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This sourdough fruit bread is absolutely next level, it’s the only sourdough raisin bread recipe you’ll ever need! It is an absolute family favorite here and a recipe that I have tweaked over time, to create what you see now. It pairs the wonders of sourdough with the sweetness of raisins and the delicate hint of cinnamon. You can absolutely just make this into a sourdough cinnamon raisin loaf, but I urge you to try it with the other fruits as well!

A horizontal image showing a sourdough fruit loaf full of juicy raisins and dried fruit sitting on a counter top with a dish of butter. The loaf has been cut so you can see the cinnamon swirl and raisins inside. There is also a few slices of the loaf with an ivory handled butter knife to the left of the photo and a small dish of butter in the background.

Table of Contents

Why You’ll Love This Recipe!

Flavor – this sourdough loaf combines the sweetness of raisins (as well as other dried fruit) with the homely flavor of cinnamon to create a loaf that you will want to come back to time and time again.

Fresh or Toasted – It is delicious to eat fresh – with it’s delicate crust and tender, soft squishy crumb. But it’s even better toasted with homemade butter!  

If you love sourdough bread with fruit and nuts, why not try this sourdough walnut raisin bread or this orange cranberry sourdough bread.

Ingredients

  • Bread Flour – bread flour is non negotiable for this recipe!
  • Water – you can replace the water with your favorite tea or even whey if you prefer. Adding whey to sourdough bread can create a soft texture, which works really well in this fruit loaf.
  • Sourdough Starter – I’ve used 100g of active sourdough starter to create this loaf. You can use a sweet levain if you want to (and I used to when I made this recipe) however since updating the recipe, I don’t think it’s necessary.
  • Salt
  • Honey – use maple syrup if you prefer.
  • Mixed Dried Fruit – You can just add raisins if you prefer, however, I’ve added an array of chopped dried apricots, dried blueberries and raisins, as well as dried orange peel, which add tangy little bursts of flavor! You can also add “mixed peel” like you would in a traditional hot cross buns recipe. Dried cranberries, cherries or apples can be a nice addition too. I honestly add whatever I have on hand at the time!
  • Brown Sugar – I’ve used brown sugar swirl (similar to this sourdough cinnamon swirl loaf) to create a balanced sweetness in this recipe. It works particularly well when you’re using some of the tarter fruits like apricots, cherries and dried orange peel. 
  • Cinnamon – you can increase the spice here by adding some allspice and nutmeg to your cinnamon if you want to, but you definitely don’t have to.
  • All Purpose Flour – I’ve only added a tiny bit of all purpose flour to the brown sugar and cinnamon mixture to stop the brown sugar from turning liquid inside your shaped loaf and leaking out. 
Flat lay of ingredients necessary to make sourdough fruit bread.

A little note from Kate

This recipe came about because my husband absolutely LOVES raisin toast. You know, the generic store bought stuff. It’s sweet, easy and tasty … but really doesn’t fill you up. You can eat half the loaf and still wonder what’s for breakfast, right?

Well, I set about developing a loaf of sourdough bread that would not only satiate his love of all things cinnamon and raisin, but also fill up his belly so he was set to achieve great things for the day. Hence this sourdough fruit loaf was born!

I updated this recipe in March 2026 to make it more reliable. The original version used butter in the filling, which could sometimes melt and pool in the bottom of the loaf. This newer cinnamon swirl is much more stable, giving you that beautiful, even ribbon all the way through without any leaking or soggy patches (honestly, such a game changer). It’s similar to the technique I use in this sourdough cinnamon swirl loaf.

How To Make Sourdough Fruit Bread

To get started, you’ll mix your active starter with water and honey, making sure everything is nicely dissolved before adding your flour and salt. The dough will come together into a fairly dry, shaggy mix and that’s exactly what you want at this stage. Letting it rest (autolyse, or in this case fermentolyse) for an hour makes a huge difference here, as it gives the flour time to fully hydrate and makes the dough much easier to work with later.

After that rest, a quick series of folds will bring it into a smooth ball, and from there you’ll build strength with a few stretch and fold sets. I like to add the dried fruit during the second or third set so it distributes evenly without tearing the dough. If you add it too early, it can make the dough harder to develop.

A glass bowl of sourdough dough with dried fruit being added to it. Someone is doing a stretch and fold to incorporate the fruit and you can see the hand performing this action in the photo.
A glass bowl containing sourdough fruit loaf dough. The fruit has been fully incorporated into the dough.

After the stretches and folds, you’ll need to leave your dough to ferment at room temperature. Once your dough has finished bulk fermentation and is nice and puffy (don’t be afraid to let it double, this dough can handle it), it’s time for the fun part: shaping and adding that cinnamon swirl. You can see how marshmallow like my dough is in the photos below and how easily it pulls away from the bowl onto the counter. This is how I know that bulk fermentation has finished.

Sourdough fruit loaf in a glass bowl. This is the end of bulk fermentation so the dough has doubled and is marshmallow like in texture.
The dough can be tipped out of the bowl easily at the end of bulk fermentation and this image shows the glass bowl tipped upside down on the counter and the dough easily falling out without leaving any residue on the bottom of the bowl.

Mixing the cinnamon, sugar and flour beforehand helps prevent clumps and keeps everything evenly distributed through the loaf. As you gently stretch the dough into a rectangle, sprinkle the mixture in layers as you shape. This gives you that beautiful swirl without it all sinking to one spot.

Sourdough fruit loaf dough being shaped. The dough has been pulled out into a rectangle and the cinnamon sugar mixture has been sprinkled on top. The top of the dough has been folded down.
Sourdough fruit loaf dough being shaped. The dough has been pulled out into a rectangle and the cinnamon sugar mixture has been sprinkled on top. The top of the dough has been folded down. And then the other side of the dough has been folded across and more mixture sprinkled on top.

When rolling it up, take a little extra care to keep the dough tight and the ends sealed so all that delicious filling stays tucked inside where it belongs.

Sourdough fruit loaf dough being shaped. The loaf is being rolled up and you can see the hands in the photo doing this. There is cinnamon sugar mixture spilled around the loaf.
The loaf of sourdough fruit bread shaped into a batard. Hands are pulling the loaf towards them and adding tension to the shaped loaf.

Pop it into your chosen banneton seam side up and then into the fridge overnight. After an overnight cold ferment in the fridge, your dough will be ready to bake straight from cold, which helps it hold its shape and gives you a lovely oven spring.

Sourdough fruit loaf inside a 9" banneton. The top of the dough has been stitched together to keep all of the cinnamon sugar filling inside.
A finished loaf of sourdough fruit bread that has been taken out of the oven and is still sitting in a rectangle cast iron bread pan.

A hot Dutch oven is key here. It traps steam and helps create that golden crust. Bake with the lid on first, then uncovered to finish, and once it’s out of the oven, resist the urge to cut into it straight away (I know, it’s hard!). Letting it cool properly will give you the best texture.

A sourdough fruit loaf full of juicy raisins and dried fruit sitting on a counter top with a dish of butter. The loaf has been cut so you can see the cinnamon swirl and raisins inside.

Sourdough Baking Schedule

This is a sample sourdough baking timeline for making a loaf of sourdough fruit bread. You can adjust it to suit your own schedule and time available.

TIMEPROCESS
9 amPremix and autolyse for around an hour, forming up the dough and leaving to rest for another 30 minutes before stretch and folds.
11 am1st stretch and fold
11.30 am2nd stretch and fold – add half the dried fruit.
12 pm3rd stretch and fold – add other half of the dried fruit.
12.30 pm4th stretch and fold
1 pmBulk fermentation at room temperature remembering that the honey will speed up bulk fermentation.
6 pmShape dough into a batard, adding in the cinnamon swirl, place into banneton and then into fridge for cold fermentation.
9 amWake and bake! The next morning, you can get up, make a coffee and bake your sourdough fruit loaf!

Sourdough Fruit Bread Recipe Variations

This sourdough fruit bread recipe makes a fantastic loaf – but there are so many ways you can tweak it. This recipe is literally the only sourdough fruit bread you’ll ever need! Check out some of these sourdough fruit bread variations:

Heavy Sourdough Fruit Bread – if you prefer a heavier fruit bread, you can double the amount of dried fruit you add. Instead of a generic “mixed dried fruit” you could also include some chopped apricots and figs. This will add to the heaviness of the sourdough.

Rye Fruit Bread – if you love the earthiness that rye flour brings to your sourdough, substitute up to 30% of the Bread Flour with Rye Flour. You can read about Baker’s Math here.

Sourdough Raisin Toast – love a traditional raisin toast. Substitute the mixed fruit with plain raisins. You don’t have to soak them before you add them, but if you want to, you could soak them in maple syrup, vanilla essence or even just some warm water to plump them up. You can also bake this sourdough in a loaf pan if you prefer.

Fruit & Nut Sourdough Loaf – love some crunch? Substitute half the dried fruit with your favorite chopped nuts. We love a combination of walnuts and pecans.

If you are looking for more of a sourdough raisin loaf perfect for toasting, then I recommend this sourdough discard cinnamon raisin loaf which is baked in a loaf pan. 

How To Store and Freeze

This loaf freezes really well! Whether you freeze it as a whole loaf or in individual slices. It toasts really well from frozen too! 

A sourdough fruit loaf full of juicy raisins and dried fruit sitting on a counter top with a dish of butter. The loaf has been cut so you can see the cinnamon swirl and raisins inside.
4.24 from 77 votes

Sourdough Fruit Bread Recipe

By Kate Freebairn
This easy fruit loaf laced with cinnamon is the only sourdough fruit bread recipe you'll ever need. Full of juicy raisins and other dried fruit, this is a lovely way to start the day!
Prep: 4 hours
Cook: 45 minutes
Fermentation Time: 22 hours
Total: 1 day 2 hours 45 minutes
Servings: 1 Loaf
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Equipment

  • Mixing Bowl
  • Digital Scales
  • Banneton
  • Dutch Oven

Ingredients 

  • 500 g Bread Flour
  • 350 g Water
  • 100 g Sourdough Starter, fed and bubbly (see levain alternative in notes)
  • 10 g Salt
  • 30 g Honey
  • 200 g Mixed Dried Fruit

Cinnamon Filling

  • 50 g Brown Sugar
  • 10 g Cinnamon
  • 20 g All Purpose Flour

Instructions 

  • Fermentolyse
    Weigh out your starter, water and honey in a glass or ceramic bowl. Mix them together so that the honey is dissolved in the water (or at least really well distributed).Then add your flour and salt and mix altogether into a dry, shaggy dough. Cover your bowl and let it sit for around 1 hour.
  • Forming Up Your Dough
    Work your way around the bowl, grabbing the dough from the outside, stretching it up and over itself until a smooth ball is formed. You shouldn't need more than about 20-25 folds to form the ball. Once the dough has formed into a smooth ball, cover it again and allow it to rest for around 30 minutes.
  • Stretch & Fold / Adding the Fruit
    You need to add the dried fruit to your dough during the stretch and fold phase. It's very easy to do! Try to add the fruit around the second or third set of stretch and folds. So do your first set of stretch and folds with the dough as is and then add the fruit on the second (or third) set depending on how your dough is behaving. Try to do around 4 sets of stretch and folds with around 15 to 30 minutes between each set.
  • Bulk Ferment:
    Once you've finished your stretch and folds, cover your dough and let it ferment at room temperature until the dough has doubled.
  • Shaping Your Dough:
    Now it’s time to shape your loaf. Before you tip the dough out on the counter, mix together the cinnamon, brown sugar and all purpose flour and ensure that it’s all evenly distributed and there aren’t any lumps of sugar.Tip the dough out of the bowl and pull it into a loose rectangle. Sprinkle some of the brown sugar mixture over the dough, so that it covers the whole rectangle. As you shape the dough, sprinkle a little more mixture onto each exposed surface, ensuring that you cover the dough evenly.
    Then roll your dough up into a nice, neat batard, making sure that you tension the dough on the counter and pinch the ends together to ensure that the brown sugar mixture is safely tucked inside. Place your dough seam side up in a well floured banneton. Stitch the top of the dough together if you need to.
  • Cold Ferment
    Cover the dough with a plastic food cover and place into the fridge for cold fermentation. I like to leave this one around 12 hours. 
  • Preparing To Bake
    Once you're ready to bake your sourdough, you'll need to preheat your oven to 230ºC/450ºF. Place your Dutch Oven into the oven when you turn it on so it gets hot. 
  • Time to Bake!
    When your oven is at temperature. Take your sourdough out of the fridge. Gently transfer it to a piece of parchment paper, ensuring the seam is now underneath.Gently score your bread with a lame, clean razor blade or knife.Carefully take your dutch oven out of the oven. Place the sourdough into the pot using the parchment paper as handles. Put the lid on and place into the hot oven. 
    BAKE TIME:
    30 Minutes with the lid on at 230ºC/450ºF
    plus10-15 Minutes with the lid off at 210ºC/410ºF
  • Finishing The Bake
    When you remove your dough from the oven, carefully remove it from the dutch oven as soon as possible and place on a wire rack to cool.

Nutrition

Serving: 100g, Calories: 2773kcal, Carbohydrates: 607g, Protein: 72g, Fat: 11g, Saturated Fat: 2g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Sodium: 3941mg, Potassium: 2007mg, Fiber: 38g, Sugar: 171g, Vitamin A: 60IU, Vitamin C: 3mg, Calcium: 558mg, Iron: 11mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Hey There!

I'm Kate, The Pantry Mama.

I can help you find your sourdough rhythm and bake sourdough with confidence and intention - even if you’re busy! I share tried and tested sourdough recipes, as well as practical, easy to follow tips that you can action today, for better sourdough tomorrow! Join me, and let’s bake sourdough together among the chaos of everyday life!

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4.24 from 77 votes (66 ratings without comment)

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39 Comments

  1. Deborah Ingman says:

    Just finished a loaf of this wonderful bread and my husband and I both love it! Thank you for the recipe! Can you tell me the proper steps needed to make two small loaves for gifts, instead of one large loaf? Would anything change except for pan size and baking time? Thank you so much for your help. Sincerely, Deborah

    Reply
    1. Kate Freebairn says:

      Hi Deborah – so glad you love it 🙂 So you would just divide the dough into two pieces at shaping and proceed from there. I would cook as normal, just reduce the lid on time by 5 minutes and then judge how cooked it is from there to ascertain lid off time. I’d love to see your mini fruit loaves, that sounds like such a lovely idea xo

      Reply
      1. Mindy L Arnold says:

        Do you soak the dried fruit first?

        Reply
        1. The Pantry Mama says:

          you can, but you don’t have to soak the fruit first for this sourdough bread. TPM x

          Reply
  2. Julie says:

    just to confirm, reading this, if I am understanding correctly there is only 1 shaping happening? No initial shaping, bench rest, then final shaping… I have been doing initial shaping with a bench rest and a final shaping so far.

    Reply
    1. Kate Freebairn says:

      You only need to do one shaping 🙂

      Reply
  3. Debbie says:

    I do not have raw sugar to use in starter. Can I use regular white sugar?

    Reply
    1. Kate Freebairn says:

      yes this will work 🙂

      Reply
  4. Katrick says:

    3 stars
    I am confused. I just made this and the cinnamon spread for the last step tasted awful after baked. The bread itself is beautiful. The next time I will certainly mix sugar in with the cinnamon, butter, and flour mixture. Otherwise I guess I’ll have to make a bread pudding out of it. Always had great success with everything else on your site. Thank you!

    Reply
  5. Mary says:

    Kate, Looking forward to baking my fruit bread today. I had a bit of a challenge spreading the cinnamon paste. Do you melt the butter? Thanks

    Reply
  6. Helen says:

    5 stars
    This has been my best loaf yet! Halved the recipe as only half of the house will like it and wanted to try out a smaller banneton.
    Great ear, great smell and can’t wait to try it!

    Reply
    1. Ellen says:

      Hi Kate,
      Lovely recipe Thankyou! Just wondering if there is any tips to get the cinnamon evenly distributed through the loaf- mine seems to clump up in chunks.
      Thanks

      Reply
  7. Mike says:

    Hi, To add sweetness, is it okay to add a bit of sugar to the cinnamon mixture?
    Or, will that cause additional rising during the cold fermentation?

    Thanks

    Reply
  8. Onen says:

    Made your Sourdough Fruit Bread with Cinnamon recipe and was pleased with the result. Great flavour and I had good spring, ear and colour. Layering the cinnamon paste was my major issue. Butter was at room temperature when mixed to a paste with the flour and cinnamon but it was far too heavy to spread effectively on the dough prior to shaping into a batard. I ended up with large dried clumps in the final loaf. Any hints?

    Reply
  9. Amanda says:

    Is the butter cold or room temp when weighing and when using to spread? Excited to try this recipe.

    Reply
  10. Kimberly Smith says:

    Hello. I was wondering if I could put walnuts in the bread? And if so, how much should I put in? I really love all of your recipes!! I am new at this. I made 3 starters. I just started a chocolate starter. I love all of this. You are so great!! Than you so much!!!

    Kimberly

    Reply
    1. The Pantry Mama says:

      Hi Kimberly – yes you can add walnuts, I’d probably add around 75g of chopped walnuts to the dough. I’m so glad you love my recipes – that’s so kind! And I love that you’re enjoying your sourdough journey xx

      Reply
    2. Teo Ai Li says:

      Hi! I baked this today. The cinnamon leaked out and was seen on the crust when baked. When I cut open, there was no trace of mixed fruits. The crust got separated from the bread and I could see some fruits underneath the crust. Please help me to improve. I want to do again. So please help me. Thanks

      Reply
  11. Margaret says:

    5 stars
    What a delicious loaf of bread. Have been sharing this with family. The directions and video are great! Your site is wonderful!

    Reply
  12. Cara says:

    Found this recipe be used with Einkorn wheat flour? Sounds delicious!!😋

    Reply
  13. Karen says:

    Do you have a variation for cranberry-orange with almonds? Not a fan of raisins. Thanks!

    Reply
  14. Angela says:

    If I make the levain, do I subtract the amount of flour/water used for the levain from the total flour/water listed in your ingredient list?

    Reply
  15. Linda says:

    5 stars
    I love this recipe and am making it again today – two loaves for Christmas presents.
    The reminder about sealing in the filling is very valid as I was too hurried with the first loaf and in the last proving it all slid to the base (LOL), Today will have the attentive cook on task.

    Reply
  16. Lee says:

    “If you’re worried about the base of your bread burning, place a baking sheet on shelf underneath your Dutch Oven – it works! ”

    You can also sprinkle polenta over the base of your Dutch oven and then lift and place baking paper with loaf, on top of that, it does stop your bottom crust from going really hard.

    Reply
  17. Marie-Louise says:

    5 stars
    This tasted similar to Vogel’s (iconic New Zealand Band!) Fruit & Spice Bread only better and for about 1/5 of the cost. Absolutely amazing. I added half of the filling (after reading comments here) and had very little leakage. I also placed the dough into a large sandwich tin (27cm x 11cm x 11cm – the Thermomix pan although I don’t have a Thermomix!) and baked straight from the fridge into a cold Dutch Oven for 55 minutes at 220c in my Fan Oven. Thank you Pantry Mama – every single one of your recipes has turned out beyond fantastic. Not one fail – you’ve boosted my confidence no end!

    Reply
  18. Sam Martin says:

    5 stars
    Thank you for this recipe, my loaf turned out beautifully.. I wished I could share the picture .. it was a stunning loaf. I followed the recipe exactly up until the final refrigeration time, after 12hrs overnight on my counter I added the cinnamon mix then baked, the cinnamon paste didn’t thoroughly mix in to the loaf? I also added chopped walnuts, chopped dates and chopped apricots it was sooo super delicious.

    Reply
  19. Kym says:

    I don’t have a Dutch Oven! can I cook this just on a tray, or best to go for a loaf tin? Thank you so much!

    Reply
  20. Jacqui Roche says:

    5 stars
    Thank you so much for this recipe!💖 I’ve brought so much joy to my family and friends with it… it really is pure happiness in a bun💖😍🍞🍇
    Happy baker
    Jacqui

    Reply
  21. Ness says:

    5 stars
    The bread turned out amazing! Thanks for the recipe. If I wanted to sweeten the cinnamon paste could I just add a little more butter and brown sugar? Thanks.

    Reply
  22. Nicole S says:

    I see in step nine reference to oats but I don’t see oats as an ingredient. In a comment I saw reference to sugar but I only see honey as a sweetener in the ingredients. Was this recipe updated? I’m confused.

    Reply
    1. Jen @ TPM Team says:

      Sorry this was a typo and has now been rectified.

      Reply
  23. Cody says:

    Question I want to make this recipe with apricots and without the cinnamon. Trying to re creat on of my dav breads honey apricot spur dough. Am I OK to admit the cinnamon past or will that be too big of a chance to the recipe?

    Reply
    1. Jen @ TPM Team says:

      You can leave the cinnamon out if you would like.

      Reply
  24. Dorine says:

    Hi, can I just bake on oven trays as I don’t have a Dutch oven 🙁

    Reply
    1. Jen @ TPM Team says:

      Yes you can do an open bake if you prefer 🙂

      Reply
  25. Kate b says:

    5 stars
    I do a super lazy version of this and it’s still yummy. Just put the the bread ingredients (without the cinnamon filling), in the breadmaker on dough setting, adding 100g raisins & 100g candied orange peel, and I sub honey for brown sugar. Leave to prove for a day and then bake. I’ve made it about three times now. Thank you 😊

    Reply
    1. Jen @ TPM Team says:

      Ohhh great tips! Thank you, Kate!

      Reply
  26. Gail Volpi says:

    5 stars
    I have baked a fair amount of sourdough within a year and “Pantry Mama” has the recipes down to a science. Each, different loaves, attempted come out to perfection compared to recipes from other sites. Delicious, manageable and no disappointment. Thank you!

    Reply
  27. Kirsten says:

    5 stars
    I am in love with this recipe! It is seriously delicious! Thank you.

    Reply