Oatmeal Honey Wheat Bread

This bread is amazing. I love making bread and have tried a million recipes for a yummy whole wheat bread. After a few modifications, this one is perfect. I love hint of sweetness from the honey and cinnamon, and the soft texture from the oatmeal.

Often, I make a half recipe, which yields just one 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 loaf - the perfect size for one person! If you want to make a whole batch, you could always pop one in the freezer :)

This bread has oatmeal and wheat flour, making it very hearty. It is sweetened with honey and brown sugar, but you could also use maple sugar, molasses, or whatever sweetener you prefer. I use a mixture of white and whole wheat flour, just because the white helps it rise a bit more. Feel free to adjust the proportions to your taste! Enjoy :)

Oatmeal Honey Wheat Bread

makes two loaves

2 cups boiling water
1 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon Saigon-type cinnamon
1 tablespoon yeast
4 cups Whole Wheat Flour
1 1/2 cups Unbleached All-Purpose Flour

In a large mixing bowl, combine the water, oats, maple sugar, honey, butter, salt and cinnamon. Let cool to lukewarm.

Add the yeast and flours, stirring to form a rough dough. Knead (about 10 minutes by hand, 5 to 7 minutes by machine) until the dough is smooth. Place the dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover the bowl with lightly greased plastic wrap, and allow the dough to rise until doubled in size.

Divide the dough in half, and shape each half into a loaf. Place the loaves in two greased 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch bread pans. Cover the pans with lightly greased plastic wrap and allow the loaves to rise till they've crowned about 1 inch over the rim of the pan, about 1 and 1/2 hours.

Bake the loaves in a preheated 350°F oven for 35 minutes. If the bread starts to brown to fast, place a peice of foil over the top and continue baking. Remove them from the oven when they're golden brown, and the interior registers 190°F on an instant-read thermometer. Yield: 2 sandwich loaves.

(Adapted from King Arthur Flour)

Enjoy!

Hannah