Better for You Bread

If there was a "carb" diet permitting you to eat all carbs, I would be a successful dieter! Especially where bread is concerned. I LOVE bread. The crusty outside with a soft center,.....MMMMMM, makes my mouth water. Unfortunatly with the genetics of a woman, it goes straight to my tummy and hips.
Have you ever read the ingredients listed on store purchased bread? My arteries clog just going over the long paragraph! Monogylcerides, Guar Gum, Lactylate, etc... What the heck is all that?!! I'm an domestic chef, not a chemist! I do like to buy fresh bakery bread, at least the ingredients are kept to a minimum.
Every now and then, homemade bread beckons me. At least I know what is in it and its not "gum da tar tar"! Because I like the finished results to come rather quickly, I ventured on a mission to find a good whole wheat bread that could be prepared in a timely manner. Sorry all you bread machine lovers, this one you do by hand.


Homemade Honey Whole Wheat Bread:


3 cups warm water
2 pkgs. active dry yeast
1/2 cup honey
5 cups unbleached bread flour
3 tbsp. butter, melted
1/3 c. honey
1 tsp. salt
3 1/2 c. whole wheat flour

(Here are the brands and ingredients I used)


If you are privilaged to get a hold of some freshly milled wheat flour, that's great! But, for the rest of us, some good store bought flour will suffice.

The first step is to dissolve the yeast (both packets) in the 3 c. warm water.


Add 1/3 c. of the honey to the yeast mixture. And mix well.If you have a stand mixer, attach the dough attachment.)
Add the bread flour in a seperate bowl, or your stand mixer bowl. Slowly add the yeast and mix until well blended.


Add the melted butter, other 1/3 c. honey and salt. Stir, or mix, in 2 c. whole wheat flour.




Flour a flat surface, I used an extra c. of flour to do this, half on the bottom and half on the top. Knead the dough just until it is pulling away for the surface, but still a little sticky.



Place in a bowl, cover with a dishtowel (CLEAN) and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled. This is great to do in an unheated oven. No draft can get to the dough. It will take anywhere from 40 min. to an hour to rise.


Once the dough has risen, divide into three loaves. Place in a greased 9x5 inch loaf pans. Since I only have two loaf pans and two mini loaf pans, I divided the dough according the my pan sizes.


Again, allow the dough to rise until it has topped the rim of the pans. About another 30-45 min. Sorry, I forgot to take a pic of the dough in the pans, so you will just have to invision it!

Bake the bread at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes. Pay close attention while baking, you don't want to overcook. Once done, brush some melted butter over the tops, unless you want a hard crust.


My oldest claimed this was the BEST bread he has ever had! I'll take that as a compliment. If the haphazard hostess can make this, ANYONE can! If you do make it, please let me know what you think.