Description
A simple and delicious recipe for the perfect homemade 100% whole wheat bread loaf. It’s great for sandwiches, toast, and beyond!
Ingredients
Sponge
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 1 cup warm water
- 1/4 cup maple syrup (or liquid sweetener of choice)
- 1 tablespoon active dry yeast
Remaining ingredients
- 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon water
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 1/2 cups Bob’s Red Mill Whole Grain Whole Wheat Flour
- 1 tablespoon vital wheat gluten (optional but recommended for a higher rise)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
Topping (optional)
- 2–3 tablespoons rolled oats (or sunflower seeds, flax seeds or a mix of the three)
Instructions
- In a large mixing bowl, mix together all of the ingredients for the sponge until a smooth batter is formed. Set it aside to activate for 15 minutes. You will know when it is finished when it bubbles and almost doubles in size.
- Once it has activated, add in the water and olive oil and mix through. Add in the remaining whole wheat flour, vital wheat gluten, and salt, and mix with a standing mixer or a wooden spoon until a smooth dough is formed. Add more water (1 tablespoon at a time) if it is too dry or add more flour (1 tablespoon at a time) if it is too sticky. Once you have reached a smooth dough, knead it for 10 minutes with a dough hook or by hand on a clean work surface.
- Grease a bread pan. Roll the dough into a long log and place it into the bread pan. Spread it around as best you can to be sure it is mostly even on both sides (it does not necessarily have to touch the sides of the pan).
- If you are topping the bread: Spray a light layer of water on top of the dough. Sprinkle on 2-3 tablespoons of rolled oats, pressing them in lightly with your hand to allow them to stick. Spray on another thin layer of water on top of the oats to ensure that they stick.
- Place the bread pan in a warm area and allow the bread to rise for 1 hour, or until doubled in size. We turn our oven light on (while the oven is off) and place the bread on the top rack to rise. We just make sure to remove it before we start preheating the oven.
- Preheat the oven to 425°F. Once heated, place the bread into the oven and bake for 35-40 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Remove the bread from the oven and cool completely before slicing. It is important to allow the bread to cool as it still continues it’s baking process as it cools down on the counter. Slicing it too early will disrupt that process and may result in a doughy, gummy, and sticky texture.
- Slice as thin or as thick as you would like it and serve as desired. We love ours toasted with a smear of vegan butter or as sandwich bread.
Notes
- We have used both a 6 x 11.75″ pan and a 5 x 9″ pan and both worked well. The smaller pan will yield a taller bread.
- If you are not going to eat the loaf right away, we recommend slicing it and freezing it in a freezer safe bag, making sure to press out all of the air before sealing. When you are ready to eat it, don’t let it defrost. Instead, add the frozen slices into a toaster and toast as desired OR pop them into an oven preheated to 325°F for about 5-7 minutes.
- Prep Time: 1 hour 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Vegan, Whole-Grain
Keywords: Bread, Whole Grain, Whole Wheat, Vegan, Sandwiches
This recipe is fantastic! I used King Arthur 100% whole grain flour. With this flour I recommend using 1/2 cup less than the recipe calls for. I’ll try Bob’s next time.
★★★★★
What size bread pan is supposed to be used here?
We have used both a 6 x 11.75″ and a 5 x 9″ and both worked well. The smaller pan will yield a taller bread.
I didn’t see the code. I like adding seeds in the dough itself, really good. Do you have to use Bob’s Red Mill, bc being on a budget I use cheaper flour. Love you guys!
Thanks
Use “SSV20” for 20% off <3 you can use a cheaper flour if it is better for your budget but we do want to add that higher quality flour will yield higher quality bread! 🙂
Flavor is good but I recommend using 1/2 – 3/4 cup less flour than is called for. If you use the full amount, the bread comes out very close textured and dense.
★★★★
Hello!
Thank you for this recipe!! I have been looking for a 100% whole wheat bread recipe for a while and I didn’t like the outcome of any… until this one.
Super easy, moist, great flavor.
Loved it!
★★★★★
We are so happy to hear that, thanks for sharing!
Is it possible to use this recipe for buns? I have not been able to find a decent wheat bun for my most delicious vegan Sloppy Joes.
Hi Bobi! We haven’t tried this bread out with sloppy joe’s ourselves but it would definitely work!! 🙂
Thank you for this wonderful recipe. It came out just like in the pictures. I used Organic whole wheat flour from Whole Foods Market. I baked in a pan that has 1.5 lb capacity that measures 9″L x 5.25″W x 2.63 “H inside the pan.
★★★★★
Thank you for this super yummy whole wheat bread recipe!! I’ve been looking for a long time for ALL wheat bread and this one works! It’s delicious, rises really well, has great texture, and is easy! The only thing that I would add is that it must be made for a stand up mixer to get all the flour in. I’ve tried your recipe several times and have yet to get all the flour in! There’s always about 3/4 c left. Nevertheless, even without this, it’s great! (you look so cute perched on your countertop! and I like the photo of you and your honey!)
★★★★
Is the olive oil with high cooking temperature not a problem?
In this recipe it works well! 🙂
This is great! Thanks!
Hi Jasmine, I saw that in the Youtube video, you put in 2 1/2 cups of flour, but in the written recipe, it calls for 3 1/2 cups of water. I made the bread using the same amount written here, and had to add a lot more water to it. Could it be a mistake in the written recipe? Thank you!
The recipe written in this post is correct! I am not sure which video you are referring to? I checked it and there are no measurements in the video.
You don’t say it but there is a full cup less in the video. I had to add more water.
We sometimes cut videos a certain way to make them flow better. The written recipe should be correct 🙂
I love this recipe – thank you, thank you.
★★★★★
How much fiber is in this bread? Excited to try it out!
Hey Mary,
There’s approximately 2.6g of dietary fiber per slice.
Bread tasted great and nice and moist. I daresay, better than what I bought at the supermarket last week. Definitely going to do it again. Added flax and chia seeds. Didn’t need to add the gluten…haha didn’t have anyway.
★★★★★
[…] Homemade 100% Whole Wheat Bread […]
Hi,
I am going to try this recipe as a friend recommended it. I want to add mix seeds in dough itself. At which stage should I add them? Do I neec to soak them before adding? Please help!
That’s a great idea! I would add them in during the dough mixing process before the rise. From the research I’ve done, you can soak the seeds overnight or in boiling water for 30 mins to an hour. Hope this helps!
Thanks for quick response Chris! Highly appreciate it.
One more Q – I have Instant Yeast. Can I replace 1 tablespoon active dry yeast with exact 1 tablespoon Instant yeast?
In that case, I can directly add it to flour and gluten, right?
We haven’t tried this with instant yeast, so it’s hard to say. Sorry about that!
thank you so much for this recipe and video – I have been too scared to try making my own bread, but this loaf turned out perfectly! I didn’t have wheat gluten so I went without and it still came out really tall and full.
★★★★★
Yes yes love this bread ????
★★★★★