fed recently and is bubbly and active looking.

Water

For best results, use filtered water. Tap water generally contains chlorine which may inhibit the fermentation process.

Honey

A small amount of honey really gives this loaf a wonderful flavor. You could substitute with maple syrup.

Olive Oil

I use an organic extra virgin olive oil. You may substitute avocado oil or vegetable oil.

Salt

Walnuts

You can experiment with different nuts as well. Almonds would be so delicious in this loaf.

Raisins

I made this from my easy same day artisan loaf recipe: The easiest sourdough artisan loaf

I added the honey, olive oil, walnuts and raisins to this basic artisan loaf recipe.

Step by Step Instructions for making this Sourdough Walnut Raisin Bread

Mixing the dough

The morning you want to make this, add the water, oil, honey, salt, and starter to a large bowl. Mix well with a dough whisk or wooden spoon. Start adding flour. Add 3 cups first. Mix well and add 1/2 cup of flour at a time until it develops into a soft ball of dough.

Alternatively, you could mix this in a stand mixer and add just enough flour to clean the sides of the bowl.

This is the stand mixer I use: Nutrimill Artiste

Make note to not add so much flour that it is dry. It should be shaggy and soft but workable.

Shaping the dough

Once it is mixed well, turn onto a very lightly floured work surface and roll out into a rectangle shape. If the dough is sticky, use wet hands to work with.

If the dough springs back, let the dough rest for 5 minutes and come back to roll it out.

Add the walnuts and raisins. Fold the dough a few times to incorporate them throughout the dough. Roll the ball around the surface to tighten the seam and build some tension. A bench scraper works great aiding in the shaping of the dough.

Rising the dough

Take your banneton basket or medium colander and line it with a tea towel. Generously flour the towel. Rice flour works great for dusting the basket. Add the shaped dough, seam side up, to the colander or banneton basket.

I prefer to dust some flour around the sides of the dough as well to make sure there will be no issue removing the dough later on.

Cover with plastic wrap and let the dough rise for 4-8 hours at room temperature. This is the bulk fermentation and only rise of the dough for this recipe.

Baking the loaf

You will know it is ready to bake when an indention made with your finger stays in the dough. If it springs back, cover and allow to rise a little longer.

In cooler months, I start with warm water. In the warmer months I use room temperature water.

Preheat your oven with a large dutch oven inside to 450 degrees F.

Take a piece of parchment paper and turn the dough, seam side down on the paper. Take a sharp knife or razor blade and slice the top of the dough. You can get fancy with this or just one slice into the dough will work fine.

Place very carefully into the dutch oven, place the lid on and bake in the hot oven for 20 minutes. You can sprinkle the bottom of a dutch oven with a good amount of cornmeal to help the bottom of the loaf to not burn.

Take the lid off and continue to bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown. Internal temperature should be 195-205 degrees F.

Allow to cool completely on a wire rack or cooling rack before slicing.

Serving Suggestions

Cut into thick slices, dip in an egg mixture of eggs and a bit of honey. Fry in a cast iron skillet for a tasty French toast.

This loaf makes the perfect breakfast toast. Spread with cream cheese for a high protein breakfast.

Storage Tips

To store, placed cooled loaf in a plastic bag and leave on the counter for up to 5-7 days.

Alternatively, you can placed the cooled sliced loaf in a bread bag and place in the freezer for up to 3 months. Take out the night before you want to use it.