Update: I created a whole series about whole wheat yeast bread baking a few years after writing this post. It has in-depth information about ingredients, as well as help on making bread without a bread machine, and recipes for whole wheat dinner rolls, no-knead pizza crust and more. Check it out, if you wish.
The original post:
I have decided to post the results of a year’s worth of whole wheat bread trial and error.
I went through two distinct phases:
PHASE 1: Make it by hand. I got pretty decent results after endlessly tweaking the recipe and technique. However, I found that the results weren’t reproduced consistently each and every time. Also, it was time-consuming and I’d always end up with 3 loaves at a time, and then no bread for a while because I’d put off the mess and hassle of making more loaves. The technique had to change with the temperature and humidity of the day, and so rising times were variable and so was the texture of the final product. Very few loaves were inedible, but I wanted a recipe I could use for the rest of my life without fussing and fretting every time!
I found that as I experimented, my recipe became more complex than I thought it needed to be. It had eggs in it and some applesauce to substitute for part of the oil. The flavor was fine, but not as good as Great Harvest bread and the wise people at Great Harvest don’t mess with eggs and applesauce. 
PHASE 2: Realize that my mom recently discovered a magical combination of recipe and bread machine and take advantage of it. I purchased the exact same bread machine, followed her recipe and instructions to a “T” and voila! Perfect bread, every time. It takes me 5 minutes to measure out the ingredients, and the bread machine turns out a piping hot, beautiful loaf of bread in 1 hour and 55 minutes. I feel like I stumbled on a gold mine here so I thought I’d share!
The Recipe
4 c. whole wheat flour
2 TBS wheat gluten
1/2 tsp dough conditioner
1 1/2 tsp salt
2 1/2 TBS canola oil
2 TBS honey
1 3/4 c. water
1 TBS yeast (scant)
Put all these, in order and without the yeast, into the bread pan of your bread machine. Put the bread pan into the machine and select “Quick Bake” “XL” “Light” and press start. Then measure the yeast into the handy yeast dispenser at the top.
Click on for the nitty gritty on everything.
The Ingredient Explanation
*I used to buy whole wheat flour from the store, in 5 lb bags because they don’t carry it at Costco and I didn’t have a wheat grinder I liked. I now own a wheat grinder I love and I’ve found it to be very satisfying and cheap to grind my own wheat. This bread doesn’t care one way or the other. I do spoon my flour into the measuring cup and level it off (as opposed to using the measuring cup to scoop the flour) because it helps me be consistent in the way I measure.
*Wheat gluten is important.
Interesting fact: The gluten or protein content is the difference between “bread flour,” “all-purpose flour,” and cake flour. As it turns out, you’ll get a better rise and a better texture when you boost the gluten content in your whole wheat flour. I buy mine in bulk and it keeps at room-temperature for years so it’s easy to store. UPDATED TO ADD: I experimented with leaving out the gluten. Here’s what I discovered.
* Dough conditioner is optional, but nice.
My mom doesn’t use this, and her bread is still delicious. It’s a bit heavier, with not quite as high of a rise and not as soft of a center. My dough conditioner is homemade from some kinda crazy ingredients (¾ C lecithin, 3 T ascorbic acid, 2 T ginger, and 3 T cornstarch). The brains behind this belong to my sister-in-law, but basically I mix up a batch of that and keep it in a tupperware. It’s fantastic. If you’re interested in making some for yourself, you might find “Fruit Fresh” in the canning aisle an easier thing to find than “ascorbic acid”. Just a tip!
* Start with at least luke-warm water if you do the “quick setting” on your bread machine.
Why That Bread Machine?
It makes fantastic whole wheat bread in less than two hours. Need I say more? It’s not the most expensive out there, but it’s very reliable and has some specific advantages:
-The yeast dispenser. It waits until your dough is at a good temperature before dumping the yeast in, and it also helps with having a “delayed” start to your bread.
-You never have to scrape the bottom or sides of the pan. I never even lift the lid until it tells me it’s done. The little paddle does the whole thing flawlessly.
-The paddle doesn’t dump out with the bread. It gets kinda “baked on” so it is stuck in the pan until after you dump the bread out of the pan. A quick soak in water will loosen it up nicely, leaving the pan a 5 second job to clean.
The Cost Break-down
People ask me all the time if I save money by making my own bread. When I made it by hand, I would say “yes and no,” because although it was pretty enjoyable to make it, it did use up a lot of my time. Time is money, ya know.
Now that it takes me 5 minutes to make and 1 minute to clean up? Absolutely. I was shocked when I did the research on how much each ingredient costs per loaf.
Bear in mind that Scott and I are a bit fussy about our bread. We will definitely buy the $2-$2.50 loaf of 100% whole wheat bread at the store, because it tends to be free of high fructose corn syrup and food coloring. In fact, we had taken to purchasing $4-5 loaves of bread at Great Harvest on a weekly basis because the flavor and freshness was unbeatable. Before calculating, I would have guessed it cost $1.50-$2.00 to make our own loaf.
Here are the facts:
-Whole wheat flour. I buy my wheat from my church’s dry-pack cannery for $0.19/lb. If you buy it in bulk from someplace like Wild Oats or Whole Foods, it’s more like $0.60/lb. Whole wheat flour is usually around $2.79 for a 5 lb bag at a regular grocery store, which comes to $0.56/lb.
Until I started grinding my own wheat on a regular basis, I’ve bought 7 lb pouches of wheat from the cannery. You pay 35 cents for the pouch and 10 cents for the oxygen-absorbing packet, assuming you don’t bring your own pouch to re-use. Incidentally, buying the wheat in the cannery cans is pricier ($0.33/lb). This comes to $0.26/lb. In the future, I’ll definitely buy the 25 lb bags because I will use them and they are great food storage!
From one 7 lb pouch of wheat, I make 6 loaves of bread. This means $0.30 of wheat per loaf. Un-pouched would be $0.22. Canned would be $0.38/loaf.
-Wheat gluten. I’m sure there are many places to buy this. I buy mine here for $10/3.5 lb can. So, it ends up costing $0.10/loaf.
-Dough conditioner. Each batch I mix up makes 84 loaves. I’d estimate about $.05/loaf, but honestly I didn’t calculate each ingredient out.
-Salt is a beautiful thing. It’s practically free and certainly less than a penny a loaf.
-Canola oil. I buy this at Costco for $6.34/5 qt bottle. This comes to $0.05/loaf.
-Honey. I buy at Costco for $7.49/5 lb bottle. This comes to $0.07/loaf.
-Yeast. I buy this at Costco for $3.39/2 lb bag. This comes to $0.03/loaf.
-Water. Free!
GRAND TOTAL: $0.52 per loaf. Your mileage will vary depending on how cheaply you can get the above ingredients. The initial investment with the gluten and dough conditioner might feel like a lot, but keep in mind they’ll both keep for 84+ loaves.
Update: October 22, 2008
This post is still getting a lot of hits and interest, so I thought I’d share some things I’ve learned over the past 14 months since I originally posted.
- When I ran out my first batch of dough conditioner, I decided to ditch the powdered milk in the new batch. It worked out just great! Now my conditioner has just ginger, corn starch, lecithin, and ascorbic acid and I use 1/2 tsp per loaf. I updated the post to reflect that.
- Instead of 2 1/2 TBS of oil, I regularly use just 1 TBS of oil and 1 1/2 TBS of unsweetened applesauce, if I have it on hand. It’s cheaper and healthier and you can’t taste the difference.
- I’ve made an oats and molasses version, and it turned out gloriously the first time and awful the second time. If I get up the courage to try it again, I’ll have to write down what I did!
- I’ve made a cinnamon and walnut version many times and it always turns out beautifully. I just take the exact same recipe and add a heaping tablespoon of cinnamon and a couple of handfuls of walnuts, chopped. It smells heavenly when baking.
- I have experimented with both hard white and hard red wheat. I’ve found white to have less of a “wheaty” taste and it’s easier to get a nice, light loaf. Red wheat tends to be less expensive and it is tasty. It’s just a bit heavier. If you’re trying to persuade your spouse or kids to like whole grain bread, I’d definitely start with white wheat!
- I’ve found that I play with the amount of water just a bit. If I use dry measuring cups and add 1 3/4 cup, the top of my loaf tends to sink. That means too much water! So I do a scant measurement and it domes beautifully. When I underdo it on water, it rises ok but the top is a bit lumpy instead of smooth and even. Please don’t be intimidated by “not knowing”. Every loaf will be edible, unless you forget the salt. You’ll just get a feel for it as you make many loaves and you’ll find what works best for you. Incidentally, I have an excuse for forgetting the salt one time: I had just had a baby. After tasting that loaf, though, I won’t ever forget it again!
- Ingredients are more expensive now, but so are all food prices. 
- I still make a loaf every other day or so, and it’s been a really rewarding thing for my family. Please feel free to post successes, failures, and questions in the comments section. It’s fun to hear from you!
August 18, 2007 at 8:45 pm
Hmmm…you’ve definitely perked my interest. So which bread machine is it exactly?
August 18, 2007 at 11:22 pm
I’m glad you finally got the recipe down! We make that recipe at least once a week in our machine and it’s always fabulous. A piece of advice. Try putting in 3/4 cup of flaxseed meal – it adds some nutrition and doesn’t change the consistency of bread.
August 19, 2007 at 2:46 pm
Oooh sorry Jess. There’s a link to the bread machine somewhere buried in the post, but it’s the:
Panasonic SD-YD250 Automatic Bread Maker (with YeastPro Yeast Dispenser)
I bought mine on Amazon for about $110.
Liz has a no-longer-available Williams-Sonoma bread machine, I believe. On her machine, it turns out best with the full cycle, not the “quick setting.”
August 19, 2007 at 3:40 pm
you are incredible. i hope to be like you one day!
August 19, 2007 at 8:21 pm
Hmm… I’m sorry to tell you Lisa, but you missed the point of the post.
The point was that the RECIPE is incredible. All I do is measure out a couple of ingredients, and push a couple of buttons. Hehe.
September 18, 2007 at 5:31 pm
[...] Adventures in Beanland To infinity and beyond! « Welcome to the Jungle Do I have to eat my words? September 18th, 2007 I believe I mentioned my whole wheat bread recipe is fool-proof. [...]
February 27, 2008 at 10:19 am
I came across your site searching for a way to get my whole wheat bread to rise better. In addition to finding your recipe, which I will try, I really enjoyed looking through your life in Columbus. I used to live there and LOVED it! Check out the great metro parks, Wyandott Lake and the zoo. Your daughter is adorable too! Thanks for the recipe!
February 27, 2008 at 10:41 pm
[...] post about whole wheat bread is quite popular in the google searches. It appears more people than myself are on the quest for [...]
March 8, 2008 at 2:10 pm
this post is old, but I just came across it from a google search….wow, thanks for all the details. I’ve never even considered grinding wheat…nor do I really understand what you do, but I’m going to look into it. I make all out bread, but LOVE the challah from great harvest for a treat!
March 19, 2008 at 7:29 am
You forgot to calculate in the power bill. Just a wild guess but I bet that’s about another $0.50 per loaf or real close. So that’s about $1.00 per loaf. I get my whole wheat bread (about 1/2 the size of yours) for $1.75 so that’s a savings of about $1.25 to $1.00 per loaf depending on what the power costs actually are. This means (that because the machine is $100 ~ $125) that you have to make about 80 to 100 loaves of bread to break even.
100 loaves is about 1 year for 1 person or a 6 month supply for 2 people and would take about this long to just break even. OK, now the question is how well made is the bread machine and how long is the warrantee for? If it’s like most crappy goods made these days it comes with a 3 or 6 month warrantee and will break before or around 75 to 100 loaves. Meaning that you may be having fun and even making more tasty bread but are not really saving anything. If you could run the machine on home made solar or wind electricity and also find a cheaper machine (or if that one was well made and lasted 10 or 15 years) then it all might be worth it.
I’ll look forward to you adding YOUR actual energy costs to this equation. Energy costs will be different in different areas.
March 19, 2008 at 11:33 am
Hi Tessy, Thanks for dropping by!
Hmmm… well I currently make around 10 loaves a month and using your energy estimates that would mean that making bread is one 6th of our monthly electric bill.
Fortunately, I have lived in this same place for longer than I’ve owned the bread machine, so I can safely say that that’s nowhere close. If electricity costs have risen since I’ve purchased it, it’s not by more than $1 a month. Or, about $0.10 per loaf. Getting a more accurate estimate would surely not be worth my time but you are welcome to do an assessment yourself as you decide how best to obtain your bread.
Good call on the bread machine. It has made over 100 loaves so far without a hitch, but my mom has only had hers for 3 years so it’s possible mine could only make it through 400 or so loaves without going kaput. Definitely something to keep in mind! I was surprised that you suggested solar panels. If you think a $100 bread machine is too big of an investment…
Home-made wind energy? To make a loaf of bread? While it might be debatable that the environmental-impact would be less, there are absolutely more things I could do that would have a great positive impact on the environment. From a purely economic standpoint, I’m employed, so time is $$ and the time necessary to set up a wind-powered bread machine at my apartment would definitely cost more $$ than it saves on my bill each month.
Anyway, thanks for the discussion!
March 24, 2008 at 8:24 pm
Hello fellow Real Bread appreciators…
I’ve read the discussion with interest, and appeciate all the detail, especially Anne’s.
In thinking about the relative savings (or none)…what is most critical to me economically is time. What’s your time worth? If you figure something like a modest (for the current U.S. economy) $15.00 per hour, and then crunch the numbers for the time spent shopping, preparing. kneading, and cleaning up after bread making, I think the bottom line would favor the machine. Also, there are energy costs in baking your own, as well–running the oven, as opposed to running the bread machine.
‘Course, for some, the act of making bread has its own value and pleasure–the kneading and interacting with the dough…just a few more considerations to add to the pile…
I plan to try your recipe, one way or another, Anne. Thank you for taking the time to share it with us, with so many useful details. –Leila
May 23, 2008 at 2:09 pm
We have been using a breadmaker (loaned from a friend who has also offered to sell it to us) for about the past month, running it a lot (about every other day) because I’m still trying to “get it right” and experimenting with different recipes. We just got a shockingly big power bill, which is making us (obviously) rethink this as a means of keeping our food spending under control. I’m not too happy, both about paying that big bill and having to give up our newly-acquired enjoyment of nice fresh bread.
Is it possible that some bread machines are just bigger power-pigs than others?
May 23, 2008 at 3:36 pm
Mama Squirrel-
The chances of your recent shockingly large power bill being due to the use of a bread machine 15 times during the previous month is practically non-existent. This, of course, assumes that when you say your last bill was “shockingly big,” you mean that it increased by more than $3. Realistically, using our bread machine 15 times in a month costs us $1.50.
Here’s how I calculated it. You can calculate a very good estimate of how expensive your bread machine is with a few simple substitutions.
Our last power bill shows that every KWH (1000 watts of electricity) costs us $0.12. On the back of every bread machine there is a small panel or sticker that lists the maximum electricity the bread machine can use in any given hour. Our bread machine (a Panasonic SD-YD250) uses a maximum of 550 watts of electricity per hour. Each time we use the machine it takes 1 hour and 55 minutes to make a loaf of bread. The actual time required for baking is much less than this, but I’ll delve into that in a second. If we assume that the bread machine uses the maximum amount of electricity that it can for the full 2 hours, then we use 1.1 KWH for every loaf of bread we make. 1.1 x $0.12 = $0.14. $0.14 to bake a loaf of bread seems like a great price to me.
In all honesty, it’s going to be even cheaper than that because there’s no way that any bread machine runs at maximum energy usage for the entire bread cycle. The biggest energy drain is the process of heating the bread machine. Once it’s heated to the proper temperature it only uses enough energy to keep it at that temperature, which really isn’t that much due to two factors: 1) bread machines are built to retain heat well (just like your oven), and 2) the amount of space that it has to heat is quite small. If we were to be generous in our cost estimate and assume that your bread machine takes about as long to heat up as an old oven does, then the bread machine would only be using maximum energy for about 25 minutes.
In answer to your question about some bread machines being bigger power-pigs than others… I’ve looked at other bread machines and I have yet to find one that uses more than 650W per hour. I also have yet to find any that use a bread cycle that lasts longer than 3 hours. If your machine uses 650W per hour and runs for three hours, the most it could cost you to make 15 loaves of bread would be $3.53, assuming that your energy costs are the same as ours.
I’m sorry I can’t pinpoint what caused your power bill surge, but I’m glad it wasn’t your bread machine. I’d check your power bill to make sure there wasn’t a big rate increase, and then I’d look for the usual suspects, e.g., air conditioners, computers, ovens, never-ending-television, etc.
-Scott (husband of Anne)
May 31, 2008 at 5:43 pm
Thanks for so much information.
Can you tell me what kind of grain mill or grinder you have?
June 3, 2008 at 12:39 am
[...] 2 Dinner – $1.37/person with enough for 2 dinners Homemade Whole Wheat bread [...]
June 5, 2008 at 4:31 pm
I found this post via google while trying to determine what the energy costs of baking bread myself would be. I’m pleased to see that it wasn’t just a shot in the dark, and I’m also now greatly considering a bread machine. For one, I’m like you — employed, time is money, etc. For another, the thought of only $0.14 for baking a loaf of bread? I’m still going to save money — yay! Thanks! =)
June 6, 2008 at 12:39 pm
[...] MACHINE – I have waxed poetic on my love for my bread machine already, but essentially I use this 3 times a week or so to make whole wheat bread, and twice a year to [...]
July 3, 2008 at 4:39 pm
thanks for all the info
i used a bread machine over 13 years ago but it broke
have not made any bread since
i have a blendtec blender and older vitamix blender and they both grind wheat and knead the bread with a quick recipe
and have been trying to make whole wheat bread with their recipes
and been failing badly
so i am looking to buy a breadmachine again
fouind your post and am game to go
what do you use to grind your wheat
i can use the vitamix or the blendtec total blender
to grind my wheat
and i have a very expesive french electric stone mill machine i can use
rater use the blenders though its easier
what kind of wheat do you buy
can i also purchase same thing in bulk online?
i boght some wheat at clarks health foods ladt week very expesive
also there is no need to add any bread flower?
how long do you let it sit after you take out of machine before you cut and eat?
also have you ever added any peanut butter
thanks for the post
billy
July 4, 2008 at 12:23 am
@billy
I use a blendtec “family mill” wheat grinder. I use hard white wheat, but I purchase it through my church. I’ve bought in bulk from honeyvillegrains before, but they aren’t the cheapest for wheat, I’m afraid.
I’ve used red wheat as well, and the bread is still delicious, it’s just not nearly as light and soft. It also has a “wheatier” taste to it. I actually like it for a change of pace, and some people may prefer it.
No need for bread flour. “Bread flour” is just white flour with a higher gluten content. Gluten does help with getting a good texture, but I just add it to my whole wheat flour as I noted in the recipe.
We let it cool for 10 minutes or so before cutting into it. That helps prevent it from drying out.
I put peanut butter ON my bread all the time, but have never added it to the dough. Sounds interesting though!
October 5, 2009 at 8:54 am
I make a similar recipe to Anne’s, but I use 2/3 white wheat and 1/3 red. This gives a nice flavor from the red, but you still get the fluff and softness of the white.
July 16, 2008 at 5:15 pm
Thanks for all the great info!
I made the bread and I think it turned out very good. My one issue I had with it was this: When making it into a sandwich, it seemed to fall apart very easily. So I’d take one bite and crumbs of bread would fall all over the place. Obviously this doesn’t happen with bread you buy from the store.
Is it something I’m doing, or is this normal? Either way, any tips on what I could do to make it more “sticky”?
Thanks!
Steven
July 17, 2008 at 7:09 pm
I’m going to try your recipe in a day or two. I’m pretty frustrated, though, with the way things have been turning out with mine, including today’s loaf. I have a Sunbeam machine, which had some pretty decent reviews, and the white bread was great, but the ww bread isn’t very good at all. I don’t have a nifty yeast dispenser, but I do put it in last in a dip in the flour. And I’ve been using white wheat.
About your dough conditioner, is lecithin in powder form? For some reason I thought it was liquid. And where can you get it?
I love all of your details. Thanks so much!
July 18, 2008 at 11:18 am
@Da Yooper: Are you using white wheat? It tends to make a softer, less crumbly loaf. Also, are you letting the bread cool before you cut into it? That seems to keep everything nice and moist and soft inside the crust. Does your bread taste dry? When I hear “crumbly”, I think “dry”. Also, did you get a good rise? If the dough didn’t come together well and form a nice, stretchy structure… you’ll see a much shorter loaf that is crumbly rather than cohesive. I’m no bread expert, but those are some things that come to mind based on my experience!
@Ma Fitz: What does “not very good at all” mean? Was it too dense? Too crusty? Was the flavor off? I tried my recipe using the WW setting on my machine (so I could do a delay timer and have hot bread in the morning) instead of the quick setting that I normally use. The crust turned out much thicker than I would have liked, and the loaf ended up being a bit heavy. So you might try the “white” setting on your machine, instead of the whole wheat setting. Worth a try, anyway!
The lecithin I bought was kind of granulated. It’s like little yellow balls/pellets and kind of powdery. How’s that for an explanation? Here’s a link
@Everyone experimenting with whole grain bread: If your loaf comes out too dense, or a bit dry or crusty… it will still make great toast.
Just eat it that way and tweak your method or recipe for next time. Perseverance really pays off with this because you just have to find what works for you!
October 5, 2009 at 8:55 am
One of the best things I’ve done with my bread is use an electric knife. It makes the bread SO much less crumbly, and it’s much easier to get straight slices.
July 30, 2008 at 6:07 pm
Hi,
I loved your recipe and even found all the ingredients to create the bread dough. We used the lecithin granules as it didn’t seem to make sense to use liquids and added the vital wheat gluten. While the bread was good and made a pretty loaf, it was a little heavy. There was still room to rise in the machine. I don’t have the same bread machine (you have to add the yeast in the beginning- or remember to do it yourself). I used the last 3/4 part water and the honey to activate the yeast, then poured into the mixture before starting. I used the light cycle and the crusts were perfect. Do you have a specific way to recommend with a bread machine that doesn’t have a yeast distributor- something that might give a bit more rise. Thanks, I haven’t given up yet.
July 31, 2008 at 4:15 pm
@ingridg : Wow! I’m very impressed you tracked down all the ingredients and had success. It’s gratifying to know so many people are interested in making their own whole grain bread.
About the heaviness, are you grinding your own wheat? Have you considered using a finer grind? Are you using white wheat or red wheat? I can get a fairly light loaf with red wheat but white wheat definitely helps. If your loaf was pretty, that means you probably had a good water to flour ratio. I’ve found that if I have too much water, I don’t get as good of a rise and my bread doesn’t “dome” properly at the top. It looks sunken a bit, instead. It still tastes great, but isn’t as light.
A coarser grind will make a heavier loaf, for sure. I like to vary it sometimes and use the denser loaves for toast and hearty sandwiches, spread with hummus or white bean dip and stacked with veggies. The lighter loafs are great for eating warm and spread with nut butter (or cinnamon and honey if you’re like me and consider that a rare delicacy!) .
I wish I was more of a bread expert and I hope to learn more as I go… so please let me know if you try anything differently!
August 1, 2008 at 9:11 am
Thanks for the quick reply. I just used the only whole wheat I could find in the grocery store. I don’t grind it myself. I may check out the health food store or mix some white with the whole wheat and see if that helps. It was a very pretty loaf!
August 2, 2008 at 11:52 am
Dear Anne,
I just wanted to thank you for the wheat bread recipe. I managed to purchase all of the ingredients as well as the exact same bread machine. The whole family really enjoys the bread. I was a little nervous about adding a tablespoon of yeast and thought I read the recipe wrong. It came out perfect and was delicious. I had a bread machine many years ago and my wheat bread was disgusting and hard as a rock. So, now my next question is, can I use this same recipe to make white bread? I am a toast snob and only enjoy toast made with white bread. I know, not so good for you but I can’t help it. If I made white bread, what kind of flour should I use? Also, I am interested in raisin bread and making pizza dough from scratch using the bread machine. Any suggestions in this area would be greatly appreciated
August 2, 2008 at 2:26 pm
@Lisa: I’m so glad it’s working for you! I have only made white bread once or twice in my life so I’m afraid I can’t help you much. I know that using a “bread flour” (or using all-purpose flour and add TBS of gluten to the loaf) is a good idea.
I have used the dough cycle of my bread machine for white rolls, half whole wheat rolls, 100% whole wheat rolls, and cinnamon rolls. It works beautifully. When you take it out, just form loaves or rolls or whatever and let it rise one more time before going into the oven.
Pizza dough I’ve only done by hand, but it’s hard to mess up!
Never tried raisin bread, sorry! But I do toss chopped walnuts and a generous tablespoon of cinnamon into my whole wheat bread sometimes and it’s delicious.
August 7, 2008 at 10:29 pm
[...] decent looking loaf of wheat bread. I was proud of it because it was made with all red wheat (as opposed to the white wheat, with [...]
August 12, 2008 at 11:56 am
Hi,
I just wanted to send one more note to say I have perfected the mixture of flour for my whole wheat bread. I can only find one kind of whole wheat flour at the store and I don’t know what kind it is – just says pure whole wheat. Anyway, after the first loaf was so heavy I bought some regular white “bread” flour and did two cups ww and two cups white. The bread rose so high it hit the top of the machine and I had to finish it in the oven to cook the top. I just did a loaf with three cups ww and one cup of the white bread flour and it rose beautifully!! Everything else like your recipe – a note to those without a yeast distributor. I pour in one cup water into the pan, then mix the last 3/4 cup(slightly warm, but not too hot) water with the 2 TBS honey and the yeast to get it activated. Works great this way. This is the best recipe I have ever tried. Thank you so much for taking the time to write about it. Any chance you’ve posted the recipe for the scrumptious apple oven pancake that is on your Bean Cuisine page – that really does look scrumptious. Thanks again, Ingrid
August 14, 2008 at 12:18 pm
I stumbled across your website looking for a good wheat recipe and was pleasantly surprised to see Scotty. Hello from a former West Salemite (Bud & Barbara’s daughter).
September 7, 2008 at 8:10 pm
How do you store the ingredients long-term… specifically the dough conditioner and wheat gluten? Do you use #10 cans and do they store well long-term?
September 7, 2008 at 9:14 pm
@Erika: Good question. The wheat gluten says it’ll keep 8-10 years in an unopened #10 can. I just put a plastic lid on top and keep it in a cool, dry cupboard and haven’t had any problems. I think I go through a can in about 18 months or so.
The dough conditioner takes me about a year to go through a batch, and I just keep it in tupperware in my cupboard.
Side Note: I actually now make the dough conditioner without the powdered milk and it still works really well (I just use 1/2 tsp of the milk-less conditioner in each loaf).
September 14, 2008 at 9:26 am
Any chance you would share your recipe for the scrumptious apple oven pancake that is on your Bean Cuisine page? After I saw that photo I goggled it and found several recipes to try… but none look (or taste) as good as yours looks. Thanks
September 24, 2008 at 5:07 pm
what is dough conditioner and where can I purchase it?
- Emma (New bread machine user)
September 24, 2008 at 5:08 pm
what is dough conditioner? where can I purchase it and/or how do I make it?
- Emma (New bread machine user)
October 13, 2008 at 12:12 am
I’ve been making whole wheat bread 32 years, by hand, bread machine, and my personal favorite is with my bosch mixer. I prefer the bosch because I can make 2-3 loaves at a time in it. I always give away a loave every time I make bread. If I make 3 loaves I’ll occasionally freeze one for later but still love to give away the most. I didn’t read every blog but as I skimmed I had a couple thoughts to add. I read about the cost effectiveness of making bread. This is true but if you buy the wheat in bulk and store (#10 cans, mylar bags than packed in buckets or air tight containers to keep mice out, they’ll eat through mylar) not only is it the most cost efficient, even with energy costs, but it is by far the most healthy bread you can eat. Nutrition is lost in flour as it sits. The only way you can guarantee nothing has been stripped from the flour you use to make bread is buy wheat from a reliable source, (an internet search can help, a couple I know of is Walton Feed in Idaho, and also Montana Wheat Farms) grind yourself right before you make the bread. Good wheat grinders are an upfront cost also. My 3rd grinder, the whisper mill is a decade old. But in the long run it saves money not only on cost, but the more nutritious your food is, the healthier you and your family will be, which also saves health care costs over the years too. And all this doesn’t even touch the satisfaction making a good loaf of bread brings, nor how wonderful it taste out of the oven, over bread you buy from the store. It would be more than worth it even if money wasn’t saved! One more note, find wheat with a protein content 15-17%. You won’t need added gluten flour or dough conditioners, will save even more.
October 17, 2008 at 4:27 pm
I got to this site through a google search. Thanks so much – great advice.
October 21, 2008 at 11:06 pm
Thanks for the recipe and machine recommendation. I have just started experimenting with making my own, homemade whole wheat bread. As I’ve researched several machines, I have found that many machines, as per customer reviews, do not make decent whole wheat bread. I was considering giving up and resigning myself to using the oven and heating up my whole apartment. Thanks for saving me from the heat! I will be getting the recommended machine and using your recipe. Blessing to you and yours.
October 24, 2008 at 11:03 am
thanks for the update….seriously it’s the best bread! i’m glad you took the time to keep testing it out! i might need to get a bread machine for Christmas…the walmut/cinn you made the other night was really great and yes, it smelled soooo good in the oven!
October 31, 2008 at 7:28 pm
Hi-
I’m lookin for a place to buy bulk wheat berries for
long term storage so I can grind my own flour down the line.
By chance would you have a source for twice cleaned
bulk wheat? It doesn’t have to be ‘organic’. In fact
I don’t want Organic.
Hope you can help. Take care.
Jeff -
October 31, 2008 at 9:30 pm
@Jeff: I buy through my church, and the only other place I’ve looked at is http://store.honeyvillegrain.com/ . They have great prices for some things, not so much for others, but you can’t beat their shipping!
November 8, 2008 at 12:12 pm
Can’t help but try one more time for the recipe for the scrumptious apple oven pancake that is on your Bean Cuisine page?
Still making your bread recipe – it’s the best.
November 18, 2008 at 1:34 am
My whole wheat bread doesn’t come out right, so thank you for posting a recipe that works! I’m definitely going to try it soon. The use of gluten instead of flour gives it that many fewer carbs too! The “dough conditioner” sounds delightful and can’t wait to make some up to try in the recipe (I’m a big fan of ginger). Thanks!
November 18, 2008 at 2:27 am
@Barbara: No need to worry about whole grain carbs… they’re good for ya! I’d argue that the refined protein (gluten) without the associated “good stuff” (fiber, micronutrients) is actually less healthful. But I don’t add much and it makes the bread lots yummier.
Sorry to disappoint, but the ginger taste isn’t detectable in the final product. At least, not to me…
One tip I should probably add to the post: Some bread machines work better if you add liquid THEN dry THEN yeast. So read the general instructions for your bread machine and let that determine the order you add ingredients.
November 27, 2008 at 1:01 am
Thanks for the info on your bread (by the way I am just some random passerby from the internet). I just wanted to say – WOW – bread every other day or so! We just don’t consume it that fast, even with 4 in the house. I guess I am the one who rarely eats it. Anyway, I was impressed with that. Also, I had no idea you could buy 25 lb bags of wheat from the church, I will need to look into that.
November 28, 2008 at 7:43 pm
@ingridg: Sorry, didn’t mean to avoid that request for so long! I asked my husband where the recipe is from, and he says it’s in the Williams-Sonoma Baking cookbook: Book on Amazon. I hope that helps… I’m not too keen on posting recipes out of books, unless I modified them significantly.
@MiaKaye: Thanks for dropping by. I give away loaves of bread pretty frequently. Our family does eat two loaves a week usually, though!
December 7, 2008 at 9:48 pm
Thanks very much! I usually make a wholewheat bread with milk and egg in it… and was looking for a WW recipe that didn’t.
I tried your recipe last week and it made fabulous bread! I omitted the dough conditioner and let the bread machine do the hard work and then baked it in the oven to get a smaller loaf!
Thanks again! I’ll be making this often!
December 14, 2008 at 2:00 pm
Thanks for the recipe for the apple pancake. I think my mom has that cookbook and I will check with her. I’m actually making your fabulous WW bread right now! I keep experimenting with various recipes, but always come back to yours. Work perfectly every time. thanks again.
February 5, 2009 at 7:54 pm
Just wanted to share a great recipe suggestion I found. It was a sourdough, ww, tomato and basil bread, but worked fine with your regular recipe. Hold back some water and chop up two juicy tomatoes, chop up two large handfuls of fresh basil and add to recipe. You have to babysit a little to see if more water is needed – give it a few minutes – as the dough gets stirred more juices are released. The basil and tomatoes are a perfect compliment to each other.
February 6, 2009 at 5:41 pm
k, so i definitely vote to make the dough conditioner at our next healthy meeting! i have the bread machine now and i’m ready to start making you WW bread!
wow, i was really impressed with scott’s answer about the energy bill! i would have had no idea how to figure that out, now i do! cool.
March 10, 2009 at 12:06 pm
Thank you thank you thank you for this recipe, and for all the details. I have tried so many and have to say that this one is the very best.
I didn’t want to shell out the $150 for your bread machine though (although I am sure it is worth it). I first tried it with a bread machine I got on craigslist for $20 but it didn’t work well (sunken loaves). I sold that one and picked one up at the thrift store for $8. It is an old one with a round shape (Welbilt I think it is called). I use it to do all the hard work and then transfer it to a pan after the second rise. I bake it at 350F at 35 minutes and it is perfect every time (well except for that time I forgot the salt!). Absolutely the best bread ever. And I am excited to try the milk free dough conditioner – thanks for the tip!
March 10, 2009 at 12:07 pm
oops … I meant to say that I transfer the bread after the second kneading. sorry
May 23, 2009 at 5:50 am
[...] yesterday I tried out my newly found recipe for breadmaker whole wheat bread based on a recipe on someone elses blog. Recipe [...]
May 28, 2009 at 7:48 pm
Just to add to my basil/tomato recipe suggestion above – I tried chopped up sun dried tomatoes with fresh basil and it was delicious. Using the dried tomatoes didn’t affect the water in the dough. I used your normal WW recipe, just added a large handful of the tomatoes and two handfuls of fresh chopped basil. Perfect to go with Italian or meals. I will also often add a handful of craisins and walnuts, that’s really good too.
June 3, 2009 at 11:44 pm
I have the same breadmaker. Plan on trying this as soon as I recieve all the ingredients, as I haven’t been totally happy with any WW loaf I have made so far…the have all been edible..just not…great.
A question I had…I noticed on the bread machine if you select quick bake and whole wheat, and Medium loaf, it won’t let you select the crust. Do you just use “basic” instead of Whole Wheat?
June 4, 2009 at 2:07 am
Yep, Basic. It’s the default, so I just select Quick and then the crust color and click go.
I would never have guessed a 2hour total time was possible for perfect whole wheat bread, but it rises to the very top of the machine this way. I don’t recall if I mentioned in the post, but the longer cycles gave me a thicker, darker crust that I didn’t love. (Besides just taking longer, which is reason enough to skip ‘em in my book)
June 6, 2009 at 5:00 pm
Ah, ok. I’m guessing I can just halve the recipe for a medium loaf (the XLs on the Panasonic are way too big for us…)
June 7, 2009 at 9:36 pm
Yes, you can halve most the recipe. You might find that halving the yeast won’t leave quite enough, though. I would maybe use 2 tsp of yeast and see how that goes.
I’d love to hear!
(You might want to try the XL recipe just to make sure you’re getting the results you want from the recipe before you try modifying it. But it’s up to you.
June 9, 2009 at 3:11 pm
By the way…the yeast bricks are no longer available at Costco (at least, I haven’t been able to find them at any of ours for months now…)
June 12, 2009 at 12:21 pm
Hi Anne,
I found this post through Lisa and have to drop in to tell you THANK YOU; I guess I’ve been a lurker on and off for a while though I’ve commented once or twice. I’m starting to gather my ingredients and about to purchase a wheat grinder- I’m stoked to give this bread a try and to pass along your genius to my blog readers…
*I just purchased a brick of yeast at Costco so it is still available.
June 29, 2009 at 11:37 am
Neither Costco near me (Greensboro and Winston Salem) carry the yeast anymore. It must be regional now. Consider yourself lucky if you can still find it. However, besides paying for shipping, you can still get them fairly cheap via Amazon.
I also tried this recipe with cheapo Wall Mart Hard Red Whole Wheat (supposably) and it came out terrible. I guess the quality of the wheat makes a big difference. I have has the best luck with Bob’s Red Mill…never got bad loaf using it…
…any body else have flour suggestions?
September 30, 2009 at 1:08 pm
I like to add 1/3 cup, per loaf, potato pearl (a type of instant potatos). I add it directly to the water so it will soften. It makes the bread very moist.