Hello, welcome. Thank you so much for being here!
Today I’m sharing with you the first recipe I made as the first step of my goal to cook more food from scratch.
If you’re interested in creating a from scratch kitchen, but aren’t quite sure where to start, then keep reading! This simple, honey wheat sandwich bread is the perfect place to begin.
We love it toasted, as grilled cheese, and we even use it for breakfast as egg in a nest.
Common Questions
Why does the dough need to rise twice?
Allowing the dough to rise twice will improve the structure of the bread. Dividing it into the loaf pans and letting it reproof should give a better texture and flavor to our bread than only letting the dough rise once.
Can I substitute instant yeast?
If substituting instant yeast for this recipe, reduce the amount of active dry yeast by 25%. (This rule of reduction is applicable to many other baking recipes.) For this recipe use 1 2/3 tsp instant yeast and continue to follow the guided steps of the recipe.
Is this bread 100% whole wheat?
While this honey wheat sandwich bread is made with 100% whole wheat flour, we use that in conjunction with unbleached all-purpose flour to achieve the texture we like for our bread. I like to stick around the 50/50 mark of both all-purpose and whole wheat flour. If you enjoy a heartier bread, then adapt this recipe to your preference. You can use a 75/25 ratio or even try a completely whole wheat loaf. Let me know how that goes!
Tools you may need:
1 stand mixer*
1 dough or butter knife
Teaspoon and cup measures
1 separate mixing bowl
2 loaf pans
1 tea towel
Ingredients list:
Unbleached all-purpose flour
Whole wheat flour
Active dry yeast
Honey
Salt
Oil**
*While it might make the process easier, a standing mixer is not necessary to make this recipe.
**I use avocado oil.
Honey Wheat Sandwich Bread
Yeild: 2 loaves
Prep time: 20 minutes
Rising time: 3 hours
Cook time: 30 minutes
Cool time: 1 hour (optional)
Measurements
2 1/2 C warm water
2 1/4 tsp active yeast
1/3 C oil
1/3 C honey (heaping for a sweeter loaf)
1 tsp salt
3 C whole wheat flour
3-4 C unbleached all purpose flour
Directions
1. In the bowl of your standing mixer allow the yeast to activate in the warm water (5-10 minutes) until foamy.
2. Stir in oil and honey.
3. Add salt, then whole wheat flour.
4. Once mixture in smooth, add all purpose flour cup-by-cup until 3 cups are added. If more flour is needed, add that final cup by 1/4 cup (do not exceed 4 cups) until dough pulls away from the edges of the bowl. If your dough isn’t pulling away from the edges of the bowl, increase the speed of your standing mixer and run a spatula around the bottom of the bowl. This should encourage the dough to ball up.
5. Knead bread on lightly floured surface (or on medium speed with your stand mixer) until smooth. (Typically around 5 minutes.)
6. Transfer dough into lightly greased bowl and let rise, covered, for 45-90 minutes – or until doubled in size.
7. Gently punch down the down and separate it into two lightly greased loaf pans with dough or butter knife.
8. Let rise, covered, for another 45-90 minutes in loaf pans until doubled in size. The longer this rise, the higher the loaf and you may achieve a more sandwich bread-like appearance.
9. Preheat the oven to 350 F and bake for 25-30 minutes depending on how hot your oven runs.
10. Set loaves to cool on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes, preferably an hour. Cutting into the loaf while it is too hot can compromise the structure of the loaf.
Thank you so much for your time!
This recipe was adapted by a recipe from friend. While her blog recipe is no longer available, she co-created a blog of liturgical living resources for homemakers and mothers that is filled with from-scratch recipes and other Christ-centered traditions. It’s an incredible resource, definitely check it out here.
