Whole Wheat Bread {Large Batch}

Since receiving my WonderMill, I have been wanting to bake all of my families bread for sandwiches and toast, adding to the fact that I make all of our bagels, pretzels, buns and rolls. The problem I had was that the nice recipes for bread I could find only made 1 or, at the most, 2 loaves of bread. When you have a family of this size 1 loaf of bread lasts 1 meal. Sandwiches may require 1 and 1/2 loaves, depending on how ravenous the family is.

I was walking down the isle at our mega store and I saw cans of Augason Farms vital wheat gluten and dough enhancer. On the back of each can was a different recipe for wheat bread. One was a standard recipe for a bread machine and the other used 11+ cups of flour. BINGO!! I'd found a large batch recipe to try.

I've been wanting to try the dough enhancer and vital wheat gluten anyway, so I bought both cans and headed home. Milling up some fresh flour was my first step, as always. Fresh flour makes such a difference in baking, but you wouldn't have convinced me of that before I started milling my own!

This recipe makes 3 large loaves of whole wheat bread sweetened with honey. It's very soft, chewy and delicious. Another recipe to add to my binder. It's a time saver for me because it means I only have to bake twice a week, maybe only once depending on what is on the menu. It's also a very fast recipe and I think I'm going to try mixing in different flours and goodies (think oats, sunflower seeds, poppy seeds and dried onion pieces, yum!!) the next time I make it. We like "everything" bread, so it'll be a challenge for me to see if I can recreate it.

Whole Wheat Bread
Augason Farms recipe, located on the back of the Dough Enhancer

• 6 cups warm water
• 2/3 cup oil (I used coconut)
• 2/3 cup honey (I used raw blackberry honey)
• 2 tablespoons instant yeast
• 2 tablespoons dough enhancer (find it HERE)
• 1/3 cup vital wheat gluten (find it HERE)
• 2 tablespoons salt
• 11 cups whole wheat flour

In a large bowl, stir together the first 4 ingredients, then add in 2 cups flour, dough enhancer, vital wheat gluten and salt. Blend for 2 minutes. Add the rest of the flour, and more if necessary, to create a nice dough. Firm without being sticky but not too dry either. Mix for 8 minutes. Knead and shape into loaf pans (makes 3 good sized 8x4 bread pans full) Let rise until double and bake at 350 degrees for 30 to 40 minutes, or until golden brown and hollow sounding when the tops are rapped on. Brush with melted butter to create a soft crust, if desired. Cool in pans 5 minutes, turn out onto their sides to cool completely. Yield: 3 loaves.

I'm impressed with both the dough enhancer and the vital wheat gluten. I'll be keeping them in my pantry from now on, they made a definite improvement in both the texture and the rise of the bread. In my opinion, well worth the money!

Oh, and just so you all know- Augason Farms has no idea who I am, I just really enjoyed their product and I wanted you to know about it too. I've provided links directly to their site for your convenience not for monetary gain on my part. :)