Boston Brown Bread is a New England classic recipe - this version has raisins, 100% whole grains, no refined sugar, and baked in a loaf pan.
Prep time: PT10M
Cook time: PT45M
Total time: PT55M
Rating
5 stars (18 reviews)
Keywords
boston brown bread, brown bread, brown bread with raisins, new england brown bread
Ingredients
butter or cooking spray (for greasing the pan)
1/2 cup cornmeal
1/2 cup rye flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/3 cup dark molasses
1 cup whole milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup raisins (golden or regular, or a mix)
salted butter and baked beans (for serving, optional)
Categories
Bread
Cuisine
American
Steps
Grease a 9x5 loaf pan (or for a more authentic version, a 29 oz. coffee can) with a generous amount of butter. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.
Whisk or stir together the cornmeal (1/2 cup), rye flour (1/2 cup), whole wheat flour (1/2 cup), baking powder (1 teaspoon), baking soda (1 teaspoon), and kosher salt (1 teaspoon) in a large mixing bowl.
Add the maple syrup (2 tablespoons), molasses (1/3 cup), milk (1 cup), and vanilla extract (1 teaspoon) to the batter and whisk or stir together until everything is combined.
Add the raisins to the batter and fold in.
Pour batter in prepared baking dish. Cover tightly with foil (so the steam doesn't escape to keep the bread moist).
Bake at 350 for 45-50 minutes, or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 10 minutes before running a knife around the edge and gently removing it. Cool for 5-10 minutes longer, slice into 10 pieces, and serve slathered with butter with a side of baked beans.
Nutitrion
Serving Size: 1 slice
Calories: 150 kcal
Carbohydrates: 32 g
Protein: 3 g
Fat: 2 g
Saturated Fat: 1 g
Cholesterol: 2 mg
Sodium: 360 mg
Sugar: 12 g
Reviews
SRA on 2026-09-03 (5 stars): OMG! Canned Boston Brown Bread was almost a weekly thing with homemade baked beans!
Thanks for the nostalgic reminder to make this for my husband!
Janet on 2026-04-15 (5 stars): Tastes just like my Irish nana’s boiled brown bread without the fuss. If she had known that you can bake it. I have been asked to make 12 loaves for our Church’s New England Ham & Bean Supper. Each loaf will serve 10 people with generous slices. Thank you so much. Zz
Sally on 2023-05-08 (5 stars): This bread is delicious! It was easy to make and I really appreciated having the measurement amounts included in the directions. I used home ground wheat berries, rye berries, and popcorn, then baked it in a loaf pan covered with foil, perfect! We had it with homemade baked beans (from dry beans, no less!) and Cole slaw. My husband loved it so it’s definitely a keeper recipe. Thank you so much for sharing it!
Shane on 2023-02-05 (5 stars): Delicious! I made this today for my mom and I and was the first boston bread I ever eaten. Simple to make. I scanned the web for recipes today and wanted something fast without needing yeast. This ones a keeper. Only small thing I changed I used a drizzle of maple syrup, and used a little extra mollases. Next time ill make it exact to your recipe.Thank you Elisabeth! Will make again.
Michele on 2022-11-15 (5 stars): This is such a great recipe. I’ve made it several times and my friends and family love it. It goes great with soup or chili in the winter.
moe on 2021-11-29 (5 stars): Easy and delicious. Brought back some fond childhood memories. Thanks for sharing!
