Cranberry Walnut Yeast Bread

A savory yeast bread studded with walnuts, fresh cranberries and black pepper – delicious for toasting, for sandwiches and for holiday gift giving. 

Making homemade bread doesn’t have to be complicated – it just takes some time and elbow grease.

I’ve always liked to make bread – meaning the kind that requires yeast that you have to knead and let rise and rise again.

I never found it difficult, it’s more of a process – you basically need a day to see the whole thing through but there’s a lot of idle time involved. And once I got my KitchenAid Stand mixer for my wedding over 10 years ago, I kissed kneading dough good-bye as the trusty dough hook attachment takes care of that laborious process.

(Or you could also go the no-knead, bake in a Dutch oven bread way made famous by Jim Lahey of Sullivan Street Bakery. It really works!)

So, this cranberry walnut bread is loose riff off of Saints’ Bread – an Italian slightly sweet and peppery bread that’s made on All Saints’ Day (November 1st) in Italy.

(Funny aside, when I first googled Saints’ Bread, it lead me to this.)

Hopefully, New Orleans fans will approve of this recipe, too.

Cranberry Walnut Yeast Bread

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• Author: by Deanna Segrave-Daly, RD
• Yield: one 9-inch rectangle loaf or two 6-inch round loaves. 1x

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Description

A savory yeast bread studded with walnuts, fresh cranberries and black pepper – delicious for toasting, for sandwiches and for holiday gift giving.

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Ingredients

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• 1 (1/4 ounce) package active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water
• 1/2 cup sugar, divided
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 3/4 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 cup fresh cranberries, chopped
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons white whole wheat flour
• 2 teaspoons black pepper
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

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Instructions

1. In a stand mixer bowl (or large bowl), add yeast, water and 1 tablespoon sugar. Let stand for about 10 minutes until the yeast is foamy.
2. While yeast is proofing, heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat. Add walnuts and toast for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently. Remove from heat.
3. In a separate bowl, mix cranberries with 1/4 cup sugar.
4. In bowl with yeast, add remaining 2 tablespoons oil, walnuts, cranberries, remaining 3 tablespoons sugar, 2 cups all-purpose flour, white whole wheat flour, black pepper and salt. Mix with a dough hook and slowly add remaining 1/2 cup all-purpose flour (1 tablespoon at a time) as the dough starts to take shape. Knead for about 5 – 7 minutes (using the heels of your hands if you don’t have a stand mixer) until dough smooth and elastic. Remove dough from bowl and form into a ball. Coat bowl with cooking spray and replace dough. Cover with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel. Let rise in a warm place for about 2 hours or until dough has doubled in size.
5. Punch down dough and turn out onto floured surface. Shape into either one 9-inch rectangle loaf or two 5 1/2 – 6-inch round loaves. Place on oiled tray, cover with a kitchen towel and let rise again for about 30 minutes or until double in size.
6. Preheat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake for about 25 minutes (for the 2 round loaves) or 30 minutes (for the 1 rectangle loaf.) Tap loaf and it will sound hollow when cooked through.
7. Remove from oven and let cool completely before slicing.

Make a few extra loaves of this cranberry walnut bread for holiday gifts and your freezer.

Check out Cooking Light’s online tutorial on How to Make Yeast Breads <– includes a great tip on creating a foolproof “bread rising” environment.

Do you ever make homemade yeast bread? What kind? Any special breads (quick or yeast) that you make only during the holidays? Please share – we love to hear from you.