bread making

i love to bake bread. bread baking is getting easier with charlie since he is sleeping like a champ! he slept until 9 am yesterday! he still is going to bed around 7 pm or earlier. this morning i was able to whip up my honey whole wheat bread and an easy no knead bread. i am going to post my recipe for my honey whole wheat bread because i have had some requests. first, i use a food scale to bake so my measurements are in grams. warning: once you taste this bread you won’t go back!

honey whole wheat bread

246 grams of bread flour

246 grams of whole wheat bread (i prefer king arthur brand)

3 grams active dry yeast (3/4 of tsp)

9 grams kosher salt

74 grams honey

330 grams water

first, put flours, salt and yeast in kitchen aid mixer with the dough hook. then start mixer on a low speed and pour in water. as it starts to mix, stop mixer and pour honey in the middle of the dough. then restart mixer on a low speed and let the dough form. this may take a few minutes.

after the dough has formed, set a timer for about 5 minutes and turn the speed up to 6 or 8. you will need to hold the mixer at this point so it doesn’t jump around your counter. after you finish the 5 minute mixing the dough should look smooth and not be very sticky. pull the dough off the dough hook and leave the dough in the mixing bowl. cover with damp cloth or plastic wrap and put in your oven to rise. if you put the oven light on and crack the door a bit it keeps the oven at the perfect temperature for rising. you will let it rise about 2 hours, but i have left it longer if i was out and it is just fine.

after letting it rise for the first 2 hours, then lightly flour a section of your counter and put the dough on it. often the dough will stick to the mixing bowl you will need to lightly flour your hands and work the dough to get it out. try not to add too much flour to the dough. you will knead the bread a few times on the counter to get the air bubbles out and then put it back in the mixing bowl, cover and let rise about another hour or two. again – i often let it rise whatever works best for me that day. i think hard core bread bakers would punish me for saying that but my bread always turns out great – just sometimes the loaf “breaks” when baking.

after the second 2 hour wait, again lightly flour your counter and put the dough on it. this is where you will shape the loaf. you should knead the dough a few times to get the air bubbles out and then shape the loaf. i would go online and google how to shape a loaf for a true explanation, but i just make sure i fold the dough so that the seam is on the bottom and put it in a greased loaf pan. this is when i preheat my oven to 375.

you will then cover the dough in the pan with a damp cloth and let it rise about another hour in the loaf pan. this is an important step…before you put the loaf in the oven you must put 3 “cuts” in the top of the loaf so that steam can escape. then pop the bread in the oven and bake about 35-40 minutes. let cool on a rack and enjoy. mmmm...

here is a picture of my honey whole wheat loaf.