Homemade Whole Wheat Bread Machine Recipe

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Do you wish you could find a really good whole wheat bread? Bread made with healthy whole grains that is light and fluffy and delicious? Make it yourself! It’s a great basic bread recipe to base your bread making adventures on.

And for more meals you can make with inexpensive pantry staples, check these out.

My kids and family love my bread and hopefully, they are grateful for the extra effort. I know their bodies are better off for it, health is so important. For me, it’s totally worth the trouble.

For quick and easy dinners that are healthy, check this post out.

Healthy bread machine recipes

I find baking in multiple batches and freezing the excess helps me keep on top of feeding 10 people a day here at Little Sprouts. I use the bread maker to mix my homemade whole wheat bread, but I take it out of the machine and put it in loaf pans to rise so I can bake more in a day. To me, it looks nicer as well. It’s an easy breakfast idea kids love as well.

I have a wheat grinder and I purchase wheat berries from a local farmer and grind my own flour. Flour loses its nutrition quickly once it’s ground, so even if you can’t grind it yourself, store your unused flour in the freezer to help retain freshness. Here is the grain mill I use to grind my wheat berries into flour.

Hard wheat is used for making yeast breads such as bread, rolls, buns, bagels and pizza crusts. Soft wheat is more of a pastry flour used for making sweet breads, muffins, cookies, crackers, pancakes, and waffles.

Healthy bread maker recipes

If you are new to whole grains and want to break your family in slowly, you can start with half white flour and half wheat and slowly increase over time as your taste buds change. I recommend using unbleached flour as it retains more nutrients than bleached flour and contains fewer chemicals. Bleaching agents are not something you want to consume if you can help it.

Also, one more note, I use a low gluten wheat because I get organic wheat that has not been modified. Most people like bread that is very light and fluffy, so if you want that texture with organic flour, you will have to add a tablespoon of vital wheat gluten to your flour.

Gluten is the elastic substance in the flour that stretches when the yeast makes bubbles in the mixture so your homemade whole wheat bread will rise and become airy and soft.

Light fluffy whole wheat bread machine recipe

Here are my tried and true standby recipes for most of what I make for my family and my Little Sprouts. When using a bread machine recipe, you just dump the ingredients in the machine in the order the recipe lists them. Also, make sure all of your ingredients are at room temperature.

Set your yeast and eggs out ahead of time to let them warm up. When I mention warm water, I am talking about using the warmest water that will come out of your tap. It works perfectly for me.

Bread machine whole wheat bread

 

 

Whole Wheat Dinner Rolls

Ingredients

• 1 Egg plus enough warm water to make 1 1/2 cups of liquid.
• 1/4 C. Olive oil
• 1/2 C. Raw sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 4 C. whole wheat flour
• 2 1/2 teaspoons quick rise yeast

Instructions

1. Put ingredients in bread maker in order listed above.
2. Set bread maker to dough setting and let it mix until the cycle was complete.
3. Remove dough from the maker and divide in half, then in half again and in half a third time. Take each segment and divide that into three more sections and roll sections into a ball. Place in a greased pan and cover with a damp towel.
4. Let rise until double in size.
5. Bake at 350 for about 20 minutes or until golden brown.

Recipe Notes

If using low gluten flour, add 1 Tablespoon of vital wheat gluten for a soft loaf.

(These make excellent sliders for this bbq pulled pork!)

And speaking of homemade rolls, if you’re cooking Thanksgiving dinner (or any special holiday meal), check out this stress-free Thanksgiving dinner checklist!

Whole Wheat Pizza Crust Dough

• 1 teaspoon quick rise yeast
• 1 1/2 C warm water
• 4 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/3 C. olive oil

Instructions

1. Sprinkle yeast over 1 1/2 cups warm water.
2. Place whole wheat flour, salt, and olive oil in the bread maker.
3. Pour in yeast/water mixture and mix on dough setting until cycle is finished.
4. Coat a separate mixing bowl with a light drizzle of olive oil, and form the dough into a ball. Toss to coat dough in olive oil, then cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and store in the fridge until you need it.
5. It’s best to make the dough at least 24 hours in advance, and 3 or 4 days is even better, according to Ree!
6. I also make it and freeze it.
7. When you are ready to make your pizza, bring the dough to room temperature.
8. Separate dough into two pieces.
9. Roll piece into a ball and roll from the center out on a pizza stone until it reaches the desired size.
10. Roll the edges of the dough to make a ledge to hold the toppings on.
11. Top as desired.
12. Bake at 450 until toppings are cooked and dough is golden brown.

Recipe Notes

If using low gluten flour, add 1 Tablespoon of vital wheat gluten for a soft loaf.

Adapted from Ree Drummond

Do you want even more recipes you can make in your bread maker? Check these out. There is just about everything you can think of here. And check here for some great beginner sourdough bread recipes too.

For another delicious whole grain healthy recipe idea, check out this wonderful homemade granola recipe.