Whole Wheat Raisin Peanut-Butter Bread Recipe

 This whole wheat raisin bread comes from The Back to Eden Cookbook by Jethro Kloss—one of the early voices who helped popularize “back to basics” natural health and home food preparation. I love the spirit of his recipes: practical, nourishing, and meant for ordinary kitchens.

This version is a gentle modernization. I’ve kept the original’s memorable twist—peanut butter in the dough—because it adds tenderness, richness, and staying power. What I have updated are the details Kloss couldn’t assume in every home back then: today’s yeast equivalents, clearer rise cues, and modern oven timing (plus a stand-mixer option if you’d rather let the dough hook do the work). The result is a hearty, lightly sweet loaf that feels old-fashioned in the best way—reliable, wholesome, and potluck-ready.

1) Who was Jethro Kloss, and what was his impact?

Jethro Kloss (born 1863) was a Seventh-day Adventist health reformer, herbalist, and early natural-foods advocate. He trained in hydrotherapy/electrotherapy at the Battle Creek Sanitarium, worked in and operated sanitarium settings that emphasized a vegetarian diet + nature-based therapies, and later helped popularize soyfoods in the U.S.

His best-known work, Back to Eden, was published in the 1930s with a major expanded edition associated with 1939 (the “since 1939” framing shows up in modern editions). The publisher describes it as a long-running classic that sold millions of copies and “helped create the natural foods industry.”

Kloss didn’t use the modern term regenerative agriculture, but his message strongly linked human health to soil health—urging foods “grown on fertile soils” and “poison-free,” and even calling for attention to soil analysis and protecting the food supply. That soil-first, chemical-cautious mindset overlaps with today’s regenerative emphasis on building fertility, minimizing harmful inputs, and working with natural systems (even though modern regenerative ag is much more science-defined and data-driven).

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2) Modernized Whole Wheat Raisin Peanut-Butter Bread (2 loaves)

Yield: 2 standard loaves
Pan: 2 loaf pans (about 9 x 5 in / 23 x 13 cm)
Oven: 350°F / 175°C

Ingredients

• Warm water (divided): 2 cups / 480 ml (see temps below)

• Active dry yeast: 1 packet = 2 1/4 tsp / 7 g (or) instant yeast: 2 tsp / 6 g
  (A small 0.6-oz cake of fresh yeast ≈ 1 packet dry yeast.)

• Salt: 1 tsp / ~6 g

• Natural peanut butter: 1 cup / ~260 g

• Neutral oil: 4 tbsp / 60 ml

• Sweetener (choose one):

  • 3/4 cup maple syrup or honey / ~240 g, or

  • 3/4 cup sugar / ~150 g

• Whole wheat flour: about 6 cups / ~720 g (add a little more only if needed)

• Raisins: 1 cup / ~150 g (tossed with 1 tbsp flour so they don’t sink)

Water temperature (important)

• If using active dry yeast: warm liquid about 100–110°F / 38–43°C

• If using instant yeast: warm liquid about 120–130°F / 49–54°C

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Method A: Classic “sponge,” hand-kneaded (closest to Kloss’s method)

1. Bloom the yeast (active dry only): In a bowl, stir yeast into 1/4 cup / 60 ml of the warm water. Wait 5–10 minutes until foamy.
   (If using instant yeast, skip blooming and mix it into the flour later.)

2. Make the sponge: Stir in 2 cups / ~240 g flour plus your sweetener. Beat until smooth. Cover and let rise 45–90 minutes, until puffy and airy.

3. Thin the peanut butter: Whisk peanut butter into 1 cup / 240 ml warm water until smooth (an immersion blender works great).

4. Build the dough: Add peanut-butter mixture, oil, salt, raisins, and enough of the remaining flour to make a soft, slightly tacky dough.

5. Knead: 8–10 minutes by hand (or until elastic and the dough holds together well).

6. First rise: Place in a greased bowl, cover, and rise 60–90 minutes (until doubled).

7. Shape + proof: Punch down, divide into 2 loaves, place in greased pans. Rise 30–60 minutes, until the dough crowns about 1 inch / 2–3 cm over the rim.

8. Bake: 350°F / 175°C for 40–55 minutes. Tent with foil if browning too fast.
   Done when internal temp hits 190°F / 88°C or the loaf sounds hollow when tapped.

9. Cool: 10 minutes in pan, then turn out and cool completely before slicing.

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Method B: Stand mixer (dough hook)

1. Mix wet: In the mixer bowl, whisk peanut butter + 1 cup / 240 ml warm water until smooth. Add remaining water (minus any used to bloom active dry), oil, sweetener, and salt.

2. Add dry: Add about 5 cups of the flour + yeast (instant can go right in here). Mix on low until shaggy.

3. Knead: Dough hook on low-medium 6–8 minutes, adding remaining flour gradually until dough is soft and only slightly tacky.

4. Finish with the same rise → shape → proof → bake steps as in Method A.

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🥤 Recipe and photos © 2026 Cynthia Zirkwitz | Veggie School
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