Small Batch Soft and Fluffy Whole Wheat Bread {Perfect for KitchenAid Mixers}
Making fluffy, delicious whole wheat bread at home is easier than you think! This small batch whole wheat bread recipe is the ticket. It can be made in a KitchenAid or Bosch mixer or by hand!
If you are new to making whole wheat bread at home or you want a recipe that doesn’t yield 13 loaves, today’s your day.
I’m walking you through how to make a smaller batch of whole wheat bread. It’s so easy. And it yields fluffy, soft, and delicious bread (yep, even with 100% whole wheat flour!).
I’ll be honest, my phase of life (with five hungry kids) isn’t conducive to small batch anything. Large batches are where its at with me and mine, especially with bread because the extra loaves freeze beautifully to be pulled out at a moment’s notice.
BUT, I also recognize not everyone’s life mirrors the chaos of my own. Many of you want to bake fewer loaves of bread at a time…either because of household numbers OR because you are mixing the dough by hand or with a KitchenAid mixer.
I almost always use my Bosch Universal stand mixer {aff. link} to make bread. It’s huge. It’s powerful. And it’s perfect for large batches of bread.
But many of you over the years have written/commented to me that you want a recipe for a smaller batch of bread that works great in a KitchenAid mixer.
“Small batch” may mean different things to different people, but the recipe I’m sharing today is small batch in my book. It produces two perfect loaves of whole wheat bread.
I’m showing you the step-by-step of this small batch whole wheat bread recipe below.
But first, here’s a look at some past posts that might be helpful before we start:
The Best Whole Wheat Bread Recipe (this post has the original whole wheat bread recipe that I make most and what this small batch recipe is modified from; the full recipe yields 5-6 loaves and is best made in a heavy-duty mixer like a Bosch Universal – it’s too much dough for a standard KitchenAid)
Step-by-Step Tutorial for Whole Wheat Bread (a quick-glance picture tutorial for making the bread recipe linked above)
Bosch vs. KitchenAid (an in-depth look at these two stand mixers with some insight into why I use the Bosch for bread recipes; the comments on that post are helpful, too)
Wheat 101: Where to Buy, Different Types of Wheat, Etc. (quick overview – I almost always use hard white wheat berries and I grind them at home; if you are using storebought wheat flour, look for white wheat flour for a lighter color/textured loaf, otherwise hard red wheat flour can be used…the loaf will be darker in color and possibly a bit more dense)
Wheat Grinding 101: All About Wheat Grinders (I have a KoMo Wolfgang grain mill that I keep on my counter 24/7 and use for grinding wheat; these Harvest mills are a less expensive/great starter option)
For the purposes of this tutorial, I am using my KitchenAid mixer, but this recipe can also be easily made in a Bosch stand mixer or by hand. {I have the Costco version of this KitchenAid mixer; I haven’t tested this recipe with other KitchenAid models.}
To start, add three cups whole wheat flour, 1 1/2 tablespoons yeast, and 1/4 cup vital wheat gluten* to the bowl of the mixer fitted with the dough hook.
*Quick note about the vital wheat gluten – this ingredient helps develop the gluten in bread and will also help yield a nice, fluffy loaf (fyi: gluten can also be subbed for a tablespoon or so of each cup of all-purpose flour in white bread as a sub to using bread flour). Vital wheat gluten is often found in the baking aisle at the grocery store (near the flour). Many brands of vital wheat gluten have Vitamin C added which is just fine to use in this recipe or other bread recipes. I usually buy my gluten from Amazon – the Bob’s Red Mill brand or the Honeyville brand {aff. links}.
Mix the dry ingredients together and add 2 3/4 cups warm water.
Start mixing on low speed. I find with the KitchenAid that I need to use a rubber spatula to scrape the sides and bottom at this point in the recipe when the mixture is very wet.
Let this “sponge” mixture rest for 10-12 minutes until it is slightly puffy – some little bubbles may form at the surface.
Add 1/3 cup oil, 1/3 cup honey, 1 tablespoon salt and 1 tablespoon lemon juice, bottled or fresh (you can sub in a finely crushed 1000mg tablet of vitamin c instead of the lemon juice; one or the other is needed to help activate the gluten).
Mix on low speed with the dough hook and then with the mixer continuing to run, begin adding flour gradually to the mixer.
It’s going to be a shaggy mess for a while, but eventually it will start coming together. Continue adding flour until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl without leaving a lot of sticky residue. Be careful not to add too much flour at first; as the dough kneads the moisture in the dough will continue absorbing more flour.
If there continues to be a lot of stickiness, it’s ok to keep adding flour (even if you are several minutes into what you thought was the final kneading process).
I add about 2-3 cups. Don’t get hung up on the exact amount of flour needed; it will vary from person to person based on a lot of bread making factors like humidity, elevation, how we each measure flour, etc.
Let the dough knead on speed 1 or 2 for 6-7 minutes until it is soft and smooth.
Turn the dough onto a lightly greased counter and split into two even pieces. Form into an even, taught loaf shape and place in lightly greased 8 1/2-X 4 1/2-inch bread pans.Here’s a video I posted several years ago to demonstrate how I shape loaves of bread before baking. Skip to :52 if you don’t want to hear me blabbing at the beginning.
FYI: my favorite bread pans after all these years are still these Chicago Metallic pans and also these USA bread pans{aff. links} (love the USA ones maybe even more than the Chicago ones; although keep an eye on baking as the bread bakes a little faster…but more evenly…in them).
Let the dough rise, covered, in a warm, draft-free spot until it is 1-2 inches above the edge of the bread pan. I use these large, white, tea towels {aff. link} for covering the dough (I use them when making rolls and all other breads, too).
Bake in a 350 degree F preheated oven for 28-32 minutes until golden and baked through (an instant-read thermometer should register about 180-190 degrees if you are into taking the bread’s temp).
Turn the bread out onto a wire rack.
Don’t forget to slather the top with butter at this point while the bread is still warm, if so desired, and let the bread cool.
This bread freezes great! I pop the cooled loaves into one of these bread bags {aff. link} and freeze until we want to eat it all up.
There you go! Making two loaves of whole wheat bread is doable and dare I say, quite easy!I hope this recipe fits the bill for those of you that don’t need 5+ loaves of bread hanging around at a given time and/or you have a smaller capacity mixer (like a KitchenAid) and therefore need the perfect small batch whole wheat bread recipe for it.
Happy bread making!
One Year Ago: Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffins
Two Years Ago: Double Chocolate Chunk Muffins
Three Years Ago: White Bean Chicken Chili
Four Years Ago: Classic Slow Cooker Chili
Five Years Ago: White Texas Sheet Cake
Perfect Whole Wheat Bread {Small Batch; Two Loaves}
Ingredients
- 5-6 cups (710 to 852 g) whole wheat flour, I prefer white whole wheat vs red whole wheat
- 1 ½ tablespoons instant yeast
- ¼ cup vital wheat gluten (see note)
- 2 ¾ cups warm water
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice, bottled or fresh
- ⅓ cup oil
- ⅓ cup (113 g) honey
- 1 tablespoon salt
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, mix together 3 cups of the whole wheat flour, yeast, and gluten. Add the warm water and mix well. Cover the bowl and let the mixture rest for 10-12 minutes.
- Add the lemon juice, oil, honey, and salt. Mix on low speed.
- With the mixer running on low speed, continue adding flour 1/2 cup at a time until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl (don’t overflour! A little stickiness is ok as long as the dough forms a ball and doesn’t leave a lot of residue on your fingers).
- Let the mixer knead the dough for 5-6 minutes until the dough is soft and smooth.
- Turn the dough onto a lightly greased counter and divide in half. Shape each half into a taut loaf and place in a lightly greased loaf pan (8 1/2- X 4 1/2-inches).
- Cover the loaf pans and let the loaves rise until they are 1-2 inches above the edge of the loaf pan.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Make sure an oven rack is in the middle/center position. Bake the loaves for 28-32 minutes until golden and baked through (an instant-read thermometer should register 180-190 degrees in the center of the loaf).
- Turn the bread onto a wire rack. Brush the tops with butter, if desired. Let cool completely.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: adapted from my favorite whole wheat bread recipe (thanks to Julie, a MKC reader, and her sister-in-law, Becky, who were the first to tell me they’d trimmed down this recipe)
246 Comments on “Small Batch Soft and Fluffy Whole Wheat Bread {Perfect for KitchenAid Mixers}”
I love the flavor of this recipe and I will only each fresh milled wheat. But my loaves always fall during baking. No matter what I do! Help!
Is it possible the bread is rising too long before going in the oven? That can cause bread to fall while baking.
I am following to the letter. The first time the doughy was pretty wet. It rose perfectly but the center fell during baking. The second time, I added more flour, still stickier than normal, but better. Rose beautifully again but 15 into baking, the sunk in the center again. What am I doing wrong?
There are a couple things that might be happening – if the dough is really sticky, it’s possible you need more flour. Also, make sure the dough in the pan isn’t rising too much before going in the oven or it can deflate while baking.
Can dry active yeast be used instead of instant?
Yes!
I usually do a 100% whole wheat sourdough that has a 95% hydration level. It involves folding the dough several times every 30 minutes over a couple hours so that the bran doesn’t cut through the gluten strands. It is a really good bread but it’s not for beginners. I have been looking for a good simple whole wheat bread recipe that doesn’t use white flour for family members who are not master bakers. I also didn’t want to spend time experimenting and tweaking until I got one. I was pleasantly surprised! The bread has a soft interior like you’d expect if you had mixed white with the wheat. I have to cook until the internal temperature is it least 207°F or else it’s kind of wet inside. Other than using about 150 g extra of whole wheat flour, I followed exactly as written, and it came out beautifully. Not sure why that surprises me since I’ve tried many recipes from your website, and all of them have been well received.
I made this bread exactly as recommended. My bread appeared to be well browned on top at 28 minutes, however, I added another 2 minutes to be sure. They looked wonderful, rose as expected and were a beautiful brown color. As they cooled, the top appeared to bubble up, even though I tried to shape dough as directed. Apparently I didn’t get all the air out of the dough when shaping loaves. Also, the bottom of the loaves didn’t appear to be quite done and the bottoms were tough to cut through. I used glass corningware bread pans as I don’t have metal pans. The bread tastes great but the top layer was airy and as I cut down, it was dense and then gummy. Is it because of the glass pans?
It likely is due to the glass pans. Glass doesn’t bake as effectively/consistently as metal/aluminum pans. It tends to bake the outside of baked goods quickly leaving the inner crumb of breads and cakes under done. I usually suggest lowering the baking temp by 25 degrees if using glass pans and then adding on baking time, but I haven’t baked this bread in glass pans to know exactly how to get foolproof bread baked in glass pans.
How would you change this recipe to make whole wheat cinnamon rolls? Swap the water for milk and add an egg or two?
I haven’t used this dough for cinnamon rolls. I think your best bet would be to use this recipe for small batch cinnamon rolls and sub in whole wheat flour for the white flour:
http://melkitchencafe.com/perfect-small-batch-cinnamon-rolls/
I have been trying for years to make my own bread from freshly milled wheat flour with no luck. Everything fell, or didn’t rise at all. I eventually gave up and just about sold my wheat mill until I found this recipe last night. I vowed that I would try just one last recipe, and if it didn’t work, I would stick to all purpose flour recipes.
I am so happy to say that it turned out amazing, and everyone in my family loves it! My kids didn’t even wait until it fully cooled to dig into it. Thank you thank you!
This is my go-to bread recipe. I made it enough times during the worst of the pandemic to easily get through a 50 lb. bag of wheat flour (the only thing I could find at the time!). I would also like to point out that my 11 year old son just asked for this bread when I asked what he would like me to bake for his birthday. I figured I couldn’t not leave a review after that!
I’ve made this several times now and we absolutely love it. This week I forgot the 10-12 min resting period for it to rise a bit in the bowl. Realized my mistake when I put them in their pans to rise. They rose as normal so I baked them and you couldn’t tell a difference! Taste and texture was the same! This bread is foolproof!
This is my favorite bread recipe. Always my go to
Finally, the perfect whole wheat loaf, not heavy but still hearty with a nice chew and flavor. I have baked bread for 60 years (yes I am still doing it) and a whole wheat loaf that we really like has eluded me. But this is it!!! Made it twice now so the first perfect loaves were no fluke. The lemon juice threw me but I followed the instructions. Just wish I had your mixed–using a decades old Kitchen Aid. Diane
This is a great recipe. My family loves it and I’ve been making it, just as written, nearly every week for years. Typically, I freeze one of the loaves and pull it out of the freezer for later in the week. Thank you!
I see that many of these older comments talk about the dough being sticky. Whole wheat bread needs to be a little sticky when you turn it out of the pan. Not sloppy, but definitely sticky. As you work and shape it that fixes itself. Whole wheat flour continues to absorb the liquid, even after it is baked. I mostly make ww rolls from this recipe and they turn out very well, but need to be frozen immediately if they aren’t all used the first time. If I do that I can take the amount I need out of the freezer and pop them into a microwave (haven’t tried the air fryer) for a very short time and they come out like just baked. I haven’t tried another recipe in years because this one works so well.
THANK YOU!!! I have made this bread many times in the past few months and it has turned out wonderful every time. I grind my own flour and have used many different ingredients (red wheat, white wheat, oat groats, almond flour, hemp hearts, quinoa, mixed grain cereals, potato flakes, etc.) I always start with 3 cups of just wheat flour and then after the first resting period I usually use about 2 more cups of mixed wheat and 1 cup of whatever else I’ve chosen to mix up for approximately 3 more cups of added dry ingredients. I then shape the bread and place it in loaf pans lined with parchment paper and set them on a warm heating pad while they rise. I can’t see myself ever needing another recipe.
This is my second try because the first try I didn’t get much of a rise and the bread was dense. I then tried a couple of things. The first three cups of wheat flour was sifted. After the wet ingredients I then added flour. I proceeded with the recipe as instructed. The bread baked up nice and fluffy.
Just made this after making a loaf in my bread maker. Between the two this was hands down the winner! After eating a slice my son told me, ‘this is why we have moms.’ Thank you for this recipe!
I have not made this recipe yet but I am looking forward to a new fluffier whole wheat bread that is not so dense and not flat. Does the salt help the bread get fluffier or is it just for flavoring. My husband is on a low/no salt diet.
Yes, the salt is necessary for flavor but also for the fluffy texture (I’ve accidentally left salt out of a bread recipe before and the bread was dense and heavy).
Just hopped on here with this exact question. So grateful for you Mel!! This my families favorite bread. I am blaming Lack of sleep for me forgetting the salt!
Best bread I ever made!
Hi, I attempted making this bread twice and it has failed ! It won’t rise! Could it be the flour I’m using? I used king arthur whole wheat white and added bobs red mill gluten along with the instant yeast! I carefully followed all your steps in making your beautifully pictured bread!
If anyone can give me tips on exactly which brand of flour to use will be helpful! Also your video is not working, can you possibly post a new video of you making the breadThanks
Hi Sila, what is the texture of your bread dough? Is there a chance your dough is over floured?
Hi, I attempted making this bread twice and it has failed ! It won’t rise! Could it be the flour I’m using? I used king arthur whole wheat white and added bobs red mill gluten along with the instant yeast! I carefully followed all your steps in making your beautifully pictured bread!
If anyone can give me tips on exactly which brand of flour to use will be helpful! Also your video is not working Thanks
I love this recipe. I’ve been using rye and whole wheat flour and caraway seeds and the results are perfect rye loaf.
Love this recipe. I have found for me it works best to actually make 3 smaller loaves then two large loafs. This is my go-to wheat bread recipe – use it almost every week!
Thanks for the tutorial and recipe. I really have had great luck with the shaping method. So much easier. I do have a question that I can’t seem to find an answer. I grind my own wheat not sure if it makes a difference in what is happening. But all my loaves seem to stretch so much the crown almost separates. I live at 4000 fr and decrease the yeast by 20 percent. I don’t over proof but happens every time. Sourdough is my thing and working with bread using yeast seems more challenging. I wondered if I need to use higher hydration or if scoring would help. They are beautiful loaves and it is more cosmetic. But still. Any suggestions. Wish I could post a pic. Thanks.
Hi Robin, if I’m understanding correctly, you could try scoring and see if that helps. Also, making sure the loaf isn’t rolled or shaped too tightly. That can cause it to separate while baking.
Can’t wait to try this. I read through many of the comments and didn’t see this question; I am wondering if I can sub white vinegar for the lemon juice or if it is just better to leave it out? Thank you!!
Yes, you can try white vinegar.
Thank you so much. How do you like to grease your pans? Rub a little oil around? Butter? I noticed USA Pans said not to use cooking spray so was just curious. Thank you!
Hi Susan, I actually do use a light spray of cooking spray.
I never spray mine and release perfect
Would this recipe do well if added some seeds to it pumpkin, linseed etc?
I haven’t tried adding seeds, but it’s worth experimenting. I think it would work just fine.
I made this today, about to bake it. Wondering why the bread rises so quickly?? It was only half hour to get to the desired size. I followed your recipe exactly except I proofed it in my oven.
Perfect – thanks for the tip to check the temperature- I’ve always struggled with having bread turn out doughy in the middle – I checked the internal temp and it turned out perfectly. Thanks!
I’ve been making bread for over 40 years so I do have plenty of experience but this one is actually the best and most reliable slicing bread I’ve ever made. It has been perfect every single time! And my 4th batch is rising right now. Because there is only my husband and me enjoying this, I cut each loaf in half, wrap tightly and freeze each piece. I never buy bread anymore. Thanks for sharing this.
I concur! I have tried so many whole-wheat bread recipes over half a century of baking and this is hands down the best! I make it in one large loaf pan but do cut in half and freeze for two of us or to share with friends, to consistent raves. No reason to ever buy bread. (I sometimes sub maple syrup for honey with no ill effect.)
Love this recipe and make it all the time. I’d like to make mini loves tomorrow for some friends. Will this turn out okay as a mini loaf? If so, how long do you think it will take to rise, and how long on the bake?
Yes! It should turn out great as a mini loaf…I’d check it after about 20 minutes of baking.
Excellent recipe Mel. The loaves rose beautifully, even with store bought white whole wheat flour. Do you think I would get the same results if I doubled it?
Thanks Mel.
The recipe should do quite well doubled!
Excellent recipe Mel. The loaves rose beautifully, even with store bought white whole wheat flour. Do you think I would get he same results if I doubled it?
Thanks Mel.
Have you ever used spelt grain with your breads? If so, do you usually add more water or more flour? Love all your things!
Thanks,
I haven’t used spelt other than a time or two so I don’t really know the modifications it needs. I’m sorry I’m not more help!
I made it with spelt and did not need to use as much flour. I used mostly fresh ground WW some Kamut and Spelt. Sooo good
I use 1/2 spelt flour in this recipe and it is fabulous! I don’t actually measure the 2nd addition of flour, just let the mixer tell me when enough is enough (dough scrapes the sides and bottom of the bowl clean, then knead . . .)
Why didn’t you cut it fir us, i was interested in a final slice look
That would show us how puffy it was?
Make it yourself and see
I am new to bread making and flour milling. I have tried your recipe several times now and can’t quite figure it out. I often have a hard time with the dough being sooo wet and sticky, even after adding a cup or more extra flour. I usually just stop and put it in the loaf pan even when it hasn’t “come together”. It still tastes good in the end but it’s a gooey mess to work with. Any suggestions? I am using white wheat that I mill but has had days to settle. Also wondering if you have a recipe for a hearty, dense whole wheat loaf? I’d love to use more of my red wheat. Thanks!
Hi Andrea, does the dough come together for a minute and then get sticky again or is it hard to get it out of the sticky phase at all?
Yes, it does start to make a ball then after mixing more it falls apart again.
After it forms a ball, can you stop mixing then? Has it kneaded long enough?
Maybe? I don’t know. But I could try that next time. Thanks!
I usually use red whole wheat for this bread, as I generally save my white whole wheat for muffins and such. It’s quite good with red wheat. Even the kids like it. The only two things I change are to do a second rise in the loaf pans (I like the flavor and texture better) and to use apple cider vinegar instead of lemon juice.
I ended up adding quite a bit more flour, almost 150 g more above what was recommended. That’s what it took to get it to release from the sides of the pan and bottom and knead cleanly. If this was a high hydration, sourdough whole wheat, which I do, then I’m used to the very sticky mess in the beginning. With this, though, just keep adding flour little by little until its releasing from the sides and bottom of the bowl while it needs.
Since I got my grain mill I’ve tried 4 different whole wheat recipes. The first one was like a dense Cake, the other 3 were called soft, or raised or fluffy and all 7 loaves ended up in my trash ( 6 loaves + 1 from the first recipe. I make great white bread and pride myself on its beautiful form and soft texture. This bread is all that and more. Soft texture, fabulous taste, gorgeous presentation. This will be my go to recipe from now on! Thank you so much for sharing …I can’t wait to try the chicken noodle stew!
Hi! I have been making this bread for about 8 weeks now!! IT is amazing! Soft, lofty and delicious. I freshly grind hard white wheat, sift it to get some of the hull out, make and bake ( sifted out hulls go to the chickens 🙂 ) Adding fresh lemon juice I think is the key to getting really high rises. I had been grinding the wheat before and not using the vital wheat gluten, then I found your awesome recipe, and really can’t believe how high this recipes rises. As soon as it comes out I run a cold stick of butter over the top to help it stay soft. It is soft like commercial bread from the bread isle in the store ( I won’t name names, but you know which brand I mean), but tastes SO MUCH BETTER!! Thank you so much for posting this easy and great tasting recipe!! If you have been hesitating about buying a wheat grinder, do it, you won’t be disappointed!! For this recipe, total time including grinding the wheat up to baking is one hour, then baking for 35 minutes.
Can this recipe be cut in half with the same results? I really only need one loaf and it is hard to find a recipe for just one, we loved this recipe so it would be great to have it work!
Yes!
Just finished my first batch! As someone new to making bread, this was super easy and delicious! My local store was out of vital wheat gluten but substituting some xanthan gum worked fine! Thanks for the recipe!!
This recipe is fantastic! I usually mix red whole wheat and all purpose white flour but I have a lot of bread flour. Do you think I could use that for this recipe?
Yes! Bread flour will work great in this recipe.
Hi there, me again.
I tried to halve the recipe. Both of my attempts failed. After adding the flour, the dough is uneven and breakes really easy. I tried adding more water and knead by hand, but it seems the gluten is not developing. What could be wrong? It supposed to get elastic as a white wheat flour bread (when you pull in front of the light you can see through).
The texture won’t be the same as bread made with all white flour – try adding the flour gradually so that the dough doesn’t become over floured.
Thank you for sharing your recipe! The bread is delicious but I have found my loaf to be extremely soft. We like soft but it does not seem to hold its shape when out of the pan. When cutting the loaf, the bread loses form. I allowed the bread to rise 1-2 inches above the pan prior to baking but when baking, it seems to over-rise (it nearly doubles in height!)! Should I be using less yeast or omit the lemon juice? I would appreciate your thoughts and advice! Thank you!
Try letting it rise a bit less (and maybe try baking a bit longer)…do you live at high elevation?
Thank you! This recipe is perfect! I made it in a 13x4x4.5 Pullman pan instead of two 9″ pans, tested it with the instant-read thermometer after 30 minutes, baked it 2 minutes longer, and we could not be more pleased. I made two minor changes – subbed maple syrup for the honey and reduced the salt to 2 teaspoons. I usually use my food processor for bread but it will not handle this volume, and my Kitchenaid dough hook worked beautifully. (I did use white whole wheat flour.)
Hi there, I tried to do this today, and the dough was still a bit sticky after mixing for more than 10 minutes, I tried adding more flour, but it started to look heavy for the kitchen aid to handle. I baked it anyway and got a bit of a bread more on the wet/heavy side, like dense. Is it possible to halve the recipe so I can exercise more? Also, my husband thinks it needs salt, can I add it to it? At which step? Thanks already!
Yes, you can definitely halve the recipe. Also, salt is included in the ingredients (it’s the last ingredient).
I have not purchased bread in weeks because THIS bread is ultimate! This is my go to!! This recipe is so easy and never fails you. I rise my dough in a warm dryer and it always puffs up nice and high. Thank you SO much for this recipe! I love baking this bread so much that I keep baking it and just giving it away to friends and neighbors..
Advice needed –
Tried to make these loaves today – with freshly ground hard white wheat. When i pulled it out of the oven after baking for 38 min it was still not done in the middle and it almost looked like it had fallen while baking – I am thinking I underfloured???
I have this new wheat grinder and i am so excited about making bread but each time i try it is a flop so far – and I typically make delicious breads otherwise – what is it about the freshly ground wheat that changes things up? Thanks for your help.
If you are using freshly ground wheat and it is still warm from the grinder, let it cool before using (otherwise it can affect the texture and consistency of the dough). Do you live at high elevation? If it fell while baking it could be that it needs more flour or that it rose too much before going into the oven.
Thank you! Yes the flour was still warm –
I tried again just this morning. Milled the flour yesterday. And made the loaves this morning and it was a whole different story – just put them in the oven now. Feeling much better about this batch. You’re the best. Really.
Beach Street Pasta was DELICIOUS last night.
Thanks for taking the time to send me an update, Jenny! Glad it worked out better!
This was so helpful, I tried this recipe (it is cooling) and my flour was freshly milled so still very warm. It looked amazing but fell during/after baking. I decided to hop on to read the replies. I am going to try again with cooled flour.
If I want a lighter loaf but I only have regular (red) whole wheat four can I sub in some AP? I know a lot of wheat breads are a mixture and I was wondering if it would work well with this recipe. If so- how much do you suggest i switch out and would I have to adjust the hydration?
Yes, for sure! I would suggest starting with half all-purpose flour and half red whole wheat flour.
Hi Mel!
I have made several of your recipes and have loved them all! With this one I added my freshly milled flour and after 3 cups and mixing for 6+ minutes it still looked very wet. I’ve added an additional cup or more and continued mixing for over 10 minutes. Immediately after adding flour it starts pulling away from the sides, but as it mixes the dough seems to always go back to fairly wet and sticky. Is it better to keep adding more flour or keep mixing longer? When this has happened in the past I’ve added lots of flour but then the bread seems so dense!
It sounds like a combination of mixing and more flour is the trick. If it’s really wet and sticky, it probably needs more flour gradually while also letting it mix for several more minutes to absorb the flour.
Hi Mel just brought myself a 4lb loaf tin. Do I need to double the quantity for your lovely
Bread. Want to cut and freeze.haven’t looked back since I found your website.not had to buy bread or rolls since before the look down.thanks.stay safe best wishes to your family
Hi Bridget, I don’t have that size of pan, so I’m not totally sure, but I think this batch of dough should fit in that size of pan.
Made my first batch of whole wheat bread with this recipe and a Kitchen Aid stand mixer. However it did not turn out as your photos indicate. Although the rise was as suggested; when baked both were the same height as the baking pans. Suggestions?
What was the texture of the dough when shaped into loaves?
the dough was “a little stickiness.”
If the dough was overly sticky, it’s possible it needs a bit more flour to maintain the structure while baking (so it rises up instead of falling). Also, take care not to let it over rise before baking – that can also cause it to fall in the oven.
Has anyone tried this recipe at high altitude? I’m at 5400’ and would love to try this but I’ve had too many whole wheat loaves turn out as bricks.
Hello Rachel, I live in Idaho and this recipe has always turned out perfect for me. I make it every week. I do always have to add more flour, as I do for most dough recipes. Give it a try!
How should I adjust this recipe for a 9 x 13 pan?
This bread is amazing! It was a rather humid day so I’m not sure how much additional flour I needed but it turned out absolutely perfectly. It’s so flavorful but not so wheat-y that you can’t eat it. It’s soft without being mushy. Truly the best wheat bread I’ve ever made or even tasted. Thank you!
Where do you purchase your White Whole Wheat flour? I live in B.C. Ca. Since you bake a lot, how much do you purchase if ordering online?
I usually buy white wheat berries and grind the flour at home (I buy the wheat berries from local farmers).
Tried it. And everyone is over the moon. I kneaded by hand since I don’t have a machine but perfecto! Thank you.
Hi love your recipe.
Wondering with the lock down going on And so hard to find baking ingredients in our little store can u make it without the vital wheat gluten I have everything else and would love to give it a try.
Yes, just make sure to add a few minutes to the kneading time.
I was wondering the same thing, thank you!
Hi! Loved your mama’s white bread so trying this. We don’t have lemon or vit c tabs, any suggestions? Thank you!
You can leave it out – just be sure to knead for a few minutes longer
I use white vinegar and it works great. :). I love this bread recipe (although I usually make the large batch one since we go through a lot of bread)!
Hi Mel, thank you for the amazing recipe. I had a great success with this one. Could you please tell me if active dry yeast can be substituted for instant one as all stores have run out of instant yeast due to the lock down.
Does it require rise time?
You can use the same amount of active dry yeast and dissolve it in 1/4 cup warm water with a pinch of sugar until it is bubbly and foamy and then use it in the recipe.
I am a professional bread maker, and while people do use instant and active dry interchangeably, they absolutely are not the same thing. Active dry will slow down the raising time. It will still get there but not as fast as instant. If you want to use active dry, and still want the same fast raising time as the instant, you’ll have to increase the active dry yeast to half again as much. On long, slow rises, where you’re waiting an hour or two or more, the active dry catches up, using the same amount. Since most of my does take two hours or more, particularly when I’m doing danish or croissants, I use active dry, because the instant just doesn’t hold up over the two day process.
Since the start of the coronavirus outbreak I have been searching for a bread recipe that my family will enjoy. Your whole wheat bread recipe is perfect. The instructions are clear and easy to follow. Well done and thank you!
Hi Mel! Thanks so much for this recipe. I was wondering, have you ever measured the flour by weight as well as volume? Thanks!
I usually don’t measure bread recipe flour amounts by weight because there are so many factors that alter the exact amount of flour based on where people live.
If you give the weight of flour, the result should be the same every single time. Humidity will not play a factor. Now, if you are measuring by volume, but absolutely there will be great variability because of the way people measure cups of flour, and the humidity in their home. I weighed out my flower for this and had to use about 150 g more than your top amount. Next time I make this I will just use that amount and I should come up with consistent results every single time. As whole wheat does go, this was a dream to work with. I’m waiting to post my comments until I take it out of the oven but so far it’s going beautifully.
Just made this recipe and the taste is wonderful! Used my just milled flour but only realized after it wasn’t rising high enough for me…. that my pans are 9×5 bigger than yours! So I adjusted the time and the loaves came out great but just to the top of the pan. So do you think if I make 1 1/2 batches of the dough that I could divide it into my 9×5 pans to make a “real” size loaf? Thanks
Yes, I think so!
Hi Mel!! I live in Eastern PA and with this Coronavirus outbreak people have bought up all the bread in the stores! So I’m giving your yummy looking recipe a try 🙂 Do you think I could I substitute butter for the oil to give the bread a little extra something? Butter makes many thing better in my opinion but I wasn’t sure how it would affect the yeast. Thanks!!
Yes, I think so! Butter is fine with the yeast – although in my experience oil makes for a slightly more moist bread.
That’s so funny! I’m looking for bread recipes because the stores here are out because of Coronavirus too!
Also, is all-purpose flour a substitute for the vital wheat gluten or would that not work? Thank you
You can just leave the gluten out and add a few minutes to the kneading time.
Exactly the question I had too – thank you
I love your bread! I have been making it for six years and started off making your larger recipe and freezing the extra loaves. I overheated a new 6 quart Kitchenaid which Kitchenaid eventually told me was unable to handle that much whole wheat and let me return it. I ended up buying a Bosch which does the job easily but I find it a pain to clean. I am now over 70 and enjoy quilting more than trying to get dough out of odd places in the Bosch bowl.
I bought a used bread machine off eBay and have been mixing bread dough in it and then baking it in the oven. But I miss your bread! Any ideas how I could adapt your recipe to the machine? I know basically how to adapt a recipe to the bread machine but your 10 min. “sponge” is what I don’t know how to handle. Thanks, Pat
Hi Pat, could you let the sponge ingredients rest in the bread machine before turning it on and starting it? I’m largely unfamiliar with bread machines, so I’m not entirely sure what else to suggest.
With a bread machine, mix the sponge first and let it sit for the 10-12 minutes. Turn the machine off, then turn it on and complete the recipe.
Bread dough overrises in my bread machine, making the finished loaf with a huge dent in the top of the loaf, so I use mine to mix bread dough. It works perfectly. This recipe works perfectly also! Thanks Mel!
I hated cleaning the Bosch too but started soaking the whole thing in pure hot soapy water for a bit and then the whole thing just rinsed off. Hope this might help.
I have a 6 quart KitchenAid with a bowl left. It handles this amount of flour just fine and in fact, I ended up using about 900+ grams of whole wheat without a problem. I’m going to guess you have a tilt head? I’ve heard more people say they have a problem, with the tilt of being able to handle larger batches of dough. Maybe it’s the shape of the ball too because my daughter-in-law’s ball comes in at the bottom where I have a wide base on my bowl.
I love love love this recipe… and do does my husband… the dough looks so shaggy… when you’re putting in the flour… and then it turns into the most lovely dough to work with… making it does much to calm me! I use my beloved bosch… but since I’m an empty nesterthis makes enough for us and one neighbor! Thanks for solving my yeast crisis! you’re the best!
Hi Mel, I have been making this bread for several months now and we love it. However even though I feel like I make it the same each time, sometimes the loaves sink in the middle after baking. What am I doing wrong? Thanks, and just love all your recipes.
Hi Pauline – do you think they need longer in the oven? Are they sinking during baking or after you take them out of the oven?
Thanks for replying. They sink when baking. I did split the dough into 3 loaves and knocked a couple of minutes off the bake time. Next time I will try cooking longer.
I have been following you for a little bit made a few recipes all have been super tasty. This Christmas I followed your advise and purchased the Komo grinder and the Bosch mixer to make bread from your links.
I have been super happy. Thank you for going into detail on all your posts.
I wanted to say, I have only been making bread a short while but your new method of kneading the bread before you place it in the loaf pan is so easy! Thank you for that amazing tip and video.
Also I was using avocado oil in the bread and this last batch used coconut oil and wow the coconut oil is amazing in bread.
I do have a question. I have triplets and twins and one of the triplets has short gut. She was super sick in the NICU so they cut out her large intestines. She can’t handle fiber. We buy white bread grandmas sycamores it has no junk in it. I want to make her bread. Can I use the soft white to make “white” bread for her ? She mostly eats white rice, bananas, white bread, meat potatoes etc so I would love to be able to make her healthier home made bread. I’ve tried the hard white and it’s a little much for her still. I grind it on the finest grind the machine will allow. Can I use soft white ? Any tips would be much appreciated.
Thank you,
Thanks for all the great recipes and tips!
Cherie
Hi Cherie! Glad the homemade bread journey is going well for you! As for your daughter, you definitely can use soft white wheat to make homemade bread but it won’t make a “white” bread – the bread will still definitely have a strong whole wheat vibe to it (but it won’t be as hearty as hard white or hard red wheat).
Cherie, you posted this awhile back, so I hope you come back to see this answer! I recommend you try einkorn flour. It bakes like soft white flour, so I mostly use it for non-yeast foods like quick breads and pancakes. But I know there are people who successfully use it for bread. It does still have gluten but as an ancient grain it is structured differently and is much easier to digest even in the ground whole-grain form. I have a child who is sensitive to too much gluten and he is able to tolerate einkorn much better. We have also done well with Kamut and spelt flours. If too much fiber is the issue, you might also try sifting your ground grains to take out a portion of the bran which should lower the fiber content.
Mel, do you ever use dough enhancer in your bread? I made this and my loaves fell in the oven. My mom suggested that I should try adding dough enhancer and that might help, but I wanted to check with you first (since I trust your recipes <3). Thanks.
Hey Cat, I don’t, sorry! I can’t easily find it where I live so I’ve never used it.
I made another wheat bread recipe and from reading your whole article, here, I’ve learned what went wrong. I over floured, and it came out good but the crust was rock hard. I didn’t have wheat gluten but this recipe did not call for it. I will get some and see the difference. Could I add 1/3 cup of potato flakes?, would that ruin this recipe?
You could try adding potato flakes but I’m not sure how it would affect the end result as I haven’t tried it myself. If the crust is really hard, it might be that the bread is baking too long.
I don’t understand how this recipe works for some . The ratio of liquids to flour seemed off to me, but I did it anyways. Then I had to add way more flour like 7+ (seems consistent in some of the comments) which then ended up being too much for my Kitchenaid so I ended up having to kneed by hand ( So how is this an kichenaid recipe then?). Then when I went to the link of the larger recipe that it has been adapted from I noticed that while the dry ingredients have been cut down to roughly a third, the wet ingredients have been halved! My bread is rising now so hopefully will be okay, but the recipe needs to be changed in my opinion
Hi Jan – what size is your KitchenAid? In the post I detail what size of KitchenAid I have (with the disclaimer I haven’t tested this recipe in other models/sizes of KitchenAids). Also, do you live at high elevation? That can make a difference in how much flour needs to be added. Either way, the exact flour amount shouldn’t matter as much as long as a soft, smooth dough is achieved. I don’t think the recipe needs to be changed – I tested it many times and still make it often as written (but again, there are many factors, like elevation, humidity, how we each measure flour, etc, that go into bread making). Hope the bread baked up well for you! 🙂
I love love love did I say love??? This recipe!!
I’ve been using my freshly ground white whole wheat berries for this bread and it is delicious every time. Okay, so there was a small learning curve at first. 🙂
You have managed to wean my family off of store bought bread! This is our new favorite. Add a little kerrygold, and we are good to go!
Thank you!
I made this bread this cold wet morning. I did the 2 rise method and had good volume after shaping the dough and starting the second proof. The loaves collapsed slightly and never rose more than 1/2” above the pan. The result was a good tasting loaf, although a bit dense.
I may have left the dough a bit wet after kneading. It was a little sticky, but not too bad. I added a total of about 5 cups of whole wheat flour. My crumb was similar to the Whole Wheat Quinoa bread shown above. (Not sure if that pic is in everyone’s post.)
Mel, what sort of crumb do you typically find with this recipe. It would be helpful if you had a pic of the final loaf, cut in half.
Great flavor and I will definitely try again, with variations.
Also, my iPad is showing 10 bullets for a rating, but no indication if the first is highest and bottom is lowest. I am trying to give this 9 out of 10.
The crumb is soft but still tightly woven. I’ll try to take a picture of the slices or the inside of the loaf and post it. And thanks for the details on the ratings – had issues with that, but should be fixed now!
HI,should I omit the honey?I don’t like sweet bread.thank you
That’s up to you! I like the honey in this recipe for flavor (and to help activate the yeast).
My dough was above the loaf pan when I put it in the preheated oven 350 degrees. During the baking my loaf fell flat to just to top of loaf pan. Any ideas on what happened???
I had to use almost twice as much flour, but the bread turned out light and tasty. I did do the extra rise.
I also need to say that even though this went terribly wrong for me today, I used your white bread recipe making 8 loaves last week, and they were the best I have ever made. Thank you for that! That’s what gave me confidence to do this. I used traditional yeast, proofing and two rises in both.
I made this bread today, using traditional yeast and proofing it Rose beautifully on the first rise. Terrible on the second. It is like two bricks. What did I do wrong?
Hmmm, I’m not sure. Do you think the dough was overfloured? That will prevent a good second rise.
I want yo try this today and don’t have honey or a store nearby. Can I substitute sugar?
Yes, that should be fine
Your site has inspired me to bake bread. I just bought the KoMo Fidibus 21. My question is: Back in the day when baking 100% whole wheat store bought flour, bread fo r the family, we never added Gluten. I would prefer not to add gluten. When I mill my flour must I add gluten? And I will need to find a bread recipe for two loaves and no addition of Gluten?
You can definitely leave the gluten out – just knead for longer and maybe add a touch extra flour.
Hi. I’ve made a lot of whole meal bread in the past but this is very good. Thanks a lot, I will always follow your recipe now.
Hi —
I’m new to bread making and found this recipe and will be trying it out. I will most likely do 1/2 it so I get only 1 loaf.
I had a question about the vital wheat gluten ingredient. If I don’t use that, will the bread still be ok? I don’t know what this ingredient is, I did some research online and still confused on why its needed. I noticed online, some bread recipes use it, some leave it as an option. Any input on this?
And second question, which brand of white whole wheat flour would be recommend? bob’s mill brand or king arthur flour?
Thank you for your advice.
Either of those brands of flour should work well in the recipe. The vital wheat gluten will help the rolls be a bit fluffier but you can leave it out – just make sure to knead a few minutes longer.
My first attempt at whole fresh-ground flour bread, I thought I would give your recipe a try since several of your recipes are my gold standard. (Strawberry gelato!!) Anyway, I had some learning curve involving my grain mill itself and so my timing got messed up. But . . .All in all, this was by far the best bread I’ve ever made(I’ve been making bread for 8 years). I liked that it wasn’t too sweet, didn’t require a lot of extra ingredients, rose beautifully, didn’t require a bunch of risings, and made just two loaves. It is among the best bread I’ve ever eaten as well. I , (we, my husband and I) love it!!
It turned out great but leaves a bitter after taste. I used bought white wheat flour, King Arthur’s White Wheat Flour. Can you possible tell me why it has a bitter after taste?
I’m honestly not sure – it must be something with that brand (I haven’t used it so I can’t say for sure).
Could it have been the baking pan used? Just s question.
Thank you so much for this recipe and all your hints, explanations, and pictures. I have made this twice now and both times turned out very successfully! I don’t have a lot of yeast bread making experience, either, so you have done a great job with your instructions! I am curious what you do to get such perfectly even slices of bread? Lots of slicinng practice? Haha! Or do you use a slicing guide? Special knife?
Hey Amber – so happy you have had success with this recipe! I don’t use a slicing guide, but I do use the Rada bread knife (you can find it on Amazon) and it is inexpensive and amazing.
I have been trying to make a copycat version of Dave’s Killer Seed bread but am disappointed with the heavy dense result. Could I add about a cup of various seeds to this recipe without any other changes?
Hi Loretta – I haven’t tried adding seeds to this bread so I don’t know how it would work out, but you could definitely experiment. I’d hold back a little on the flour – you might not need to add as much.
Making this again!! Wonderfully risen dough and heavenly taste. I added 5c flour this time, so we’ll see what happens after baking. (I give 5 stars but button would’nt click.
I have made this three times and it’s my family’s favorite! And I am no baker by any means! Thank you for helping us first timers. Thank you!!
I have regular yeast, not instant, on hand. Do you think it could still work in this recipe? What changes to the process should I make?
Yes, it will still work. Just proof it in a bit of warm water and pinch of sugar until it is bubbly and then use it in the recipe – you can use the same amount called for in the recipe.
I am also going to attempt this with regular yeast since I don’t have any instant on hand. Do I need to let it rise an extra time or anything? Or just the first proof is the only difference? Thanks! I’m excited to try this recipe, it was recommended highly!
I think when using active dry yeast, it helps to let the dough rise before punching down and shaping into loaves so you might try that but I think others have used active dry yeast with good results following the recipe (no extra rise).
I ended up needing to add about 4+ additional cups of flour to make the dough work for where I live. In the future, what do you have a recommendation on what you think would be best: 1) continue to just add extra flour or 2) decrease the amount of water? I wonder if one over the other would yield a fluffier bread or if it even matters.
That’s a good question – there is a lot of bread baking science involving the amount of hydration in a recipe, and I’m not sure which ingredient (flour or water) would be best to alter, but I’ve always gone the route of adding more flour and not messing with the water amount.
The bread turned out amazing so I probably shouldn’t mess with anything. Thanks for the recipe!
Mel I just made these and they turned out great! I have a question about freezing it- how do you defrost it? In the fridge, or on the counter? Also how long does it keep in the freezer?
I just defrost on the counter (I’ve found that storing bread in the fridge can dry it out). If it’s in a well sealed bag, it should keep for up to a month in the freezer.
Thx for the post and pics! Was hesitant on this recipe as I’ve done white only. I’m so glad I did this. Yummy 2 wheat loaves and super simple. Will be making this again
I just made this bread and it turned out really well. I have (well, had prior to today) zero experience with bread baking. I read and re-read all the instructions, notes and comments. I learned a lot (including that one can grind their own wheat- there’s a whole new world out there for me!). The advice about using the kitchen aid paddle then dough hook were really helpful. I used Bob’s Red Mill 100% stone ground whole wheat flour which is made from hard red wheat, so says the packaging. I went with weight rather than measuring cups for the flour measurement based on Mel’s advice in the comments section. I just sliced into my cooled bread and it is sooo yummy. Thank you, Mel, for teaching me how to bake bread!
Your comment made me so happy, Rebecca! I am SO proud of you!
Hi Mel – thanks for the recipe and thorough explanation? Wondering if we can do two rises for this recipe? so first rise until double in size after kneading, and second rise after being shaped in the loaf pans.
Why do you only require one rise instead of two?
Thanks!
Yes, you can do two rises if you have the time. Using instant yeast + the sponge at the start of the recipe means you technically don’t need another rise before rising in the bread pans.
Can you sub warm whey (from your ricotta recipe) for the warm water? It works beautifully in your white bread recipe, but I’m not sure if it’s okay in a wheat version.
Yes! I use leftover whey a lot in my whole wheat bread recipes. Works great!
I’ve made rolls and sweet breads aplenty, but this was the first time I’ve made a whole wheat bread. It. Was. Perfect. Thank you for the step-by-step instructions and hand-holding during the flour-adding-stage!!! I was fresh out of honey so I used pure maple syrup. Worked splendid if anyone else is wondering.
This is the best bread recipe ever! So easy and so delicious. I bought a Wondermill wheat grinder to grind fresh flour and use a Bosch mixer. Sometimes I make two loaves and sometimes double it for four or five loaves. Add some butter and homemade jam and it’s just as good as a big piece of cake (and I love cake)! And the house smells so good! Takes me back to my childhood when my mother baked bread. Thank you! Thank you! This will be a recipe I hand down to kids and grandkids!
I’ve been trying to bake an edible 100% freshly milled whole wheat bread loaf since getting my grain mill last month. I think this has come the closest. I didn’t have lemon juice but saw online that vinegar could be substituted as long as the amount was halved. So I used .5 Tbsp vinegar, and added a half hour rising time after the kneading and before the shaping. They rose beautifully in the pans and smelled heavenly while baking. Open the oven door to find that the poor things had deflated while baking. I think I let them rise too long before baking and didn’t put enough flour. I was really trying not to put too much flour and I guess I had too wet of a dough. The bread had a good flavor still and was very soft inside. Will definitely try again. Thanks!
I am not an expert, but not a newbie at baking bread. I also ended up with a thick batter after adding what I thought was the full amount of flour. I added some extra but was concerned about adding too much to avoid the whole wheat brick. I think the issue may be in the flour measure. In looking at the Q&A, I see you measure a cup that is 4 1/2 to 5 oz. I use King Arthur White Whole Wheat and their listed measure of 120 gms per cup. That is quite a bit lighter than your measure. I began with 6 cups or 720 gms. 4 1/2 ounces per cup x 6 is 765 gms, and at 5 ounces x 6 is 850 gms. I am going to mark my printed copy to read 6-7 cups, plus more if needed. With what flour I added, allowing a first rise in the bowl to absorb water, and just plopping sticky dough in the pans, I managed two pretty decent loaves of bread. I look forward to trying the recipe again now that I understand what went wrong.
Hi Mel! I love your blog and make your recipes all the time. But bread making is nothing but failure for me, has been for about a year, and I don’t know what I’m doing wrong. I was so happy when I saw this bread post with all the step by step pictures.. and today was the day! But the loaves came out of my oven like they always do..small & boring. NO oven spring. Your loaves come out so tall and beautifully rounded; mine come out of the oven exactly like they go in. Why is oven spring so elusive for me?
Also it seems like I can NEVER achieve a ball of dough that pulls away from the sides of the bowl. After 7 cups of flour it was still shaggy so I went with what I had. I did 2 rises. Second rise in the pans was weak. I’m scared to do only 1 rise as I know it will probably come out dense.
I’m so discouraged and I’m really about to quit. I’m tired of wasting ingredients.
Note: I use the King Arthur Flour white wheat flour, and I do everything exactly as you say. Please, any help I will be so grateful for.
Hey Jean – I’m certain we can get to the bottom of it! You are using a KitchenAid mixer, right (that’s what it seems like from your comment)? How long are you letting it knead?
Mel, darling…What would happen if I left the vital wheat gluten out? Is it possible to do that? (I don’t have any on hand). I’ve never made bread with vital wheat gluten before, but then again I have never ground my own wheat ever.
Any advice is appreciated. Thank you, Mel!!
If you leave out the gluten, just make sure to knead the dough for a few extra minutes to really develop that natural gluten!
Mel thanks so much for your incredible website and your “down to earth” style. I recently moved to a high elevation (7100 ft). I have attempted a whole wheat bread recipe I had and then this one. I ground my own wheat. For some reason, both recipes are flopping. I know it’s me, but I’m wondering if you can help me troubleshoot? When all the ingredients are mixing, it looks more like a super thick pancake batter and won’t come together in a smooth dough. I have tried to add the ingredients quicker so the yeast won’t “over bloom,” added more water, more flour, etc., but nothing seems to be doing the trick. I even threw a batch in my bread maker on the dough setting (which usually solves my inability to make bread dough) and the same thing happened. Any thoughts? Thanks a million!
Hey Kellie – how much extra flour have you tried adding? Can you try adding flour until the dough clears the sides of the bowl? Even if it’s a cup or more extra flour, that’s ok. Based on what you are describing that’s the main thing I can think of to correct the issues. If the dough is more like a batter, it seems like it needs more flour…I’ve also heard at high elevation that you might need to decrease the amount of yeast, however I don’t think that would be a factor in the bread dough texture – that’s more related to how it rises).
Made this today and it was SO good. It was also nice that there was only one rise, unlike other breads. I used vegetable oil in this because I wasn’t sure what kind of oil you used. Do you mind if I asked what kind you used? Thanks for yet another great recipe!
Hey Bri! I usually use avocado oil but any neutral flavored oil should work!
Mel, I am having a hard time finding the White Wheat berries.
I live in Illinois and I purchased a brand called Ziyad shelled wheat – link attached(https://www.amazon.com/Ziyad-Wheat-Shelled/dp/B006M6EBDS) but I do not think that this is the right wheat).
They also sell an unshelled wheat? An all natural whole wheat? Cracked wheat? So now I’m more confused than ever about which wheat to purchase? Please help me.
I also own a Vitamix with the dry grain container and blade that can grind wheat berries would that be okay to use since I do not own a grinder. I’m assuming I can just grind it and than sift it -to make sure I get only the soft flour out of it?
Thank you for your help.
I’ve never heard wheat berries called shelled wheat but looking at that picture, I think it’s the same as what I refer to as wheat berries. Cracked wheat is when the wheat berries have already been slightly cracked so you don’t want that for grinding wheat flour. I think the shelled wheat should do the trick!
Look up Augason farms you should find their white wheat berries there i got the 26 pound bucket was 26.99 through walmart.com free shipping to my local walmart.
I’ve been making your white sandwich bread, using 1/3 to 1/2 whole wheat flour, so as soon as you posted this, I made this. So good, so easy, and my kids are eating it, so that’s a win!! Love it, especially since I broke my KitchenAid earlier in the year…. I guess 13 years of using it basically daily takes a wear on it… But hubby replaced the stripped gears, so I’m back in business, but it can’t handle over-working. Long story short, this recipe worked great in my KitchenAid! Thanks!
So happy to hear that, Ashlee! Thanks for taking the time to leave a comment! Glad it worked out!
This recipe was perfect timing– my mom had just bought me a wheat grinder last week, and I have a KitchenAid and was needing a recipe just like this one. The two-loaf size is perfect too, since it is just me and my husband in our house for now! I made it tonight and it turned out great!
Way to go, Ainsley!
This bread is fantastic and so easy. Just had my first slice with butter and it is delicious. I just couldn’t wait for it to cool completely. Sorry! Thanks so much for the smaller batch recipe. We have just one teen at home so this is the perfect amount. Can’t wait to make sandwiches with it tomorrow!
Glad it worked out so well for you, Candice! Thanks for letting me know.
So glad you posted this, it inspired me to try adapting it to natural yeast. It worked great! I used 1 generous cup natural yeast, reduced the water to 2 cups, and left the gluten out. I replaced the lemon juice with 1 tsp ACV, but I believe either would work. It is a longer process, I let it raise overnight, but it turned out perfect. Thanks for the inspiration!
Thanks so much for the comment, Patty!
This bread is fabulous and really easy to make! So soft and yes fluffy…and its wheat! Thank you for once again suggesting we learn to how to shape a loaf…somehow…I missed this and was still trying with the rolling pin and never quite satisfied…made two beautiful loaves today…in my beloved Bosch! Thank you Mel…you’ve kept me happily in my kitchen all weekend long! And I made your spaghetti sauce…letting it simmer an extra hour and then froze it! So delish! You’ve the best!
Love this so much, Jill! Thank you!
Oh my goodness do I love the scent of freshly baked bread in the morning.
Fabulous Mel..this looks sooo good & delicious and today am trying to making this whole wheat bread….! Thanks for sharing…!
Also…have you ever tried to use buttermilk instead of water? Would you skip the lemon juice if so?
I haven’t tried that, sorry!
Lord have mercy! Thank-you for this. I am trying this today (if all goes well). I am struggling to get a nice soft loaf from my home milled flour. Praise the Lord! These loaves look wonderful. Thank-you profusely!!!!
Let me know how it works out, Brenda!
Mel I want to try this recipe but I have a few questions for you. First, can I just use store bought wheat flour for this recipe? If yes, what brand should I use in this recipe? If I use store brought wheat flour will I get the same results as this recipe? Lastly do I need to alter the recipe in any way if using store bought flour – meaning I would still need to use wheat gluten and all the other ingredients that you listed in the recipe?
Yes, you can definitely use store bought wheat flour for this recipe! It will be much more compact than if you were grinding your own to use, so make sure to measure the flour with a light hand (fluff it up, scoop in the cup, and level it off – you’re shooting for right around 4 1/2 to 5 ounces per cup of wheat flour). I honestly don’t know if I can recommend a good brand of store bought whole wheat flour because I never buy it (since I have a wheat grinder at home), but I’ve heard King Arthur Flour is a great brand if you can find it. I wouldn’t alter the recipe in any way if using store bought wheat flour other than what I mentioned above – just make sure not to overflour the dough since the flour in the storebought packages will be more compact. If you can find storebought flour that is labeled “white wheat” as opposed to “red wheat” I would buy that. Flour ground from white wheat berries will produce a slightly lighter (both in color and density) loaf than flour ground from red wheat berries.
I’m excited to try this!! Where does one find vital wheat gluten? Just at a regular old grocery store?
Usually its in the baking aisle above the flour (most of the time it comes in little boxes)…but I also snag it on Amazon. The Bob’s Red Mill brand.
Thanks!!
Quick question- are we talking fresh lemon juice or will the bottled work just as well with this?
Thanks for all your hard work! So grateful.
Yes, bottled works great!
I am a bread baking rookie. Can this be made into rolls? How many? Or sandwich buns?
I’m sure it could be – I’ve actually never tried that because we always make it into loaves and I have another roll recipe that’s even easier and nearly fail-proof:
http://melkitchencafe.com/french-bread-rolls/
or
http://melkitchencafe.com/fluffy-whole-wheat-dinner-rolls/
Thank you so much for posting this!! I’ve looked at your other whole wheat bread recipes before but it just seemed like so much bread (not enough pans in my house!), so this looks perfect. Can’t wait to try it! How much yeast would you recommend using with Active Dry instead of instant? Thanks!
I would use the same amount if using active dry yeast. 🙂
Would powdered citric acid work instead of the lemon juice? An equivalent amount?
I’m pretty sure that would work…but I haven’t used it so I don’t know if it affects the flavor (lemon juice doesn’t). Maybe start with half as much just to see.
Tip for Kitchen Aid bread making: use the paddle attachment for mixing the ingredients until the dough comes together (starts clearing the sides and bottom of the bowl) THEN switch to the dough hook.
The KA dough hook is different than the Bosch– most Bosch dough hooks have L-shaped feet that mix the bottom of the bowl (which is flat, not curved like a KA). But the KA doesn’t have either, so the dough hook is best used just for the kneading portion.
You’ll do a lot less scraping with your spatula and it will take less time using the paddle for the first part 🙂
Thanks for the tip, Chelsea!
I am so excited for this! I have never been a bread maker but have intentions of becoming one and I’m so grateful I found your website. I just happened to come across it a few months ago and it has seriously changed my life and my family’s!! It seems like every night my husband asks me, “Is this another one of Mel’s?” 🙂 we love it. As a new wife and mother of two babies under 2, ain’t nobody got time for failed recipes. And I am not kidding when I say this-every recipe I have made from your website has been awesome. Thank you so much Mel! 🙂
Katie-
You can do it!! As a momma of two littles and one on the way, baking is my de-stresser and I love it. I grew up baking cookies but never bread but since being married (after some epic, epic fails, one in particular my husband fondly calls “the brick”) for four years I have moved up from terrible novice to “it usually turns out deliciously.” I have dabbled in sourdough starters (so.much.awesomeness) and just last week made a loaf…with no recipe because I felt like it. My extended family raved!! I feel like I’ve finally gotten a handle on things and I am here to tell you that you totally can too!! YAY! Go for it!!
Thank you so much, Katie! Your comment was a great pick-me-up and is EXACTLY why I continue to blog and try to share only the best of the best recipes. You are amazing for cooking up a storm during such a busy phase of life!!
So funny! I’ve had the huge batch version of his recipe on a tab in my phone for ages and finally made it today, only I halved it to fit in my kitchen aid. Just came back on your site for something else and saw you already halved it here! Haha oh well. Mine made two loaves plus two mini loaves and they came out great! Thanks for all you do (including reading my mind!)
Looks like you already did all the hard work – glad it turned out well!
Do you have a preferred brand of whole white wheat? There are so many out there! Thanks!!
I’ve used a lot of brands over the years and most have been about the same in terms of quality. Lately I’ve been picking up the Wheat Montana brand from Winco (a large grocery store here).
Thanks so much, this is going to be perfect for the two of us. My question does vital gluten go bad.? I have had some for awhile now.
I think it takes a while to go bad…if I know I’m not going to use it in about a month, I put it in the freezer. It keeps well there.
These look amazing! Perfect size for my little family! Does this recipe work well as sandwich bread?
Yes! That’s what we use it for.
Do I need to use the gluten and lemon juice?
I think they are important ingredients so the whole wheat bread is really soft and fluffy, but you can experiment leaving them out and see how it goes.
Is there anything that can sub for the vital wheat gluten? I’m living in Norway for a bit, and it doesn’t seem to be available here. And can I use normal yeast, I also can’t get instant. I do have dough enhancer. I made wheat bread, but it doesn’t seem to rise as high as it does in Idaho. Right now, everyone prefers your French bread!
Hi Lorrie, if you have dough enhancer, use a couple tablespoons of that instead of the gluten and then just make sure the dough kneads for 3-4 minutes longer than stated in the recipe (to really develop that gluten). When you say “normal” yeast, do you mean fresh yeast or active dry yeast? If it’s active dry yeast, yes, you can use it – just proof the yeast in a small bowl with a couple tablespoons water and maybe a pinch of sugar until it is foamy and bubbling before adding to the recipe.
I prefer a MixMaster mixer over the Kitchen Aid (crazy, right?), and it doesn’t do well with bread dough (dough climbs up the dough hooks & makes a mess). What about making in a Cuisinart food processor with the bread dough blade?
What size is your Cuisinart, Beverly? That might work…I have a Breville food processor that is supposed to be fairly good at mixing bread dough although I’ve never tried it. As long as your food processor is big enough, it should be a worthwhile experiment (otherwise, you could halve the recipe)
You need to reverse your dough hooks. As you face the front of the mixer, the dough hook which has a ring cut out of it’s shaft, near the top, needs to be installed on the right. I had the same problem until I figured that out.
I didn’t see the lemon juice (new ingredient for me to consider in bread, so I was curious) in the directions, only in the ingredient list.
Sorry about that, Jodi! You add it in with the oil and honey. I edited the recipe.
I’m totally going to make this to go with soup this week!