Basic Whole Wheat Bread

pollen's Note:

A simple, easy whole wheat bread recipe posted on request. I got it from "Breadtime", by Susan Jane Cheney (a great resource for bread bakers!)

• Total Time: 4 hrs 50 mins
• Prep Time: 4 hrs
• Cook Time: 50 mins

Ingredients:

Yield: 2 loaves

• 3 cups water , lukewarm (100-115ºF)
• ¾ teaspoon dry yeast
• 7 ½-8 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 ½ teaspoons salt
• 2 tablespoons oil

Directions:

1. Proof yeast in half a cup of the water, with about a teaspoon of flour- let it sit, covered, until it becomes bubbly& active.
2. Combine the rest of the water with the yeast/water in a large bowl, and gradually add about half of the flour.
3. Stir the mixture about 100 times in the same direction, until it is well-mixed and strands are beginning to form.
4. Stir in the salt and oil.
5. Add the remaining flour half a cup at a time, stirring well, until it is too stiff to stir with a spoon.
6. Turn out onto a lightly floured board and knead for about 20 minutes, adding flour as nescessary to keep the dough from sticking to the board.
7. The dough should be springy and nice to work with.
8. When it has been sufficiently kneaded, cover it with a damp cloth for about 10 minutes and wash and grease the bowl lightly.
9. After it has rested, knead the dough a few more times (it should feel really nice by now!) and place it in the bowl, covered with the damp cloth, a plastic bag, and maybe a plate.
10. Let the dough rise until it springs back when you stick your finger in it, and it is about twice the size as it was before (this takes about 2 hours; longer or shorter depending on the room temperature- I prefer a longer (cooler) rise, because it allows the flavour to develop more... but sometimes you just don't have time for that sort of thing).
11. Deflate the dough by punching or kneading it a few times, and let it rise again- this time, it should take about half the amount of time as it did before.
12. When the dough has risen twice, deflate it again and cover it with the damp cloth again for about 10 minutes (to let the gluten relax, apparently.. it makes it easier to manage if you do this), then divide it into and shape it into loaves, buns, etc.
13. Let the shaped dough rise on a baking sheet or in a loaf-pan for about an hour maybe- it will rise a bit more in the oven.
14. Slash the top of the bread if you want, so that it doesn't bust open in the oven.
15. Bake at 400º for 20 minutes, and then turn the oven down to 350º and bake for 20-30 minutes longer, until the loaf is a lovely brown and sounds hollow when you thump it on the bottom.
16. (Buns and smaller loaves take a shorter time).
17. Try to let the loaf cool (out side of the loaf pan, or it will get a bit soggy) before you tear into it.

Reviews

[beky1204]

This is quite a nice recipe! I made it twice, the first time I followed the directions exactly. The next time I found that I did need to do a longer rise, to let the flavor develop (otherwise it was a bit bland, so I had to add a bit extra salt, too) and so that it would rise to a good height (whole wheat flour takes FOREVER to rise!). So all in all, I about doubled the rising time, added a little extra salt for some oomph and it was absolutely lovely! I used EVOO as well instead of regular vegetable oil and it was simply to die for!

[Connie Lea]

I keep trying new whole wheat bread recipes and they've all been good, but this one is by far the easiest and so good. I like that it makes two loaves. I did add about a teaspoon of sugar to the yeast to proof it and also used 2 1/4 teaspoons of yeast. I didn't think 3/4 tsp would be enough. I always add about of tablespoon of vital wheat gluten for each loaf of bread to all my bread recipes. It helps the bread rise better and also acts as a preservative. Thanks for a great recipe. I will be making this often (I never buy store bought bread).

[Darxus]

Did the initial proof actually work for anybody? I got *no* response from the yeast. I ended up using a full packet of yeast, as others suggested (2 1/4 teaspoons) on my second try, from a different pack of 3 packets. That didn't do anything either. Both batches finally eventually started growing after I added a teaspoon of sugar. I was even measuring the temperature of my water, and keeping my oven at the recommended (measured) ambient temperature (always taking my stuff out of the oven when turning the element on). Is it possible to get an initial proof with just whole wheat flour in anything resembling a reasonable period of time? I used King Arthur Flour Whole Wheat Flour (the one they had at my grocery store).

After all that, I was afraid the dough would give me trouble rising, but it didn't. All right on schedule, about doubled in two hours, then again in about an hour. (In an ambient temperature around 80°.)

This is my first ever attempt at baking, so maybe I missed something, but it seemed pretty straight forward to me.

Is the photo with this recipe dark enough bread to actually be whole wheat? Mine is significantly darker.