Whole Wheat Bread

I made bread last Saturday!

It turned out quite well. I would like to continue making bread at least a couple of times a month. This recipe made three loaves, and Mark and I are only partly way loaf #2 by the end of the week. It freezes well in the meantime.

I got the recipe from Dorothy. Thank you, dear friend! Here's the recipe I used from her:

Dorothy's (Half) Whole Wheat Bread recipe (from Michelle)

50% Whole Wheat Bread

3 C warm water

1/2 cup honey (or 2/3 cup sugar)

2 Tbsp dry yeast

4 Cups whole wheat flour

1 Tbsp salt

1/2 cup salad oil

2/3 cup dry powdered milk

4 cups white flour

Combine warm water, honey and yeast in a large bowl. Let set until yeast dissolves (about 5 minutes). Add whole wheat flour, salt, oil, and pwd. milk. Stir well. Add white flour gradually. When fairly stiff, place on floured counter top and knead in the rest of the white flour. Knead until smooth and elastic. Place ingreased bowl, turn over so that both sides are greased. Cover and let rise until double in bulk (1- 1 1/2 hours). Divide into three loaves, place in greased pans, cover, and let rise again until tops of loaves peek over tops of pans. Bake at 375 for about 45 minutes. Rub tops with margarine for soft crust after taking loaves out of pans.

Dorothy’s notes:

If you have access to Gluten Flour, adding 1/4 cup to the mix will help create a less crumbly texture in the bread. Since I always have ground flaxseed around, we almost always add a handful of that, too. Here’s my trick for a faster rise: Put a damp washcloth into the microwave and turn it on high for 1-2 minutes. You have just created a warm, steamy room. Quickly place your pan of dough inside (on top of the damp cloth) and shut the door. (You won’t need to cover the dough). In this environment your bread will rise almost twice as fast. After baking, take the bread out of the pans right away to cool. I used to put margarine on the tops, too, but have learned it isn’t necessary. After removing the bread from the pans I just set them on a big towel and wrap the edges of the towel over the bread. The crust softens nicely.