How to Make Healthy Whole Wheat Bread

You’re going to love this healthy whole wheat bread recipe. Technically, it’s whole wheat honey oat bread and it’s kind of amazing. I’ve been making it for about 15 years now and we use it for everything; sandwiches, toast, French toast, grilled cheese or just slathered with butter and honey (I know that kinda negates the healthy part, but it’s SOOOO good on warm homemade bread).

If you’ve never made bread before, don’t stress. Just watch the video and follow the instructions carefully. The most important things are making sure you measure correctly and that the water temperature is right so that the yeast does its thing. You’ve got this!

Looking for another awesome recipe? You might like these scones:

Handy tools to make bread:

OXO Good Grips Silicone Basting & Pastry Brush – Small

Anchor Hocking 5 Inch x 9 Inch Glass Loaf Dish

My Bosch Mixer

My KitchenAid Mixer

Healthy Whole Wheat Honey Oat Bread

Adapted from: The New Homemaker
Prep Time 15 mins
Cook Time 30 mins
Total Time 2 hrs 15 mins
Servings 2 loaves

Ingredients
  

  • 4 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
  • 3/4 cup warm water 110F
  • 1 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 1/2 cups warm water
  • 3 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1 cup rolled old-fashioned oats
  • 1/2 cup vital wheat gluten
  • 2 1/2 tbsp cooking oil I prefer olive oil
  • 1/3 cup honey
  • 1 tbsp salt
  • 1 egg
  • 1 tbsp water

Instructions
 

  • Using a mixer with a dough hook, mix together the yeast, 3/4 cup warm water and 1 cup whole wheat flour. (If you've never made bread before or you're not sure your yeast is good, let this mixture rest for 5 minutes once mixed. It should be bubbly)
  • Next, add 1 1/2 cups warm water and 2 cups of the whole wheat flour and mix well. Now add the gluten, oil, honey and salt and mix well.
  • Finally, add the remaining 1 1/2 cups of flour and 1 cup oats and mix well.
  • Dough shouldn’t be sticky at this point and should’ve pulled away from the sides of the bowl. If it's still sticky, add 3 TBSP whole wheat flour and mix again.
  • Allow the dough to knead/mix for about 5 minutes in the mixer.
  • Spray a large mixing bowl with cooking spray, add dough and cover with damp towel. Set in warm place to rise until doubled (usually about an hour).
  • Spray 2 bread pans with cooking spray and preheat the oven to 350F.
  • Punch down the dough to remove all air bubbles and divide into 2 equal portions. Flatten each portion and roll up like a towel, pinching seam together. Flip over (so seam is on the counter), form into loaf shape and place each loaf in its' own pan. Cover with damp towel and let rise for 20 minutes.
  • Bake for 30 minutes. If you tap the top of the bread, it should sound hollow when tapped when it's done.
  • Let cool for a few minutes, then turn out onto cooling rack. Try not to eat it all at once!

Notes

*This freezes well for up to 3 months in a freezer-safe bag. I like to freeze it already in slices because then it’s all ready to go when you pull it out.
*This recipe doubles well, but make sure your mixer bowl can handle large dough volume
*This can be mixed by hand, but make sure to knead dough until it’s elastic and stretchy before letting rise

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