I’m a sucker for this bread; I like the soft, moist texture and almost sourdough flavor of the white rye flour. It is such a light bread—not dark and heavy like most folks associate with rye-- that it is great with meals or sandwiches.

For a more traditional rye bread, you can add caraway seeds and substitute dark rye flour for the white rye. But we think you’ll fall in love with the great light taste of white rye.

This recipe evolved from the earlier recipe, the California Golden Raisin Muffin recipe. It too makes a very good muffin . . . and a very attractive muffin. You should make very nicely domed muffins with this recipe. Cranberry and orange is a very nice combination. The nuts make the muffins just right.

The first time that I made these, I gave some to my neighbors. They went nuts over these muffins—and announced far and wide that these were the best muffins that they had ever had. I don’t know about that but they are very good, one of our favorite muffins.

Whole wheat, especially red wheat, often has a bitter aftertaste and bread made entirely from whole wheat flour can be dry and crumbly. This bread is not. It is made with 100% whole wheat flour but it is light and soft. In this recipe, you will refrigerate the dough overnight to give it a long fermentation time. This is an excellent opportunity to get to know whole wheat flours.