8-Ingredient Complete Wheat Bread (Gentle & Hearty)

With step-by-step photos and loads of useful suggestions, discover ways to make gentle entire wheat bread with this easy-to-follow recipe. You may make this bread 100% entire wheat, or you should utilize a mix of entire wheat and bread flour for a barely taller, fluffier loaf. It’s splendidly gentle and flavorful both method! When you’re new to working with yeast, reference my Baking with Yeast Information for solutions to frequent yeast FAQs.

I do know there’s main comfort with store-bought bread, however I encourage you to strive making it from scratch no less than as soon as. (You may be hooked after that!) This entire wheat bread takes a number of hours, however many of the work is hands-off whereas the dough rises. Recent-baked bread smells unimaginable and tastes even higher—store-bought sandwich bread simply can’t evaluate! Wait till you scent a slice popping up within the toaster.

Right here’s Why You’ll Love This Complete Wheat Bread

• Chewy crust with gentle texture inside
• Flavorful & hearty
• Flippantly sweetened with honey
• Makes scrumptious toast and sandwiches, and can be utilized in recipes like French toast, breakfast casserole, & sausage herb stuffing
• Straightforward to make forward or freeze
• 8 easy components

Behind the Recipe/Recipe Testing

I skilled each points in my preliminary makes an attempt at this recipe. I discovered that including somewhat acid to the dough helped offset the bitterness, and introducing a preferment “sponge” helped give the loaves higher taste, in addition to extra peak. Clearly entire wheat bread won’t ever be as gentle, tender, and chewy as white sandwich bread, however this one comes fairly shut with my cautious recipe & options.

Finest Substances to Use in Complete Wheat Bread & Why:

1. Water: Heat liquid prompts yeast. I take advantage of largely water on this dough as a result of we’d like a bread that has construction. Utilizing all milk, like I do for my entire wheat dinner rolls, would yield a flimsy bread with out a lot texture, which isn’t superb for slicing as sandwich bread.
2. Complete Milk: To yield a gentle bread, you want fats within the dough, so ensure among the liquid is milk. Low-fat or nondairy milk works too, however entire milk produces phenomenal texture and I extremely advocate it.
3. Yeast: You need to use lively dry yeast or immediate yeast. If utilizing lively dry, the rise occasions shall be a bit longer. I examined it with each.
4. Honey: Honey feeds the yeast, will increase its exercise, and evenly sweetens the bread. In our testing, my group & I unanimously agreed honey was the tastier possibility over common granulated and brown sugar. I additionally use somewhat honey when making entire wheat pizza dough.
5. Butter: Butter guarantees a flavorful loaf.
6. Lemon Juice: This ingredient could appear unusual, however it’s important for stopping the bread from tasting too bitter. When you don’t have lemon juice, apple cider vinegar is a good substitute.
7. Salt: You’ll be able to’t make flavorful bread with out salt!
8. Flour: You need to use all entire wheat flour, or swap 1 cup of entire wheat flour for 1 cup of bread flour. The bread is gentle both method, however somewhat bread flour yields a barely taller, fluffier, and lighter loaf. We get pleasure from it each methods.

Begin With Making the Sponge (It’s Straightforward)

For the sponge, you’ll use all the liquid (each the water and milk) and yeast within the dough, plus among the flour. Combine this all along with a spatula, cowl it evenly, and let it double in measurement for about 60 to 90 minutes.

Whereas this step does lengthen the full time of the recipe, the sponge is essential for producing a extra advanced taste, and provides the bread a lighter texture. By skipping this step, your bread shall be somewhat flat. (In style and look!)

As soon as the sponge doubles in measurement, add the remaining components and start mixing, which can deflate the air and make method for the ultimate dough.

That is the sponge earlier than rising:

That is the sponge after rising:

At this level, the method follows my sandwich bread fairly carefully. You’ll knead the dough, then let the dough rise twice. Lesson you’ll study right this moment: making a scrumptious entire wheat bread just isn’t a race. We should have some persistence right here! (A tough ask when selfmade bread is the reward…)

Step Pictures to Assist You

Make the dough: I like to recommend utilizing a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment (most stand mixers are offered with it). When you don’t have a stand mixer, combine the dough along with a spatula or picket spoon (and somewhat arm muscle!).

Knead the dough: You’ll be able to proceed beating the dough with the dough hook, or you possibly can knead the dough by hand.

1st rise (about 2 hours): After you knead the dough, cowl it and let it rise in a comparatively heat spot. Complete wheat dough requires a barely longer rise time than white sandwich bread as a result of it’s weighed down with wheat germ and bran.

As soon as it has doubled in measurement, punch it all the way down to launch the air.

Roll it out into an 8×15-inch rectangle:

Roll it up tightly beginning with the 8-inch facet, so you’ve got an 8-inch roll to suit into your greased 9×5-inch loaf pan. (In contrast to cinnamon rolls, the place you roll up the dough beginning with the bigger facet.)

2nd rise (no less than 1 hour): Let it rise till it’s about an inch above the rim of the pan. Don’t rush this 2nd rise, except you desire a flat loaf.

And bake! This entire wheat sandwich bread takes about 36–40 minutes within the oven.

Earlier than baking, be happy to prime the bread with oats. You’ll must brush overwhelmed egg white on prime of the dough earlier than including the oats, in order that they stick. The oat topping is non-obligatory.

Success Tricks to Hold in Thoughts

1. You may make this loaf of bread 100% entire wheat, or substitute 1 cup (about 125–130g) of the entire wheat flour with bread flour for a lighter, taller, fluffier loaf. The instructions stay the identical.
2. Knead the dough for a very long time, no less than 8 minutes. You probably have a stand mixer, use it for this recipe. This can be a heavy entire grain dough, so it requires a superb quantity of kneading to assist produce a extra elastic construction.
3. When kneading, keep away from including an excessive amount of flour; a barely cheesy and gentle dough is OK.
4. Use an instant-read thermometer to examine the inner temperature of the baked bread. This ensures you gained’t under-bake or over-bake the bread. It’s an extremely useful baking instrument! The bread is finished when the middle of the loaf is 195–200°F (90–93°C).
5. When you’re new to working with yeast, please overview my Baking with Yeast Information the place I embrace sensible and easy-to-understand solutions to many yeast FAQs.

This entire wheat bread is phenomenal when sliced and served heat. The outside is crisp and crusty, and the inside is hearty, but gentle.

Print

Complete Wheat Bread

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  Writer: Sally
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  Prep Time: 4 hours, half-hour (consists of sponge and rises)
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  Cook dinner Time: 38 minutes
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  Complete Time: 5 hours, 10 minutes
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  Yield: 1 loaf
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  Class: Bread
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  Methodology: Baking
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  Delicacies: American

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Description

You solely want 8 easy components to make this entire wheat sandwich bread. Gentle with a chewy crust and oh-so-flavorful, store-bought sandwich bread simply doesn’t evaluate. You need to use 100% entire wheat flour, or you possibly can swap in some bread flour. See recipe Notes for freezing and in a single day directions. You too can reference my Baking with Yeast Information for solutions to frequent yeast FAQs. 

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Directions

1. Put together the sponge: In a big bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer, whisk the water, entire milk, and yeast collectively. Add the two cups (260g) flour and stir with a spatula or picket spoon till a thick batter varieties. Cowl evenly and permit to double in measurement at room temperature, about 60–90 minutes. Generally this will take as much as 2 hours. *I don’t advocate a hand mixer for this dough as a result of the dough is simply too thick and heavy.*
2. Add the remaining dough components together with the honey, butter, lemon juice, remaining flour, and the salt. With a dough hook attachment, or utilizing a spatula or picket spoon (and a few arm muscle!), beat on medium pace/combine till the dough comes collectively and pulls away from the edges of the bowl, about 3 minutes. If the dough appears too moist to a degree the place kneading (subsequent step) could be not possible, beat in additional flour 1 Tablespoon at a time till you’ve got a workable dough, just like the photographs above. Dough must be gentle and somewhat sticky, however nonetheless manageable to knead with evenly floured palms.
3. Knead the dough: Hold the dough within the mixer and beat for a further 8–10 full minutes, or knead by hand on a evenly floured floor for 8–10 full minutes. If the dough turns into too sticky throughout the kneading course of, add 1 extra Tablespoon of flour at a time to make a gentle, barely cheesy dough. Don’t add extra flour than you want; you don’t want a dry dough. After kneading, the dough ought to nonetheless really feel somewhat gentle. Poke it along with your finger—if it slowly bounces again, your dough is able to rise.
4. 1st rise: Flippantly grease a big bowl with oil or nonstick spray. Place the dough within the bowl, turning it to coat all sides within the oil. Cowl the bowl and permit the dough to rise in a comparatively heat atmosphere for two hours or till double in measurement. (For a tiny discount in rise time, see my reply to The place Ought to Dough Rise? in my Baking With Yeast Information.)
5. Grease a 9×5-inch loaf pan.
6. Form the dough: When the dough is prepared, punch it all the way down to launch the air. Flippantly flour a piece floor, your palms, and a rolling pin. Roll the dough out into a big rectangle, about 8×15 inches. It doesn’t must be excellent—actually, it should in all probability be rounded on the perimeters. That’s okay! Roll it up into an 8-inch log and place within the ready loaf pan.
7. 2nd rise: Cowl formed loaf. Enable to rise till it’s about 1 inch above the highest of the loaf pan, about 1 hour.
8. Alter oven rack to a decrease place and preheat oven to 350°F (177°C). It’s finest to bake the bread in direction of the underside of the oven so the highest doesn’t burn.
9. Non-compulsory oat topping: If you wish to add the non-obligatory oat topping, add it proper earlier than baking the bread. With a pastry brush, brush the risen loaf with egg white, then sprinkle the oats on prime.
10. Bake the bread: Bake for 36–40 minutes, or till golden brown on prime. When you discover the highest browning too rapidly, loosely tent the pan with aluminum foil. (I often add it across the 20-minute mark.) To check for doneness, in the event you gently faucet on the loaf, it ought to sound hole. For a extra correct take a look at, the bread is finished when an instant-read thermometer reads the middle of the loaf as 195–200°F (90–93°C). Take away from the oven and permit bread to chill for a couple of minutes within the pan on a cooling rack earlier than eradicating the bread from the pan and slicing. Be at liberty to let it cool utterly earlier than slicing, too.
11. Cowl leftover bread tightly and retailer at room temperature for as much as 1 week.

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Notes

1. Freezing Directions: Put together recipe via step 6. Place formed loaf in a greased 9×5-inch loaf pan or disposable loaf pan, cowl tightly, and freeze for as much as 3 months. On the day you serve it, let the loaf thaw and rise for about 4–5 hours at room temperature. Bake as directed. You too can freeze the baked bread loaf. Enable the bread to chill utterly, then freeze for as much as 3 months. Thaw within the fridge or at room temperature, then reheat as desired.
2. In a single day Directions: Put together the recipe via step 6. Cowl the formed loaf tightly and refrigerate for as much as about 15 hours. Not less than 3 hours earlier than you want the bread the subsequent day, take away from the fridge, preserve coated, and permit to rise on the counter for about 1–2 hours earlier than baking. Alternatively, you possibly can let the dough have its 1st rise within the fridge in a single day. Put together the dough via step 3, then cowl the dough tightly and place within the fridge for as much as 12 hours. Take away from the fridge and permit the dough to totally rise for two extra hours. Proceed with step 5.
3. Particular Instruments (affiliate hyperlinks): Stand Mixer or Giant Glass Mixing Bowl with Picket Spoon or Silicone Spatula | 9×5-inch Loaf Pan | Rolling Pin | Pastry Brush for non-obligatory topping | Prompt-Learn Thermometer | Wire Cooling Rack
4. Milk: Low-fat or nondairy milk work right here, however entire milk produces phenomenal texture and I extremely advocate it. 
5. Yeast: I often use immediate yeast. You need to use lively dry yeast as an alternative, with no modifications to the preparation. Rise occasions shall be barely longer. Reference my Baking With Yeast Information for solutions to frequent yeast FAQs.
6. Flour: Make certain your entire wheat flour is contemporary. Examine the date on the bundle, and don’t retailer it uncovered. Complete wheat flour can turn out to be rancid if saved for too lengthy, and your bread will style bitter. You need to use all entire wheat flour on this recipe, or substitute 1 cup (130g) of bread flour for a barely taller, fluffier loaf. You need to use 1 cup of bread flour within the sponge in step 1 OR reserve it for the remaining dough in step 2. If utilizing 1 cup (130g) of bread flour in step 2, you’ll additionally want the 1/3 cup (43g) of entire wheat flour.
7. Honey: Honey produced one of the best tasting bread. In a pinch, you should utilize common granulated sugar or brown sugar. However you’ll miss out on that honey taste. I’ve not examined different sweeteners.
8. Can I form this right into a spherical boule? No, this dough wants the construction of a loaf pan. As a substitute, chances are you’ll like this no-knead seeded oat bread.
9. Doubling this recipe: For finest outcomes, I like to recommend making two separate batches of dough. This can be a huge, heavy dough and the sponge will take a really very long time to rise, and so will the kneading step. It’s finest to make 2 separate doughs.
10. Complete Wheat Rolls: I like to recommend my gentle entire wheat rolls recipe, or you possibly can strive my multigrain bread/rolls recipe as an alternative.
11. Tailored from Sandwich Bread and Complete Wheat Rolls

Key phrases: entire wheat bread