Quick Light Wheat Sandwich Bread
In just three hours, you have fresh fluffy bread that is 50% whole wheat. This sandwich bread is perfect for beginners and experienced bakers alike who are looking for a quick and easy process that uses instant yeast.
- Prep time
- 30 min
- Cook time
- 45 min
- Yield
- 4 servings
- Difficulty
- MEDIUM
Ingredients
- 300 g bread flour (2 1/4 cups + 1 Tbsp)
- 300 g fresh-milled yecora rojo wheat berries or any whole wheat flour (2 1/4 cups + 1 Tbsp)
- 380-420 g milk, warmed to about 100°F, see the recipe notes for more info on milk quantity, substitutes, and temperature (approx 1 2/3 - 1 3/4 cups)
- 30 g avocado or light olive oil (2 Tbsp)
- 30 g honey (1 1/2 Tbsp)
- 11 g salt (2 tsp)
- 5 g instant yeast (1 1/2 tsp)
- optional, to brush on the dough just before baking: 1 beaten egg (shiny) or 1 tbsp milk (matte)
- optional, to brush on the crust after baking: 1 tsp butter or oil
Instructions
- 1
Mixing and First Rise
- 2
In a large bowl, mix all of the ingredients except the crust wash. Start with the lower end of the range for milk quantity and add more as needed for the dough to be pliable but not wet/goopy. You can use a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment or mix by hand using a Danish dough whisk or spatula.
- 3
Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled bowl or straight-walled container, ideally with measuring marks. Note the level of the dough and let it rise until it has doubled, about 1 hour. The timing may vary due to many factors, so always watch the dough and not the clock.
- 4
Shaping
- 5
Lightly grease/oil your loaf pan.
- 6
Scrape the dough out of the bowl onto a floured work surface and shape it. You can make a simple rolled shape, a lobed shape, or a braid. (See YouTube for braiding videos.)
- 7
Simple Rolled Shape: Pat the dough into an 8x10 inch rectangle. Starting at one of the 8-inch edges, roll the dough into a tube. Place in the pan, seam side down.
- 8
Lobed Shape: Divide the dough in four pieces, approx 270g each. Roll each piece into a loose ball. Use the heel of your palm to flatten each ball into an oblong shape about 4" wide for a standard loaf pan and 3" wide for a Pullman pan. Starting at one of short edges, roll each oblong into a tube. Place the four tubes in the loaf pan seam side down, alternating the direction of the swirls to encourage upward rise of the dough.
- 9
Final Proof
- 10
Cover and let the dough double in size again, about 30-60 minutes.
- 11
About 15 minutes before you estimate the final proof will be done, start preheating your oven to 375°F.
- 12
In a medium USA pan, the final proof is complete when the center of the dough is about an inch over the top of the pan. In a small Pullman pan, the dough will barely crest over the edge of the pan.
- 13
Baking
- 14
Brush the top of the dough with egg or milk wash and load the pan into the oven on the middle rack.
- 15
Bake at 375°F for 40 minutes in the pan, then drop the oven temperature to 350°F and bake another 5-10 minutes with the bread directly on the rack. If you want a lighter color crust, loosely cover the top of the bread with aluminum foil about 20 minutes into the bake. When the baking is complete, the bread should have an internal temperature of at least 190°F.
- 16
Brush the still-warm crust with butter or oil if desired to keep it soft. Try to let the bread cool for about 2 hours before slicing but it's okay if you can't wait.
- 17
Storage
- 18
Store the bread in beeswax wrap, a plastic bag, bread box, or under a bowl on a cutting board. You can also slice and freeze the bread in a bag.