Whole Wheat Honey Molasses Bread

Summary: I improvised on two whole grain bread recipes to create this. It's assertively whole wheat but has great moisture.

Yield: 1 loaf.

Ingredients:

  • 1 packet active dry yeast
  • 1¼ cups warm water
  • pinch of sugar
  • 1¼ cups bread flour
  • 2¾ cups whole wheat flour
  • scant ¼ cup molasses
  • scant ¼ cup honey
  • ¼ cup vegetable oil
  • ½ tsp salt

Instructions

In a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, pour the warm water. Sprinkle the yeast and a pinch of sugar over the top and let sit for a few minutes. It should start to foam up, but if not, don't fret.

Add the remaining ingredients, and stir with a wooden spoon or the dough hook on your mixer at low speed until everything comes together, about 6 minutes with a mixer. The dough should become smooth and pliable, and in all likelihood, a "foot" will remain attached to the bottom of the bowl.

Detach the foot, shape into a ball and turn out into a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with a dishtowel or oiled plastic wrap and place in a warm place to rise for 1-2 hours.

On a greased silpat or lightly floured surface, knead your dough a few times and shape into a log. You can then put it in a loaf pan or back on the silpat or workspace for its second rise, another hour or two.

Preheat the oven to 350° Fahrenheit. If you're going to use a baking stone, put this in as you turn the oven on. When the oven is warm, put the dough log onto the stone, or if it's in a pan, just put the pan in the oven. Bake 35-45 minutes. If you have a Thermapen or other trusty thermometer, King Arthur said its version of this bread should read 190 in the center when done.