BEST WHOLE WHEAT BREAD RECIPE
My Mom put on her apple apron, pulled out the flour containers, and kneaded homemade bread like nobody's business. There was nothing like the smell of homemade bread straight out of the oven. I would run home from school much faster on those days when my Mom was baking homemade bread. I slathered the homemade bread with sweet cream butter and honey or berry jam. To this day it is still one of the most comforting foods that always reminds me of home.
I haven't carried on my Mom's tradition of weekly homemade bread because I have always said that it is way too time consuming. I still love to make it and feel a lot of satisfaction when it comes out of the oven but needed to find an easier way. Let me introduce to you the power of one hour bread!
Our good friend, Shannon Lundin, has finally shared her top secret bread recipe! After not being able to eat gluten, she found that she could eat homemade whole wheat bread made from scratch with zero issues. It is such an amazing discovery and she is sharing her whole wheat bread recipe with all of us. I called her and asked if I could share this with my readers and she was happy to share.
After trying this bread in Texas, I couldn't wait to follow her recipe and try it at home. I halved her best homemade one hour whole wheat bread recipe. I was in shock that it only took ONE HOUR to make two loaves of homemade bread. Amazing! It is incredible that you can make homemade bread start to finish in one hour.
This Best Homemade One Hour Whole Wheat Bread is made with such simple ingredients -- whole wheat flour, warm water, yeast, honey, oil and salt. This bread is filled with all natural ingredients and no sugar! It is healthy, hearty, and delicious.
TIPS on MAKING the BEST HOMEMADE ONE HOUR WHOLE WHEAT BREAD:
- Let your YEAST PROOF. The key is to use very warm water (about 110 degrees). Adding honey to the yeast helps it proof even faster. Let the yeast proof for at least 5 minutes. Remember to always use fresh yeast. You will know the yeast is working when it starts to form a creamy foam on the surface.
- Use WHOLE WHEAT FLOUR or half white bread flour and half whole wheat flour. If you have a wheat grinder, you can grind your own wheat. If not, look for organic whole wheat flour. You can always use half white flour and half whole wheat flour if you like a lighter bread.
- Use a STAND MIXER. This bread recipe is easiest with a stand mixer such as a Bosch. I love my Bosch mixer because it makes this bread so much easier! This is a huge time saver as you knead the bread for 10-12 minutes in the mixer. It saves you from doing it yourself! If you don't own a stand mixer, you can knead the bread dough by hand. Click here to get a good deal on a Bosch mixer.
- Let RISE in WARM OVEN. This expedites the rising process and cuts the time in half. Set the oven to about 200 degrees and let the bread rise for approximately 20 minutes or until double in size. Here are my favorite loaf pans.
- BAKE until GOLDEN BROWN. Heat the oven to 350 degrees and bake until golden on the outside. Remove from oven and spread butter over top of loaves to give moisture and shine.
Once you remove the hot homemade whole wheat bread from the oven, remove from pans and spread with butter and jam.
- 3 Cups Warm Water approximately 110 degrees
- 1 Tablespoon Active Dry Yeast
- 2/3 cup Honey
- 1/3 cup Oil plus a little extra for hands
- 7 1/2 cups Whole Wheat Flour may use half whole wheat/half white flour
- 1 Tablespoon Salt
- Butter to spread on top of bread
- Heat oven to warm about 200 degrees.
- Place warm water in large mixing bowl. Add yeast and stir. Stir in honey and let proof (start to form a creamy foam) for 5 minutes.
- Add oil, flour, and salt. Begin by adding 7 cups of flour. Start to mix using the dough hook. Add remaining 1/2 cup of flour until dough pulls away from sides of mixing bowl. Using Bosch or Kitchenaid, knead for 10 minutes at medium-high speed. If you don't own a stand mixer, you can knead by hand.
- Place a little oil on hands and shape into two bread loaves. Spray loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray. Put pans in a warm oven to let rise until double -- about 20 minutes.
- Once bread has raised, turn oven to 350 degrees. Leave bread in oven and set timer for 25 minutes.
- Check bread to see if it is golden brown. Once bread is done, remove from oven and spread butter all over warm loaves. Let cool for several minutes before removing from pan.
- Spread butter and jam or honey on warm bread.
- May freeze bread or eat within 2 days.
I can't wait to see your pictures of your Best Homemade One Hour Whole Wheat Bread. Tag me using #modernhoney or @modern_honey on instagram. I would love to see your creations!
Amy says
Just making this now. Had to leave it to rise for double time but maybe that has to do with being in Newfoundland! I'm so excited about this bread.
Matt says
I also did this. It doubled, but took longer than expected. Relatively low humidity where I am.
Wanda says
Hi loved this recipe. The nutritional information that you have, is it for the whole receipe .... whole loaf or a slice of the loaf?
Thanks
Bill says
I made this bread for the first time today I made a few alterations. One I used 3 1/2 cups whole wheat and then added white to get the consistency I desired I let mine rise the old fashioned way , putting it in pans for the second rise. Make sure you are using 8 1/2 inch pans and not larger pans. I used white flour above to ensure quality rising. Last, I used an instant thermometer to ensure doneness. I took the bread out when it hits 190 degrees. I picked this recipe for it's ease with ingredients. It's a winner
Matt says
Easiest way to ruin this is to kill the yeast with water that’s too hot. Ensure that it’s no more than 100 degrees F to maximize your chance of success.
Damien says
105 degrees to 115 degrees is optimal, if you start at 110 degrees, the water stays warm enough for the whole 5 minutes to get a better rise. This is just my experience, but I also use dry yeast. Live yeast is best at 95 degrees.
Angela Bales says
Great flavor, but didn't rise. I did substitute agave for honey. Too hot water.... dense & heavy. Will try again with cooler water.
Katherine D Hicks says
This bread came out incredible. I did it all by hand- no tools or disposables. I made one loaf in a loaf pan and one large roll on a sheet pan. we devoured it over the last 4 days.
I'm interested in trying to make bagels out of the same recipe or with slight modification, because such versatility in one recipe would enhance it even more. I will experiment but appreciate any pointers. thanks!
Bonnie says
This recipe was so easy! I cut the recipe in half to see how it would turn out. Delicious!! I used 1/2 bread flour & 1/2 White whole wheat flour, half the amount of salt & honey & it was perfect. Very dense and sliced beautifully. The only problem is the calories for 1 slice is 184??
34 carbs-4g fiber=30 net carbs. Am I reading this correctly? If so, this is not good for my diabetic hubby. But I love it!
Deanell Tacha says
I made this exactly as the recipe said, but it is still in the oven at 200 trying to rise. I have now doubled the rising time and it is still not twice the size. The dough was very sticky. Like one of the other commentators, I don't like to add more flour because of the density of the dough. Don't know what the issue is. I will let it rise a bit longer and bake, but not very happy with this result.
Lulu says
The dough did not double in size at 200 degrees for me either but when i turned the temp to 350 after the specified 20 min, it rose nicely and came out perfectly.
Jamie says
I made this today with 100% whole wheat pastry flour (Bob's red mill), increased the yeast to 4 tsp, replaced 1 c of water with 1 c scalded whole milk, and used 1/3 cup against and 1/3 c honey for the sweeteners. After I proofed the yeast in the water, milk, honey, and dismay, I added all the remaining ingredients and let in mix until combined and then let it rest fifteen minutes before kneading it for 5-6 minutes. I then separated it and rolled it into loaves and let it ride until in was about 1 inch over the edge of my bread pan. It baked for about 30 minutes before it was done.
Turned out delicious and rose beautifully!
Took about 2 hours the way I did it, but that's at least 1 /2 hours faster than my regular recipe and yielded 2 loaves instead of one!
Will make again!
Valerie Bowie says
I use half white and half whole wheat flour and it is amazing! This is one of the best recipes I have ever discovered!
M says
Recipe simply states "oil". What kind of oil?
Lulu says
I used Extra virgin olive oil but I believe bread recipes can use canola or other types of oil too.
PDX Tami says
Perfect bread recipe, so quick and easy! Followed recipe exactly as directed. For some clarity, when bread is done rising, leave loaves in oven, set oven to 350 degrees and set a timer for 35 minutes (it takes about 10 minutes for oven to get to 350 degrees plus 25 minutes to bake at 350). Also, if you have a standing KitchenAid mixer, mix at no more than #2 speed or you will burn out your motor.
Heather says
What she she said was to turn the oven to 350, leave the loaves in the oven, and set a timer for 25 minutes. Ovens differ, so she said check whether they're done and bake until they're golden brown. While it may take 35 minutes in your oven, it's better to let people check at 25 minutes than overbake their bread.
KIMBERLY McHale says
I had no idea bread with wheat could be this good - or this easy! I am out of all purpose and bread flour and all the stores are sold out. I googled and found this recipe and hold good bread, this was so easy and SO good. I did half the recipe and I used a big scoop of sour cream instead of the oil, perfection! THANK YOU
Katie says
Have you used instant yeast before with this recipe? Do you use the same amount - 1TB?
Erin says
I have tried a number of recipes over the last several weeks and this one is a winner! My loaves rose beautifully and did not collapse and the bread itself is delicious. I’m going to try turning the same recipe into hamburger buns today!:)
Cecilia says
My eyesight seems to be failing me in my old age. I could not find the size pans we’re supposed to use anywhere. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks
Cheryl says
If making one loaf instead of 2 do you the same amount of yeast
Aimee S. says
Absolutely perfect. I've made it about 10 times now and it's been great every time. Some substitutions that I've made are a cup of wheat bran for a cup of flour, added ground flaxseed and substituted milk for water. All have been delicious! Thanks for this easy recipe!
J says
What kind of oil?
Heather says
Whatever kind of liquid cooking oil you like to use. Vegetable, canola, olive, avocado...
Gail says
Yum!! Easy and delicious. I used half white (King Arthur) and half whole wheat flour, a bit less honey and olive oil, halved the recipe to make 1 loaf in case I didn’t like it. Well it is beautiful in appearance and delicious. Start to finish only took under an hour- definitely new go to bread recipe!
Kels says
Making it now, but it's not looking right. It doesn't look like dough. It looks like a cake batter or something. Worried, I just wasted 7 cups of flour... and a half...
Allie Cuno says
Love the texture of this bread--great recipe! However, I did have to add more flour than it called for, and had to add 5-10 minutes to oven time or else it came out doughy in the middle.
To make more nutritious, I added 1/2 c. wheat germ, 2 T ground flax seed, and 1 T. ground chia seed. I also added 1 t. dough enhancer. Just add any or all these ingredients as part of the flour mixture.
Steffanie says
So this is the second time I've made this bread and a bit perplexed. I followed the recipe except for having a mixer and kneaded the dough by hand. However to get the dough to bread consistency (where it wasn't loose and sticking to everything) I had to use an additional 2 cups of flour. Also my bread has taken longer to rise (about 40 minutes) and has come out super sense. It tastes yummy but just doesn't have the fluffy texture I'm use to bread having. Any suggestions would be helpful on how to get it more fluffy and not sooo sticky!! I also am wondering because I'm using olive oil if that has something to do with the stickiness and extra flour required?
Danette J Van Dusseldorp says
I had the same issue with having to add additional flour. I'm hoping it comes out well in the end, still waiting.
I didn't alter the recipe otherwise except that I halved the honey, so if anything I would have expected to need less flour instead of more.
Rona says
i bake breads for a long time and i know that the difference between whole flour and white flour is the ability to absorb water, whole flour needs more water, so if it's sticky you might have used white regular flour, try to replace with whole flour or put some less water. good luck!
Wren Fair says
This wasn't a winner for me. I think the rise time is too short as my yeast was definitely alive and active before going into the warm oven to prove. It was rising on it's own on the cutting board before I put it in. I usually just let it rise at room temperature for longer and have had much better results. Despite leaving the bread in at 350 for a full 20 minutes longer than instructed, it was still dense and under baked inside. Will keep searching for a whole wheat bread recipe.
Amy B. says
I don't know how many times I have made this recipe, but my two loaves of bread come out perfectly each time. With covid, we had to cut down on how much we made this due to a flour and yeast shortage so we opted to get store bought bread instead. It just isn't the same in any way. I'm new to baking bread and this is one I'm going to keep using as much as I can. Thank you so much for sharing this!
RAQUEL JOYNER says
I am trying this recipe now, but the video uploaded in the page is for a cookie. Do you have this recipe video?
Anna says
I started making this bread on a dare from my husband. I have made few mistakes along the way until I got it just the way I like it. I split the flour between whole wheat and white bread flour because white bread flour has more protein and helps with the proofing. I use instant yeast instead of active dry yeast. ( I learned the hard way the difference between the two) Instant yeast you need not proof just add it to the flour. I let it rise for about 2- 3 hours covered with a clean hand towel. I prefer to see 1/2” rise from the rim of the pan and then I bake it as directed. It comes out perfect. I have not bought bread from a store in over a year . This recipe is the best. Thank you for sharing your passion for baking.
DC says
Delicious and easy!
MARY E MCINTOSH says
This is the best homemade bread I've ever made. Used all whole wheat flour and it was perfect. I love that this recipe is so fast compared to most. and still so good. Thank you!
annie says
VIDEO PLEASE!!!
NOT of cookies, but video of BREAD 🥖
PLEASE!,,,,,
Mary says
Why aren’t there answers to these questions? I have the same ones? Especially about the sticky dough
Anne Kerr says
My family devoured these loaves. It took twice as long for the rise but I didn't mind that. It's delicious.
Mel Romanczak says
Made your bread today. I used half wheat and half all purpose flour. Absolutely the very best!! Thank you so much.
Diane Dittrich says
I'm sorry, but I am leaving my honest opinion. I made this exactly to directions, yeast was good, rose in oven good, but it was soooo dense and heavy. I hope the birds enjoy it. I will be sticking to the old fashioned way of making bread.
Anita says
I made this bread today and it turned out perfectly!! I cut the recipe in half (just wanted one loaf), used olive oil and 100% whole wheat. Your directions were easy and accurate. Thank you.
Rona says
haven't tried it yet but the trick i've learned to check if the water is cool enough is by putting your finger in the warm water and count to ten, if you're comfortable with the temp it's ok, if it's too hot for you wait a bit longer for the water to be cooled a bit more.
Janet Goff says
Perfect! Loved this recipe, thank you! I love the texture of the bread, it doesn't fall apart, freezes well, and most importantly it's delicious.
Wendy says
This bread is so delicious! I used regular store brand whole wheat flour and hand kneaded the sticky mess for a full 10 minutes. The only change I had to make was the bake time since at 25 minutes my loaves were still raw inside. Could have been due to my rise not doubling in size. I just left it for 10 minutes and called it good. The final baking time was a little over 45 minutes to get it to an internal temperature of 190. But I love the results! I will definitely be making this again.
Lizzie says
Hi Heather,
I also tried this recipe and it bakes perfectly! However, i was confused about the temperature whether it is F or C when it says 350 degrees. I preheated the oven at 200 degrees per the indicator on my oven per turning the knob clockwise and according to the recipe to proof for 20min but after it says turn temp to 350 degrees. I felt it was too hot for a bread. So i reckoned it must be Fareinheight the recipe is referring? So i set down the temperature to 175 degrees Celsius for 25min and it has good golden brown result with middle part cracked. I think to be safe, this recipe should have indicated carefully whether using F or C and i can go back to my Westinghouse oven's manual to be sure indicator is also either F or C.
Thanks,
Lizzie