Sourdough Cinnamon Raisin Bread

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Sweet raisins and warm cinnamon, this Sourdough Cinnamon Raisin Bread is a delicious breakfast bread to enjoy throughout the week!

A hand is holding the cut in half bread. — The raisins are spread throughout the bread beautifully!

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Just like my Jalapeno cheddar bread, this cinnamon raisin bread is a twist on my classic sourdough recipe. This bread is filling with juicy raisins, sweet sugar, and warm cinnamon and makes the house smell amazing! It's simple to make, yet so delicious! No kneading required!

This recipe is based off a recipe in Emilie Raffa's book "Artisan Sourdough Made Simple" . She is the queen of sourdough and has so many fantastic recipes that are easy to understand.

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What is Sourdough Bread?
Ingredients You'll Need
Types of Flour for Sourdough Bread
Equipment You'll Need
How To Make Sourdough Cinnamon Raisin Bread!
Sample Baking Schedule
Tips and Tricks
How To Bake Bread Without A Dutch Oven
Storage Tips
Variations
Questions About Sourdough Cinnamon Raisin Bread
More Sourdough Recipes
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What is Sourdough Bread?

Sourdough bread is a bread made from natural yeast, flour, water, and salt. There is no commercial yeast, only naturally occurring yeast from the environment. Sourdough bread requires a "starter" to rise the bread. A starter is filled with good bacteria and natural yeast that gives the bread that traditional sour taste. Unlike commercial yeast, sourdough starters take a much longer time to make the bread rise, so a sour flavor develops as the water, flour, and wild yeast ferment.

If you are new to sourdough, make sure to check out this post on how to keep a sourdough starter.

Ingredients You'll Need

An overhead shot of the ingredients for sourdough cinnamon raisin bread — You only need a few simple ingredients.

Flour. Bread flour is best for this recipe.
Sourdough Starter. Make sure it is active and bubbly, meaning it was just fed.
Water. Room temperature so you do not kill the yeast with water that is too hot. Water that is too cold will take a very long time for the yeast to rise.
Salt. Salt slows down the yeast in the starter so it doesn't rise to the ceiling! It also adds flavor to the bread.
Raisins. Your favorite variety.
Sugar. To feed the yeast but also to add flavor to the swirl.
Cinnamon. It is cinnamon raisin bread after all!

Types of Flour for Sourdough Bread

The best type of flour to use for bread is bread flour. Bread flour has a higher protein content, and high protein means more gluten in your bread loaf.

If you don't have bread flour handy, all purpose flour can be substituted. You won't build up as much gluten as you would with bread flour, but the difference won't be very noticeable.

Whole wheat flour can be used in sourdough bread as well, but you don't want to use all whole wheat flour. That can turn the bread very tough and it would have a bitter flavor. I like to use 50% bread flour and 50% whole wheat flour.

An overhead shot of the baked sourdough cinnamon raisin bread — The bread is perfect for breakfast!

Equipment You'll Need

How To Make Sourdough Cinnamon Raisin Bread!

In a large bowl, mix together the warm water and the starter. Once combined, add the flour and salt. Mix until a dough forms. It will look shaggy and that is ok. Cover with a damp towel and let it rest for 1 hour.

After 1 hour, add the cinnamon, sugar, and raisins. Fold the dough onto itself until the raisins and cinnamon are combined into the dough. Cover with a damp towel and let it rise for 8-10 hours or until it has doubles in size and looks light and bubbly.

The starter and water are in a large bowl. — If the starter floats in the water, it is ready to use for baking.

The flour and salt are added to the bowl — Add the flour and salt to the bowl.

A shaggy dough has formed in the bowl. — The dough will be shaggy and not smooth yet.

After 8-10 hours, turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Shape the dough into a ball by folding the edges into the middle and then flipping the dough over at the end. Place the dough in a kitchen towel lined bowl sprinkled with flour, seam side up. Cover with a damp kitchen towel and place it in the refrigerator overnight.

The dough is ready for the bulk rise. — When the raisins are incorporated, it's ready to rise.

The dough has doubled in size. — The dough should double in size.

Time to Bake!

In the morning, preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Take the dough out of the bowl and place it seam side down onto a piece of parchment paper. Make a slice on the top of the dough and place it in a Dutch oven.

Bake for 20 minutes covered, and then 35 minutes uncovered. Take the bread out of the oven and let it cool completely before serving.

A slit is made in the dough of the sourdough cinnamon raisin bread. — Make a simple slit or an elaborate design on the bread.

Bread is baked in a Dutch oven. — The bread will be golden brown and sound hallow when tapped.

Sample Baking Schedule

Noon- Mix together flour, water, and starter.
Bulk Rise- 1pm- Add the cinnamon, sugar, and raisins. Mix well. Let it rest for 8-10 hours.
9pm- Shape the dough and place the dough in the refrigerator to rest overnight.
7am- Bake for 1 hour.

Tips and Tricks

To check if your starter is ready to bake with, place a tablespoon of starter into water. If the starter floats, it is ready to bake with. If it sinks, feed it again, and make the bread the next day.
When making bread, it is most important to weigh out the ingredients. That is the best way to get the most accurate measurements.
To check if the bread is cooked completely, carefully tap on the bottom of the bread. It should sound hollow when you tap it.
Though it may be tempting, wait until the bread is cool to cut it. The structure of the bread needs to set before you cut into it or it will be too moist and sticky.

A half of the bread is on the other half of the bread.

How To Bake Bread Without A Dutch Oven

If you don't have a Dutch oven, you can still make this bread!

You can make this bread by placing the dough onto a piece of parchment paper and onto a baking sheet. Cover the bread with a large pot, so the pot is upside down. Bake for 20 minutes with the pot on the bread, and 30 minutes without the bread. Then bake it for 5 minutes uncovered.

In a loaf pan. Cut the dough in half, shape it into a log, and place it on two pieces of parchment paper. Place the parchment paper into the loaf pan and bake for 45 minutes.

Storage Tips

To make the dough in advance. Once the dough has risen, you can keep it in the refrigerator up to 24 hours before you would like to bake it. Make sure the kitchen towel stay damp so you don't form a skin over the dough.

How to store the bread. Cool the bread to room temperature and then keep it in an airtight container or a gallon sized Ziploc bag on the counter. It will stay fresh up to 4 days. Cut off a slice as you would like to enjoy the bread.

Lynn's Tip! Do not store homemade bread in the refrigerator. It will go stale quickly and it will also promote the growth of mold.

How to freeze the bread. Once the bread has cooled completely, place it in a gallon sized Ziploc bag. It can be frozen up to 3 months. To defrost the bread, place it on the counter until it thaws completely.

Variations

Change up the raisins! Instead of raisins, use dried cranberries or white raisins!
Add some texture! Add 1 cup of chopped walnuts or chopped pecans when you are mixing in the raisins.
Change up the flour! Use a mixture of whole wheat flour and bread flour for a nuttier texture.

A chunk of the sourdough cinnamon raisin bread is in front of the other half of bread. — Serve this bread with lots of butter!

Questions About Sourdough Cinnamon Raisin Bread

Can I use measuring cups instead of a kitchen scale?

It's not recommended. A kitchen scale provides the most accurate measurements for bread, and accuracy is super important when making bread. Kitchen scales can easily be found on Amazon and are not very expensive. Keep one in your kitchen cabinet for days like this. You will be surprised how often you use it!

Why should I refrigerate the dough?

After the dough has risen for 8 hours, it's important to let the dough rest in the refrigerator. This will set the structure of the inside of the bread. You can keep the dough in the refrigerator overnight if you want to make the dough ahead of time and then bake it off in the morning. Refrigerating the dough will also increase the sour flavor in the bread as it sits overnight.

Why isn't there a swirl in this bread?

We are mixing in the cinnamon and raisins so it rises with the bread. If you would prefer a swirl, you would flatten the bread after it has risen completely, then sprinkle in the cinnamon, sugar, and raisins. Roll up the dough like you would roll cinnamon rolls and then place the dough into a loaf pan. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour.

More Sourdough Recipes

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