Sunflower Seed and Whole Wheat Bread

 I make homemade bread all the time with 1/2 whole wheat and 1/2 white flour and my family doesn't blink an eye.  This recipe caught my eye because it called for all whole wheat flour (except for 1/4 cup) and didn't call for anything weird.  I decided to use my white wheat flour (see note below for more details), but I was still somewhat skeptical thinking that it would be too heavy and might not raise right with it being 100% whole wheat.   I was wrong though.  Flavor wise it tasted a lot like my normal bread recipe and I loved the texture and crunch the sunflower seeds added.  My kids didn't notice anything was different (other than the sunflower seeds which they liked).  This was a great way to up the nutrition and fiber content without so much as a whimper from my family.   

 

 Click here for printable recipe.

The ingredients:

 Never mind my dog's nose in the picture here.  He is totally obsessed with butter and would not go away while I had it within his sniffing distance.  :)

2 Tbs. active dry yeast

3-1/4 cups warm water (110-115 degrees)

1/4 cup bread flour 

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1/3 cup honey (I used molasses, since it was all I had)

3 tsp. salt

6-1/2 - 7-1/2 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup sunflower seeds ( I think it would be better to double this amount)

3 Tbs. butter, melted

Directions:  In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water.  Add the bread flour, oil, honey, salt, and 4 cups whole wheat flour.  Beat until smooth.  Stir in sunflower kernels and enough remaining flour to form a firm dough.

Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes (I just let mine knead in the Kitchen-Aid).  Place in greased bowl, turning once to grease the top.  Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.

 

Punch dough down; divide into three portions.  Shape into loaves; place in three greased 8-inch by 4-inch loaf pans.  Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes.  Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until golden brown.  Brush with melted butter.  Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.

Enjoy!

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Some notes on whole wheat flour:  

 

  Whole wheat flour has traditionally been ground from hard RED wheat berries(shown on the left).  Its flavor is robust, but it can be a little heavy by itself for baked goods.  When I bake with regular whole wheat flour,  I usually use half regular white all-purpose flour and half whole wheat. 

White whole wheat flour is the same as traditional whole wheat, except that the wheat berry itself is lighter in color and flavor (shown on the right).  Nutritionally it is identical, but you will find that using it will make your baked goods lighter and softer in texture than with traditional whole wheat flour. 

 

Left:  Red (traditional) whole wheat

Right:  White whole wheat

 

I like to buy my 50-lbs. of white whole wheat berries from here.


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