My First Homemade Whole Wheat Bread

After my baking class at King Arthur Flour, I felt that I had somewhat conquered my fear of baking.  I came home vowing that I would start to bake more.  And then I got nervous.  It was easy when I was in a professional cooking facility with instructors on hand and a group of supportive bakers.  But could I do this on my own?  I figured that the only way to really get comfortable with baking is to, well, bake!

During our visit, King Arthur Flour generously gave us a swag bag that included not only whole wheat flour but also a fabulous cookbook to go with it - "Whole Grain Baking."

I perused through the book one night and while so many of the recipes sounded so delicious, I found myself intimidated with them.  And then I found a recipe titled, "The Easiest 100% Whole Wheat Bread Ever."  One look at the title and I knew that this was the recipe for me!  On Monday, while my "kitchen sink" spicy vegetable soup was in the slow cooker, I decided to try the recipe out.  I wanted to share the first line of the recipe, which said, "If you've never baked yeast bread, but want to dip your toe into the (lukewarm) water, this is the loaf to start with."  With an opener like that, I was ready to give it a try!

To start, I gathered up all of my ingredients.  I thought I had all of my ingredients on hand but i was actually missing the nonfat dry milk and the molasses so I had to run out to grab these two items.

This recipe calls for the following ingredients:

• 3 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 3 tablespoons molasses
• 1/4 cup non fat dry milk
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 2 teaspoons instant yeast

First, I greased up an 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inch loaf pan.  The recipe noted to grease it well or the bread might stick so I was generous in the use of my baking spray.

I first combined all of the dry ingredients in a large bowl.  At the King Arthur Flour class, our instructor gave a helpful hint to put all the dry ingredients in different sections of the bowl so you remember what you put in already.  When you're not a regular baker like me, this small tip was profoundly helpful.

Once all the dry ingredients were in the bowl, I mixed them up with my hands.  I then added the remaining ingredients - the molasses, water and orange juice.  I mixed the ingredients together well with my hand mixer.

The recipe said to spoon the dough into the loaf pan but my dough was already sticky and I need to scrape it in.  I leveled the dough out in the pan and topped it with a plastic wrap that had also been sprayed with baking spray.

The recipe said to let the dough sit for an hour but I actually let it sit for about an hour and a half.  I wanted to time it right when I put the bread in the oven so that it would be warm for dinner.  After an hour and a half, the dough had risen quite a bit.  The recipe warned that the bread won't dome as it rises so I wasn't too surprised when the dough was still quite level.

I put the loaf pan in the oven at 350 degrees for twenty minutes.  After twenty minutes, I opened the oven and took the loaf pan out.

I made a loose tent over the loaf pan using aluminum foil and put the pan back in the oven for another twenty-five minutes.  After twenty-five minutes, I checked the temperature of the bread and it wasn't quite 190 degrees as the recipe called for.  I put the loaf back in the oven uncovered for an additional five minutes, checked the temperature and it was done.

I let the bread rest in its pan for five minutes.  After five minutes, I used a knife to loosen the bread on its edges.  I then let the bread rest on a platter for about half an hour.  I lightly brushed the bread with melted butter to help keep the crust soft.

When dinner was ready, Bret sliced into this loaf of bread.  I was nervous that it would be hard or chewy but the bread was so soft.

Bret liked his slice plain to dunk with the soup.

But I decided to whip out some the yummy cloumage cheese that the folks at Shy Brothers Farm had given me at the Boston Local Food Festival. 

I was saving this cheese for a special occasion and I couldn't think of a better one than my first homemade yeast bread!

I know it sounds ridiculous but I was so proud of my first attempt at baking bread and I couldn't stop smiling the entire time I was eating it.  I don't know if my fear of baking is fully conquered but I'd say that this was a great confidence booster!

What have you made in the kitchen that you are insanely proud of making?