If you've never made your own whole wheat sandwich bread before, don't be intimidated—it's easy! This no-knead recipe is a great one to start out with.
Disclaimer
This is not a post meant to shame you into making your own whole wheat sandwich bread. Because I am not one of those bloggers. You know, the kind that make you feel like a terrible human being because you're not making your own almond milk from almonds you grew yourself, maintaining your own bee hives in your backyard, trekking into the woods to harvest wild morel mushrooms every spring? Yeah, that's not me. I mean, if you want to be an urban beekeeper, that's totally cool. But I'm way too lazy for that sort of thing. Plus, bees make me nervous. They sting, yo.
So please know that I'm not posting this because I think you should be making all your bread yourself. This was just a fun project that I wanted to do for a while and I thought I'd share it.
Conquering My Fear of Bread
If you read a lot of food blogs, perhaps you've seen me commenting on other people's bread posts taking about how baking with yeast scares me. (So if you're keeping track, I'm scared of bees and yeast. Someday I'll tell you about how I'm scared of fishing poles. Someday...) My last attempt to use yeast was in pizza crust and it ended up being tough and weird. Like a frisbee made with flour. I kind of swore off yeast after that, but once I started blogging, I realized that I needed to conquer this fear.
I set out to find a bread recipe that was both crazy easy and fairly healthy and this No-Knead 100% Whole Wheat Bread recipe from King Arthur Flour fit the bill. I tweaked it a little bit by using olive oil instead of butter or vegetable oil and I added some ground flax too. And it really is easy, you guys. You just:
Mix all the ingredients in a bowl.
Transfer the dough to a bread pan, cover it with plastic wrap, and let it rise. Make sure you listen to the directions and put it in a warm place. It really does make a difference.
Look! It's rising!
Then you bake it and cool it on a wire rack. Fine, it doesn't look perfect, but I'll take it. I'll take it!
The Result
It's a little bit moister and denser than store-bought whole wheat sandwich bread, but we really enjoyed it. Chris was particularly enamored with it and for that reason alone, I know I'll probably be making this again. But will I only eat homemade bread from now on? Heck no. Buying bread is convenient. That said, you should try baking it at least once. It's easier than you think, it's delicious, and if you have a fear of baking with yeast, this recipe is a good one to start out with.
Ingredients
- 1 cup lukewarm water
- ¼ cup freshly-squeezed orange juice
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 3 tbsp molasses
- 2 tsp instant yeast
- ¼ cup nonfat dry milk
- 1 ¼ tsp salt
- 3 cup white whole wheat flour
- 2 tbsp ground flaxseeds optional
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Using a hand mixer, beat on high speed for about 3 minutes. Dough will be sticky and thick—don't panic! It's supposed to be like that.
- Spray an 8 ½ x 4 ½-inch loaf pan with an oil mister or cooking spray. This bread is sticky, so you need to make sure the whole pan is thoroughly coated with oil. Transfer the dough to the loaf pan, cover with lightly greased plastic wrap, and let bread rise for 60–90 minutes. The bread will rise to (or just above) the rim of the pan when it's ready.
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Remove plastic wrap from bread and bake for 40–45 minutes, tenting with aluminum foil after 20 minutes. When the bread is golden brown on top and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center reads 190–195°F, the bread is done.
- Remove from oven and cool for 5 minutes, then remove bread from pan and continue to cool on a wire rack. Once bread is completely cool, it can be sliced. I prefer slicing the loaf as we use it rather than slicing the whole thing at once.
Natalie @ Once Upon a Cutting Board says
Even though I love homemade bread so much, I so rarely make it, not for fear of using yeast but because I am too impatient for it to rise and hate having dough stuck to my fingers that is so hard to get off! Love yeast-free breads and the idea of a denser, more moist bread sounds great to me!
Kiersten says
I'm going to try doing a traditional bread recipe now that I've conquered my fear of yeast, but I do really like this one--I hate getting dough stuck to everything too! Not to mention the flour everywhere...
Genevieve says
I agree about rarely wanting to put in the effort even though I love homemade bread. I remember the first time I made a loaf of sandwich bread like this one and I thought, "wow this is so much better than storebought bread, I should only ever made homemade bread from now on!" But of course that didn't happen, as like you mentioned, storebought is so much more convenient and you can get some good whole grain varieties now. But I like your thought that it's something to try at least once, and more often if you like!
Kiersten says
Yeah, I often find myself resolving to only make homemade [whatever] from now on, and it rarely happens. So I decided to be a realist with this one--I will continue making my own sandwich bread, but only some of the time. 🙂
Dora says
This bread is awesome. I did make some changes though. Used hemp seeds instead of flaxseeds, maple syrup instead of molasses and no dry milk used. It is aesthetically pleasing to the eye and just simply delicious both in texture and taste. Thank you!! 🙂
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Kiersten Frase says
Thanks for your comment - I'm glad you enjoyed the recipe!
ashley - baker by nature says
I totally want this! Love making homemade bread, and this one is going on my "to-make" list.
Richa says
the loaf looks gorgeous! i bake bread every week! i think the orange juice is to take away from the strong cardboardy wheat taste..:) i usually add some fruit pulp too.
Kiersten says
That's what I suspected! 🙂 I love the idea of adding fruit pulp too.
Bobbie says
This looks amazing. I love that it's no knead.
Kelly @ Texas Type A Mom says
I need to try this out. I've tried the kneading recipes and it's such a pain. This sounds so wholesome and delicious!
Alice says
I have a bread maker that makes all kinds of bread including 100% whole wheat. Very easy but I don't use it as often as I used to. Will try your recipe. Also have a recipe for Graham or WW bread that uses no yeast and is very good.
Kiersten says
I need to get a bread maker--that is definitely on my wish list. I hope the bread turns out well for you!
Alice says
Can I use regular WW flour instead of white WW flour? What is the difference between the two?
Kiersten says
Yes, you can use regular whole wheat flour too--the bread will be a little bit denser, that's all. 🙂 White whole wheat flour is milder in flavor and lighter in texture than regular whole wheat flour.
Alice says
What does "awaiting moderation" mean?
Kiersten says
If you're a first time commenter, I have to approve of your comment before it's posted. It's to prevent spam. 🙂
Christa @ Little BGCG says
Bookmarking and pinning, I need to make this especially since we're out of bread! Do you think it would be okay to just use regular orange juice? Although as I say that I remember I have oranges in my fridge!
Kiersten says
I think regular orange juice would work; the recipe I adapted this from didn't specify. But I had oranges on hand and not orange juice, so that's what I used. 🙂
Anne says
Not having to knead it is a big plus! I like the addition of flax seed too.
allison says
Is there an alternative to using dry milk?
Kiersten says
I've found different answers online; some say you can just leave it out altogether, others say you can reduce the amount of water used and substitute scalded milk.
Heidi @ Food Doodles says
No knead, whole wheat? I'm there! I gotta try this. I make a lot of bread(but don't keep bees, haha), but I can't resist no knead recipes 😀
Kiersten says
One of these days I'm going to venture into bread that you do knead. I might need you to talk me through it. 😉
Chantelle says
This bread was so yummy the last time I made it. Is it possible to just knead it the next time I make it? My cheap blender almost couldn't handle the stickiness last time around. Lol. Thank you so much for posting. Excited to make it again my hubby loved it.
Kiersten says
Yeah, it's a bit of a pain to mix for sure! I'm definitely no expert on making bread, but you could try mixing the ingredients together with a spoon and then knead the dough inside the bowl instead of using a hand mixer--I think as long as your hands are floured, it shouldn't stick TOO much. 🙂
Brenda Williams says
This looks so good. I love home baked bread.
Whitney says
Hello!
I was wondering if there is a way to make this vegan - which milk substitute would work best?
Thanks,
Whitney
Kiersten says
Since this is made with a dry milk powder, I'm not sure what you could substitute for it. You could try using a non-dairy milk in place of both the water and the milk powder, but I haven't tried it myself so I can't say for sure that it would work out. Sorry! 🙁
Whitney says
Hi Kiersten,
Is there a way to make this vegan? Any milk substitutes that will work just as well?
Thanks,
Whitney
Kiersten says
I replied to your comment a few days ago--it's right above this one. 🙂
Elizabeth says
This is the greatest thing ever! Really loved this bread; it was perfect! Thanks!
Kiersten says
I'm glad it turned out well for you--thanks for your comment! 🙂
Cynthia says
I lined my pan with parchment paper. No oil, no mess!
Jeane' Ridges says
My pan is 9.25x5.25x2.75in. Can I still use this recipe with it?
Kiersten Frase says
You might need to adjust your cooking time slightly, but it should still work.
Jeane' Ridges says
I used premade orange juice and pure maple syrup (cannot stand the smell of molasses), and ommited the milk powder. Baking in the oven right now. Have a feeling I will officially be freeing myself from buying premade bread.
Will line my pan with parchment paper next time because cooking spray is so messy.
Kiersten Frase says
I hope it turned out well for you!