Ingredients

The following ingredients have 20 Servings
  • 1 cup (8 oz) warm (not hot) water
  • 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
  • 1 cup milk - whole, 2%, or skim (I used 2%)
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 2 tablespoons canola oil
  • 2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for kneading
  • 2 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1 tablespoon salt

Instruction

  • Pour the water into a mixing bowl and sprinkle the yeast over top. Let this stand for a few minutes until the yeast has dissolved. Stir in the milk, honey, and oil.
  • Add two cups of all-purpose flour and the salt, and stir to combine the ingredients.
  • Add the rest of the all-purpose and whole wheat flours. Stir to form a shaggy dough.
  • Let this stand for 20 minutes to give the flour time to absorb the liquid.
  • Knead the dough by hand for 8-9 minutes. If the dough is sticky add extra flour a tablespoon at a time until it is no longer sticky. The dough is kneaded when it is smooth, forms a ball without sagging, and springs back when poked.
  • Clean out the mixing bowl and film it with a little oil. Form the dough into a ball and turn it in the bowl to coat it with oil.
  • Cover the bowl and let the dough rise in a warm spot until nearly doubled in bulk, about 1 - 1 and 1/2 hours. This dough won't double quite as dramatically as other recipes, but the dough should look visibly puffed.
  • Sprinkle a little flour on the counter and turn the dough out on top. Divide the dough in two and shape each half into a loose ball. Let the balls rest for 10 minutes.
  • Grease two loaf pans or film them with non-stick cooking spray. Shape each ball of dough into a loaf and transfer to the loaf pans. It's important that the surface of the loaves be stretched taut; this helps them rise and prevents an overly-dense interior. Let the loaves rise a second time until they start to dome over the edge of the pan, 30-40 minutes.
  • Heat the oven to 425°F about halfway through the second rise.
  • Slash the tops of the loaves with a serrated knife and put them in the oven. Immediately turn down the heat to 375°F and bake for 30-35 minutes. Finished loaves will be dark golden-brown and sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.
  • Remove the loaves from the pans and let them cool completely before slicing.