No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (2024)

Created by Laura Wright

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5 from 31 votes

No knead marathon bread is a hearty breakfast bread that is very simple to make. Loaded with seeds, dried fruit & shredded carrot.

No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (1)
No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (2)
No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (3)
No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (4)
No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (5)

I’m not a big time baker, but there are a handful of things that I can do well. No knead bread is definitely one of them (and obviously this no knead marathon bread variation), but honestly anyone at any level of ability can walk into their kitchen and make a loaf of this goodness. The technique was made famous by legendary bread master Jim Lahey. I make his no knead pizza dough as well (for pizzas like this Buffalo cauliflower one). Fancy-lazy is the name of the game!

All you have to do is mix up the ingredients the night before you want to bake bread, cover the bowl, let it do its thing, shape the loaf in the morning, and bake it in a super hot dutch oven. Total simplicity and ease for such a delicious loaf of homemade bread. It is positively mind blowing the first time you try it. Once you get into it, no knead baked goods are a way of life! See: these no knead cinnamon rolls.

I live by a US border and hop over there for some American grocery specialties from time to time. One thing that I often grab at one of my favourite grocery stores (shoutout to Wegmans) is a loaf of marathon bread. It’s super seedy, loaded with finely minced dried fruit, and little shreds of carrot. A toasted slice is just the thing with almond or peanut butter and a sprinkle of salt.

I looked at the ingredients one time and thought of that beloved no knead bread. I figured it would be simple to fix up a low maintenance, homemade version of this marathon bread at home. I would take the base, use a bit of hearty whole grain flour, add shredded carrots, seeds, dried fruit, and a touch of warm spice to get me even more excited for Fall bread baking. It all worked! No knead marathon bread! This is an excellent toast bread that warms up the house real good. Perfect for those first forays into cool weather baking! :)

No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (6)
No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (7)
No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (8)
No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (9)
No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (10)

No Knead Marathon Bread

No knead marathon bread is a hearty breakfast bread that is very simple to make. Loaded with seeds, dried fruit & shredded carrot.

No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (11)

Print Recipe

Prep Time: 15 minutes mins

Cook Time: 45 minutes mins

Resting Time: 12 hours hrs

Total Time: 45 minutes mins

Servings 1 loaf

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all purpose flour
  • 1 cup whole wheat OR whole spelt flour
  • 1 ½ teaspoons fine sea salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (optional)
  • ½ teaspoon instant yeast
  • cup grated carrot from roughly 1 small carrot
  • cup dried fruit of choice, finely chopped (I used goji berries and golden raisins)
  • ¼ cup raw sunflower seeds, plus extra
  • ¼ cup raw pumpkin seeds, plus extra
  • 1 ½ cups room temperature water

Notes

  • This recipe is entirely based based on Jim Lahey’s famous no knead bread technique.
  • No Dutch oven? The Kitchn has a guide to baking no knead bread without one right here. Also, this method from Jenny Can Cook also looks promising.
  • Any finely chopped dried fruit that you like is great. The original marathon bread that I based this on has finely chopped banana chips, apples and apricots in it. Go wild ;)
  • I like to let my dough sit overnight for a solid 16 hours. Anything in the 12-18 hour window is fine.

Instructions

THE NIGHT BEFORE:

  • In a large bowl, whisk together the all purpose flour, whole wheat flour, salt, cinnamon (if using), and instant yeast. To the flour mixture, add the grated carrot, chopped dried fruit, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and water. Using a spatula, stir the dough until it comes together.

  • The dough will seem dry in spots, extremely ragged, tough, and shaggy. This is fine! The dough will hydrate and unify overnight. Cover the bowl tightly with bees wrap or plastic wrap and place in a slightly warmer area of your house overnight, up to 18 hours.

THE NEXT MORNING:

  • Arrange your oven racks near the bottom of the oven to accommodate a large dutch oven (mine is 7 quart). Place the large dutch oven, lid and all, inside the oven. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Let the dutch oven heat for one hour. Rip yourself a piece of parchment paper (enough to set the dough onto and transfer it to the dutch oven) and set it on the counter. If you have a mister/spray bottle, fill it with water and set it on the counter near the oven.

  • While the oven is preheating, shape your bread. Lightly sprinkle a working surface with flour. Using a spatula, gently scrape the marathon bread dough out onto your floured surface. Flour your hands and gently shape the dough into a nice round loaf. I just pull up the sides and lightly tuck each “flap” of dough in the center until I go all the way around. Minimal handling is optimal!

  • Once you’ve shaped the dough, set it on top of the parchment paper and cover it while you wait for the oven to finish preheating. Press some seeds into the exterior of the bread if you like.

  • Once the hour is up, carefully remove the dutch oven from the oven and set it down. Carefully remove the lid of the dutch oven (remember to use a dry towel–it’s super hot!) and set it to the side. Uncover the marathon bread dough. Grab the corners of the parchment paper and carefully transfer the dough to the hot dutch oven. Once it’s in place, use your dry towel to grab the dutch oven lid again. Quickly spritz the inside of the hot dutch oven lid with your mister/spray bottle of water and close the lid on top.

  • Transfer the dutch oven back into the oven. Set a timer for 30 minutes. Once the 30 minutes are up, open the oven and remove the dutch oven lid. Let the marathon bread bake for 15 more minutes, or until the top is quite browned. Remove the marathon bread from the oven.

  • Let the no knead marathon bread cool completely before slicing. This should take a good 2 hours. Transfer the marathon bread to a cooling rack to speed this process up if you wish.

Author: Laura Wright

Course: Basics, Bread, Breakfast

Cuisine: Dairy-free, Nut-Free, Vegan, Vegetarian

Diet: Vegan, Vegetarian

Keyword: carrots, cinnamon, dutch oven bread, goji berries, pumpkin seeds, raisins, sunflower seeds, whole wheat flour

18/09/2019 (Last Updated 18/03/2024)

Posted in: autumn, breakfast, carrots, nut free, oil free, refined sugar-free, snack, spring, summer, sweet, vegan, winter

96 comments

  • Daphne

    No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (12)
    This recipe is so versatile; I love it. Made it today with walnuts, figs and fresh rosemary. It’s so easy and always ends up tasting like an expensive artisan loaf. Perfect recipe for a beginner baker. It takes on a slight tang after the lengthy rising period…no complicated sourdough recipe required!

    Reply

  • Hannah

    No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (13)
    We are currently nestled into our family cottage in the Cape Breton Highlands. It’s a rainy & cool day here, so perfect for baking a loaf of this bread. Mixed it up last night, adding the sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds (only had salted versions so I decreased salt to 1 tsp) & dried cranberries and baked it when I got up this morning. It reminds me of something you’d pay good $$$ for at a Farmer’s Market. My husband & I just shared a piece and it is incredible. A little sweet, a little salty & perfectly chewy with a crisp crust. Thank you Laura for always giving us the very best, wholesome recipes. This will undoubtedly become a favorite!

    Reply

    • Laura Wright

      Hannah,
      This sounds so dreamy. No doubt the salted seeds added a nice flavour contrast there–I can’t wait to try it myself. Enjoy the cottage life! :)
      -L

      Reply

  • Toni

    No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (14)
    I made this and it is amazing!

    Reply

  • Julie

    Please provide the weight of dry ingredients, especially the flour in either ounces or grams. Thank you.

    Reply

  • Jane

    No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (15)
    Turned out fantastic! I put a pan of water in the oven for moisture and baked the dough in four mini loaf pans (silicon). I added hemp hearts, a bit more yeast, and baked at a little lower temp for the little loaves. Let it rise for about 5 hours in a warm area and that was plenty, but also proofed in my oven for about 20 before baking. Will be making this recipe a lot!!

    Reply

  • Mike C

    No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (16)
    I followed all of the directions except I put the dough in a Pyrex bread loaf… tin? Anyway, then I put that into the pre-heated Dutch oven and tossed in a couple of ice cubes. It took about an hour to cook until it reached just over 200°F inside, and came out a little on the dense side, which is totally understandable. It did make for AWESOME toasted slices though. I’m making it again tonight but I’m following the recipe exactly this time. Thanks for putting this together, Laura!

    Reply

  • Sherry

    It’s in the oven right now. Looks good! I just wanted to point out one thing. I noticed that the instructions and description for this recipe are very “wordy”, which makes it harder to follow. Simplicity is our friend.

    Reply

  • Jacquie

    No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (17)
    This bread is just wonderful and so easy! I used regular white bread flour, whole grain sprouted spelt flour and chopped apricots. The aroma is amazing. As another commenter said, the hardest part is waiting 2 hours for the bread to cool.

    Reply

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No Knead Marathon Bread Recipe (vegan, nut-free) | The First Mess (2024)

FAQs

What are the ingredients in Wegmans Marathon bread? ›

Water, Organic Wheat Flour, Flax Seeds, Pumpkin Seeds, Yeast, Organic Sunflower Seeds, Organic Stone Ground Whole Wheat Flour, Sugar, Organic Stone Ground Whole Rye Flour, Wheat Gluten, Contains 2% Or Less Of Each: Organic Rolled Oats, Cranberries, Organic Cracked Rye, Organic Carrot, Salt, Organic Wheat Sour (organic ...

What is the point of no knead bread? ›

It's easy to see the appeal of the “no-knead” approach in bread baking: minimal effort produces maximum flavor. By simply mixing up your dough and giving it an extended rising period, you can enjoy gorgeous, golden loaves without having kneaded a thing.

Is Marathon bread healthy? ›

1 serving of marathon bread (Wegmans) contains 170 Calories. The macronutrient breakdown is 55% carbs, 31% fat, and 14% protein. This is a good source of vitamin a (15% of your Daily Value).

Do you need parchment paper in Dutch oven bread? ›

If the bottom of your Dutch oven isn't enamel-coated, it's best to use the parchment paper. Mine is enamel-coated, but I find it easier to keep the round shape of the dough if I just place it in the Dutch oven with the parchment paper. Whatever works fer ya!

What are the ingredients in Wegmans almond butter? ›

ORGANIC DRY-ROASTED UNBLANCHED ALMONDS, ORGANIC PALM OIL, ORGANIC SUGAR, SALT. MAY CONTAIN OCCASIONAL STEM OR SHELL FRAGMENT.

Who makes Wegmans bread? ›

Bakeshop. In the final step of our seed-to-table sourdough, our loaves are handcrafted with care by artisan bakers in our very own Wegmans Bakeshop in Rochester, NY.

Why is my no-knead bread so chewy? ›

Usually your bread will be chewy when there isn't enough gluten formation or you're using a low-protein flour. Make sure you let your bread dough rest for at least 12 hours to give it enough time for gluten formation.

Why don't people knead sourdough? ›

When done correctly, stretching and folding sourdough will strengthen the gluten and gently incorporate air into the dough without the need for kneading. It will also give your sourdough loaf a lofty high rise and more open interior crumb.

What is the most unhealthiest bread in the world? ›

The Least Nutritious Breads
  • White Bread. White bread doesn't rank too high when it comes to nutrition. ...
  • Specialty Breads: Ciabatta, Pita, Focaccia and Brioche. Most specialty-style breads, like ciabatta, pita bread, focaccia and brioche are made with refined white flour.

What is the most unhealthy part of bread? ›

Bread is high in carbs, low in micronutrients, and its gluten and antinutrient contents may cause issues for some people. Still, it's often enriched with extra nutrients, and whole-grain or sprouted varieties may bestow several health benefits. In moderation, bread can be enjoyed as part of a healthy diet.

Should I oil my Dutch oven for bread? ›

As long as you have a lid to cover it, the bread comes out perfectly every time. I found that using a 4- to 6-quart Dutch oven yields the perfect round shape. Fight the urge to grease your Dutch oven. Because of the high temperature, the fat will burn off almost immediately, giving your bread a charred taste.

What is the best temperature to bake bread in a Dutch oven? ›

Turning proofed bread dough out right into a preheated Dutch oven instead of on a pizza peel. My method for baking bread dough in a Dutch oven: Preheat your home oven to 450°F (230°C) with a Dutch oven inside for 30 to 45 minutes.

Should I take the lid off the Dutch oven for bread? ›

During those first 20 minutes, your bread will rise and expand. If you would not have it inside the Dutch oven with the closed lid, a thick crust would form too soon, thereby keeping it from reaching its full potential. After the first 20 minutes, you remove the lid and continue baking for another 25 to 30 minutes.

What are the ingredients in Wegmans sub bread? ›

Enriched Wheat Flour (wheat Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Water, Contains 2% Or Less Of Each: Yeast, Salt, Sugar, Vegetable Oil (palm, Soy, And/or Canola), Cultured Wheat Flour, Dough Conditioner (wheat Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Enzymes, Ascorbic Acid ...

What are the ingredients in Wegmans sourdough bread? ›

ORGANIC WHEAT FLOUR, WATER, ORGANIC WHOLE WHEAT SOURDOUGH (WATER, FERMENTED ORGANIC WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR), YEAST, ORGANIC HONEY, ORGANIC WHEAT GLUTEN, CONTAINS 2% OR LESS OF EACH: ORGANIC CANOLA OIL, ORGANIC WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR, SALT, ORGANIC VINEGAR, ORGANIC GUAR GUM, CULTURED WHEAT FLOUR, VITAMIN D2 INACTIVE YEAST, ...

What are the ingredients in Rubschlager rye bread? ›

Water, Whole Wheat Flour, Unbleached Wheat Flour, Grain And Seed Mix (rye Meal, Cracked Wheat, Sesame Seeds, Oat Flakes, Millet, Sunflower Seeds, Flax Seeds), Wheat Gluten*, Sugars (honey, Sugar), Sesame Seeds, Flax Seeds, Salt, Fermented Rye Flour, Yeast*, Rye Sour Flavouring [rye Flour, Spices, Salt, Cultured Ground ...

What are the ingredients in Wegmans multigrain bread? ›

INGREDIENTS: organic sprouted whole wheat flour, water, organic sprouted grain blend (golden flax, wheat, rye, yellow corn, kamut, buckwheat, millet, oats, brown rice, emmer, quinoa, amaranth), organic wheat gluten, organic lite molasses (organic cane syrup, organic molasses), organic honey, contains 2% or less of each ...

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