Easy Whole Wheat Bread Recipe
When you want a basic, easy sandwich bread for the family, this is my go-to recipe. I modified it from a white flour recipe, so it has more liquid than the original. It makes two loaves.
Servings: 20 Servings
Ingredients
- 2 packages Active Dry Yeast
- 3 tbsp Sugar
- 2 1/2 cups Warm Water <110F, plus a few tbsp more
- 3 tbsp Lard or Oil Softened
- 1 tbsp Salt
- 6 1/2 cups Flour Whole Wheat or White Whole Wheat
Instructions
- I use a Kitchenaid stand mixer, so in the mixing bowl, dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water. Stir in the lard, salt and two cups of flour + additional teaspoons of water - depending on the type of flour you're using. Beat well until mixed. Then add the remaining flour, one cup at a time with the extra water.
- Once the dough gets too thick for the mixing paddle, switch to the dough hook (for me it's about that last 2 cups). Knead the dough with the dough hook for about 5 minutes - or by hand on a floured surface for 8 minutes. If the dough looks like the surface is tearing and unelastic, add more water. If it feels sticky to the touch, even after kneading, add a pinch more flour. The finished product should be smooth and elastic.
- Grease another large bowl and place the kneaded bread inside, rolling it around to coat it with oil. Place a damp towel or plastic wrap over the bowl and set it in a warm-ish place to rise for about an hour, or until it has doubled in size.
- Punch the dough down and place it on a lightly floured surface. (I have a bread board I inherited from Dwaine's mother - just a nice, large board I store in a little niche between the fridge and the wall.) Divide the dough into to pieces and form into elongated loaves. Click here how to shape a loaf.
- Place the loaves into greased 9X5" loaf pans. Cover the loaves with a damp cloth and let them rise again until double in volume - about 40 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 425 F. Just as you place the loaves in the oven, lower the temp to 375 F. Bake for 30 minutes or until the top is golden brown and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped.
Notes
(TIP: If you're using a stand mixer like mine, you can keep the dough from climbing up the hook by cutting the dough in half just before you really get into kneading. Working on 1 loaf at a time will save you a lot of headaches.)
To speed up the rising, use this trick: Just as you start to knead the bread, place a large cast-iron skillet or pizza stone in the oven and preheat to 170F. Turn off the oven. Once you're done kneading, place the bowl inside the oven. It will rise in about 1/2 the time.