I just came across the ultimate whole wheat bread recipe and it is so aah-mazing that I had to jump on here and share this awesome recipe!!! Okay, so, a few people have hit me up lately asking for good bread recipes and this one tops any and all that I've ever made. This is the only wheat bread recipe I will ever use again! I have a bread maker and have been trying the wheat bread recipes that came with the machine up until now. They have been okay, but I was searching for something I can use as an everyday bread for sandwiches, toast, etc. The bread maker is good for some types of bread, but not for an everyday bread in my opinion. For one thing, the bread pan is one size and the larger of a loaf you make, the taller the bread gets...which is not so good for an everyday bread...it needs to be longer like the loaves you buy at the store...know what I mean? Plus, I wanted a dough that I could keep on hand at all times and be able to freeze so I can use it anytime I needed it. Well folks, I just found it...light, fluffy, wholesome, moist, slightly nutty (strangely there are not nuts in the recipe), and straight-up dreamy... mmm mmmmm. Try it. You'll fall in love, too.
Look at these golden loaves! Seriously delicious...and we're kind of picky bread people around here. ;)
Slices like a butter with just a serrated knife and holds up to a hearty chicken salad sandwich. Holy wheat bread it's incredible...
Whole-Wheat Bread with Wheat Germ and Rye
Yield: two 9-inch loaves
Ingredients:
2 1/3 cups warm water (about 100°)
1 ½ tbsp. instant yeast
¼ cup honey
4 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
2 ½ tsp. salt
¼ cup rye flour
½ cup toasted wheat germ
3 cups whole-wheat flour
2 ¾ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
Directions:
1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix the water, yeast, honey, butter and salt with a rubber spatula. Mix in the rye flour, wheat germ, and 1 cup of each of the whole-wheat and all-purpose flours.
2. Add the remaining whole-wheat and all-purpose flours, attach the dough hook and knead at low speed until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface. Knead just long enough to make sure that the dough is soft and smooth, about 30 seconds.
3. Place the dough in a very lightly oiled large bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm, draft-free area until the dough has doubled in volume, about 1 hour.
4. Heat the oven to 375°. Gently press down the dough and divide it into two equal pieces. Gently press each piece into a rectangle about 1-inch thick and no longer than 9 inches. With a long side of the dough facing you, roll the dough firmly into a cylinder, pressing down to make sure the dough sticks to itself. Turn the dough seam-side up and pinch it closed. Place each cylinder of dough into a greased 9 by 5-inch loaf pan, seam-side down, pressing the dough gently so it touches all four sides of the pan. Cover the shaped dough; let rise until almost doubled in volume, 20 to 30 minutes.
5. Bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted at an angle from the short end just above the pan rim reads 205°, 35 to 45 minutes. Transfer the bread immediately from the baking pans to a wire rack; cool to room temperature.
If you're mixing this dough by hand, like I did (it's so easy, don't freak :), combine the water, yeast, honey, butter, salt, rye flour, and wheat germ. Add 2 3/4 cups of all purpose flour and 2 3/4 cups of whole wheat flour to mixture and reserve the last 1/4 cup of wheat flour for dusting and adding to mixture once ready to knead. Knead the dough on a flat surface sprinkled with flour for about 5 minutes, adding more flour as necessary, but no more than the 1/4 cup you reserved of the wheat flour. Continue to step #3.
Source:
Brown-Eyed Baker
