Whole Wheat Bread

My husband and I go through sandwich bread like no body's business. We go through a minimum of one loaf per week; using it for toast, sandwiches, and the occasional snack. I am sure many other people do the same.

When I began my quest to try to make as many things from scratch as possible (not only as a cost savings, but also for the health of my family), I decided to try to make sandwich bread

Unlike with the Italian Bread, I didn't have to try multiple recipes in order to find one that I liked. The first recipe I tried was perfect for our family. Even my mother who doesn't usually like bread said that this was the best wheat bread she had ever had.

We still go through about a loaf a week, but instead of processed, store bought bread, we now have fresh and healthy homemade whole wheat bread.

Whole Wheat Bread - adapted from Janem123's 100% Whole Wheat Bread (Bread Machine) on Food.com

Ingredients (Yeilds one two-pound loaf):

1 1/2 cups water
2 Tbs nonfat powdered milk
2 Tbs butter
4 Tbs honey
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
3 1/3 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp active dry yeast


Directions:

1. Add the ingredients into your bread machine in the order specified by your machine's instructions.
2. Turn bread machine on and set to the dough setting. 
3. Once the dough cycle is complete, remove dough from the bread machine and form into a loaf shape and place in a lightly oiled bread pan and cover with a towel until doubled in size (approximately 45 - 60 minutes). Note: I find that turning your oven on to preheat at this stage helps with the rising process.
4. Preheat your oven to 375 degrees.
5. Once dough has doubled in size, remove towel and place bread pan in oven and bake for 30 - 35 minutes, until golden brown and bread sounds hollow when you knock on the bottom.

Note: You can make this bread completely in the bread machine like Janem123 does in her recipe (see link above), but I personally prefer to mix the dough in the bread machine, but do an additional rise on the counter and bake in the oven. I do this with all of my bread recipes.