Sunday, April 3, 2011

Here is my favorite bread recipe. This isn't a QUICK 1 HR BREAD. It does take some time for rising but it's so worth it!

This is still a one rise bread but letting it rise more slowly really improves the flavor of the bread.


Make sure you use white wheat and go ahead and buy vital wheat gluten & dough enhancer. They really are keys to light & fluffy bread & rolls.



Nancy's Yummy, Easy Whole Wheat Bread



My friend, Nancy, brought us this great bread when we moved in. It was so great that I went over to her house to find out her "secrets". The secret is that it's easy!
Yields: 5 Loaves


Ingredients

3 1/2 cups Hot tap water (!) (helps offset the cool can of milk)
1 12 oz can Evaporated milk
3 tablespoons Yeast (I like SAF)
2/3 cup Vegetable oil
1 cup Honey (use the same measuring glass as the oil and the honey slides right out)
1 1/2 cups White Bread Flour
3 tablespoons Vital Wheat Gluten
2 tablespoons Dough Enhancer
1 1/2 tablespoons Salt
of Milled Flax Seed (optional) this adds extra nutrition and nice "specks" in the bread
12 cups Whole Wheat Flour (I used WHITE wheat: approx 8 c. wheat = 12 c. flour)


Instructions
Grind your wheat while getting everything else ready. Then, using a Bosch or other heavy duty mixer, combine ingredients Water through white bread flour. Add 6 c. wheat flour.

Mix well, then add rest of flour, vital wheat gluten, dough enhancer, salt and flax seed. Mix well til dough pulls away from side of the bowl. It will be sticky but should pull away from the bowl while mixing. This is pretty critical. It's tempting to add too much flour at this point. Wait and watch to see if the dough will pull away. If it's just too wet, then add more flour but let it mix for a minute or 3!

Set timer for 8-10 minutes and knead the dough according to your machine's setting. If you have to add more flour, you'll need to knead it longer to develop the new flour's gluten so make sure it's ready for this step before setting timer.

To tell if the gluten is developed enough (& you're done kneading),flour hands & pinch off a bouncy ball size ball of dough. Roll in hands to form ball then using your middle fingers of both hands, try to stretch the center of the dough out as far as you can before it breaks. You're trying to form a very thin dough "window". The dough is finished kneading when you can get it really thin and see light through it. Call me if this is too confusing!

Dump out dough onto an oiled counter and spread with your hands. Form into a long log and then divide it into 5 loaves. Either roll out wth a rolling pin and roll up cinnamon roll fashion OR simply form a loaf with your hands. Place in bottom of greased loaf pan. Let rise in a warm spot on your kitchen counter until doubled in size. Cover pans with damp cloth. This takes longer than rising dough in a warmed oven, but this slower rise takes away the harsh yeasty flavor quick-rise bread has. You can even rise overnight in the fridge and bake in the am.

Bake in preheated 350° for 25-30 minutes, then remove from pans and let cool completely before slicing (if you can wait that long!).

Given to Kristine Hipps by Nancy Whyte

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1 comment:

  1. Thanks, I'll give it a whirl. I've heard that the Vital Wheat Gluten is great, but havn't used it. I'm confused on the ingre. where it says 8 c wheat= 12 flour. Is that pre ground?

    ReplyDelete