Whole-Wheat Sandwich Bread
Author: 
Recipe type: Bread
Cuisine: American
Prep time: 
Cook time: 
Total time: 
Serves: One 13" loaf
 
You can make the perfect loaf of homemade whole-wheat sandwich bread with this simple, fail-proof recipe.
You will need:
  • Water - 1½ cups, very warm (around 110 deg.F)
  • Active dry yeast - 2¼ tsp
  • Honey - 2 tbsp
  • Whole-wheat flour - 2½ cups
  • All-purpose flour - 1 - 1½ cups, plus extra for dusting
  • Salt - ½ tsp
  • Oil - 3 tbsp (vegetable or canola oil)
  • Rolled oats - 2 tbsp (optional)
  • Roasted pumpkin or sunflower seeds - 2 tbsp (optional)
How to:
  1. Stir the honey into the water. Add yeast and rest for 8-10 minutes. The water should be frothy and have a distinct yeasty smell. If this doesn't happen, either the water was too hot or cold, or you may need a fresh batch of yeast.
  2. In a large mixing bowl, add whole-wheat flour and 1 cup of all-purpose flour. Add salt and oil and mix lightly with your fingers.
  3. Tip in the yeast water and mix together to form a dough. Add more flour till the dough comes together. I ended up using 4 cups of dough in all.
  4. Once you are able to gather the dough with your hands, dump it onto a clean work surface lightly dusted with flour. Knead well with your hands for 8-10 minutes, till the dough is soft, smooth and pliable. If dough is too sticky to work with, dust a little bit of flour, a tablespoonful at a time, and keep kneading.
  5. Clean out the mixing bowl and coat lightly with oil. Place the dough in it, and then turn the dough over, so that all sides of the dough are greased. (This is done to prevent the dough from drying out while letting it to rise).
  6. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow to rest in a warm place till dough is almost doubled in size, at least an hour.
  7. Pre-heat the oven to 375 deg.F. Lightly grease a 13" loaf pan with oil and set aside.
  8. Tip the risen dough out on a lightly dusted work surface. Pat it into a rectangle as wide as the loaf pan (13" here). The length doesn't really matter. Fold the dough into thirds from the bottom and top, so that they overlap like an envelop. Pinch the seams closed with your fingers.
  9. Transfer the shaped loaf to the pan, seam side down. Cover with the kitchen towel and allow to rest for 20-30 more minutes.
  10. Make score marks on top of the risen dough. Add any toppings like rolled oats or seeds if desired. Bake for 30-35 minutes or till dough is golden brown and sounds hollow when tapped.
  11. Remove from oven and cool in pan for a few minutes. Remove to a wire rack and cool slightly before slicing with a serrated knife. Completely cooled loaf can be stored on the counter-top lightly covered with a clean kitchen towel.
Notes:
1. You can use any proportion of whole-wheat to all-purpose flour in this recipe. I have found that fine-milled whole-wheat flour gives the best results.
2. The prep time given here does not reflect dough rise times.
3. If you want to, you can brush the top of the loaf with an egg wash before baking.
Recipe by At The Corner of Happy And Harried at https://www.happyandharried.com/2016/02/25/whole-wheat-sandwich-bread/