Honey Oat Bread

One of the homemade breads we make a lot is our Honey Oat Bread.  It is a very delicious and light bread, it is great hot but we also use it  for sandwiches, french toast etc.  If you take it out of the oven when there are hungry mouths about the loaf can disappear by half in no time especially with some butter and homemade jam or honey on hand.

Honey Oat Bread with Sprouted Grains

This recipe also can be boosted up adding some other whole grains or even spices.  I have used this a a base recipe many times including adding sprouted grain, and adding a variety of whole grains. 

This recipe has some uses regular bread flour and a cup of whole oats.  You can also replace some of the bread flour withe some wheat flour to kick up the whole grain content.

Honey Oat Bread

1 Cup + 2 Tbls.  -   Water
2 Tbls.    -    Honey
2 Tbls.   -    Butter (we often use olive oil)
2 1/4 Cups   -    Bread Flour
1 Cup   -    Oats (whole not instant)
2 Tbls.   -    Dry Milk
1 1/2 tsp.   -    Salt
1 3/4 tsp.   -    Active Dry Yeast

Bake at 350 for 40-50 Minutes, will be golden brown.

3 Loafs of Bread

Yesterday I stayed home from church with our youngest who was sick. I decided to make the most of my time at home and do something I enjoy but don't always have time for; Baking.  Most of the bread we eat each week is homemade bread, I like to make it but don't always have the chance.  Shaun-ta' has posted our 50/50 white/wheat bread recipe before, I just posted one of our favorite bread recipes Honey Oat Bread.  Two of the loafs I made today was based on that recipe.

3 Whole Grain Loafs of Bread

So I set forth to make some bread, I ended up with 3 loafs of different breads.  In each I used a different combination of whole grains.  It is really easy to add whole grains to your existing bread recipes.

The first loaf was a loaf of honey oat bread with buckwheat flour and amaranth grain.  I ground up a 1/2 cup of buckwheat groats in a blender, this yielded about 3/4 of a cup of flour, I replaced and equal amount of the bread flour with this flour.  Amaranth is an ancient grain that is very nutritious and also grows very well in the garden too.  Amaranth seeds are tiny seeds about the size of poppy seeds and just as crunchy.  I added 1/2 cup of amaranth to the dough.  We often add millet to our breads including our pizza dough.  It adds a nice crunch, amaranth is very similar in texture.  I did have some troubles with this loaf though, the honey oat bread is kinda fragile, if you let it rise too long it will fall and loose some of it's fluff, though it still tastes great.

The second loaf is a HoneyOatFlax bread was also based on the Honey Oat Bread recipe though instead of adding the 2 Tbls. of oil I added 6 Tbls. of ground flax seed and 2 Tbls. of water.  When using flax seed you can omit the oil in your recipe, Flax seed is very high in oil (the source of linseed oil) and it contains a type of Omega 6 Oils, not the exact same ones you find in Salmon but still good for you in moderation.  I also added 2 Tbls. of whole flax seed to add some texture and crunch.  This loaf turned out really nice, crusty outside, nice and moist inside.  I think the inside texture is even nicer than the oat bread by it self.  You can buy it in many grocery stores or find Ground Flaxseed here.

The third loaf is a 50/50 bread with wheat berries, I used a recipe almost exactly like our 50/50 Bread, the way I changed it up was by adding a 1/2 cup of soaked wheat berries, like you would use for Wheat Berry Porridge.  I had made some for breakfast the other day and had some extra.  This adds a nice chewy bits to the bread.  I think though that using sprouted wheat makes for a better bread, it is sweeter and a bit softer to chew.  I make a loaf recently with 3 types of sprouted grains check it out here: 3 Sprouted Grain Bread.

Most recipes can handle adding a few extra items, adding whole grains not only make for more interesting, delicious but also more nutritious.  Give it a try in your home.

Bread: 3 Sprouted Grain

Yesterday I wrote about my first couple of attempts at sprouting grain and the troubles I had.  Well I squarely won round 3.  In fact I mixed 3 types of grain to sprout together and added them to some bread.

I used Millet, Buckwheat and Red Winter Wheat.

Sprouted grain, Buckwheat, Red Winter Wheat and Millet

We add millet a lot to our bread and pizza dough.  It adds a nice crunch and boosts nutrition.  Millet is not actually a grain but a seed. it packs a lot of nutrition and fiber.  It is very high in Magnesium.
Buckwheat is also not a grain but is a seed from a plant in the Rubarb family.  I grew up eating buckwheat pancakes, which are delicious.  Buckwheat is high in antioxidants.  The seeds have a interesting triangular shape.
Red Winter Wheat is a type of wheat that is planted in fall and harvested the following spring/summer. 

When sprouted each of these "grains" get an additional boost in their nutrition including higher vitamin C, E, Folate, and fiber.  They are also high in antioxidants.  During the sprouting process there is also a decrease in some of the enzymes that make whole grains hard for our bodies to digest.  Basically the process of sprouting converts the parts of the seed to simpler compounds that the young plant can use to grow.

Spouting in a Bag

Sprouting in a Bag  

After my failure with the Jar, I remembered these Norpro Jelly Strainer Bags I used early in the year to strain my hot pepper mash for Hot Sauce.  These are cotton bags with a draw string.
 

1. I placed a 1/4 of a cup of each of the three grains into the bag.   
2. Rinse the grains well
3. Place bag in a bowl of water covering enough to allow for some expansion
4. 8-12 hours later, rinse, and re-rinse till water is clear and no longer cloudy
5. Spin/swing bag around in sink to draw off moisture.
6. Every 8-12 hours re-rinse and drain 

Our 2 year old loved eating the sprouts right out of the bag.

 Sprouts being to Emerge

Sprouts will start to come out after about 2 days, I suggest you taste the sprouts each time you rinse to gain an idea of how the taste changes.    The wheat grows sweater the longer you let it grow.  The buckwheat is really good, it is also a bit sweet and the texture reminds me a bit like small corn kernels.  The millet stays somewhat crunchy which is good for texture.  Most people will use the grain when it is just barely emerged or when it has a tail(root) about the length of the seed.  I let mine go to a midpoint between theses two lengths.  

3 Sprouted Grain Bread

Adding Sprouts to Bread

I used these sprouts in a 50/50 white/wheat bread recipe.  The loaf took a little longer to cook rather than the 45 minutes it will take 50-65 minutes depending on how much  moisture is on the sprouts when you add them in.  The bread was very moist and the sprouted grain added a really nice texture and flavor to the bread.  This was only a 3 sprouted grain bread, next I think I will go for a 6 grain bread.

Homemade Stuffing

A couple of weeks ago I made a couple loaves of bread that just didn't raise well. I am not sure what happened. My sweet little baby girl was helping me so maybe I didn't measure the yeast right, not sure, but I didn't want it to go to waste and I knew that it probably wouldn't get eaten, so I decided to make some homemade stuffing out of it. It worked great, so I thought I would share it with you since Thanksgiving Day is right around the corner.

I started by slicing and cutting my bread into cubes. I tried to make them as uniform as possible, so they would not only look pretty but toast up evenly too. I did a pretty good job (I even fooled Jacob who suspected they were homemade, but wasn't sure because of how evenly cut they were.) Yay, for me!

I put all of my bread crumbs into a large bowl. Then I drizzled them with about 3 to 4 Tb. of Olive Oil and tossed them to coat using my hands. Then I added some seasoning. I used garlic salt, onion powder, sage, rosemary, and some thyme, just typical poultry seasoning, but you can use whatever suits your taste.

I laid my bread crumbs out onto a baking sheet (I only did one loaf at a time). Then I baked them in a 375 degree oven until they were crispy and golden. It took about 30 minutes. Just watch them closely so you don't burn them.

Homemade Whole Grain Stuffing

Yum! They turned out great. Use in your favorite stuffing recipe or they would even be great as croutons. This is a great way to make stuffing more nutritious because you can use whole grain bread and it is also much cheaper than buying it in a box.

Cinnamon Oatmeal Raisin Bread

Cinnamon Oatmeal Raisin Bread

As promised here is another one of our favorite homemade bread recipes:

1 & 1/4 Cups Milk
2 Tb. Butter or Margarine
2 & 1/4 Cups Bread Flour
3/4 Cup Oats, quick or old-fashioned
2 Tb. Brown Sugar
1 & 1/2 tsp. Salt
1 tsp. Cinnamon
1 & 3/4 tsp. Active Dry Yeast
1/2 Cup Raisins

This recipe can be made in your bread machine, your kitchen mixer, or you can make it by hand. You can find the directions here.  Enjoy!

Bread Makin' 101

I think making bread scares some people. I have never felt that way, I have been making bread since I was a young girl. I love homemade bread! It is so yummy! There is nothing that smells better than bread baking in the oven and nothing that tastes better than a slice of warm bread with butter and homemade strawberry jam. I hope to be able to share with you some of our favorite bread recipes.  We make all types of bread along with homemade bagels, pitas, pretzels, and pizza dough. I make homemade bread for three reasons: 1. It is delicious, 2. It saves us money, 3. It is healthier for us. I use a lot of bread machine recipes, because I use my bread machine a lot. I love it. It saves me tons of time. It kneads the bread perfectly and creates the perfect environment for the bread to raise. I never bake my bread in the bread machine, however, I do not like the giant hole that is created in the middle of my bread from the knead bar. Instead I use the dough setting on my machine and then take my dough out, shape it, let it raise a second time, and then bake it. All of the recipes I use on a daily basis are for the bread machine, but you don't have to have a bread machine to make them. All you have to do is follow basic bread making techniques and any of these recipes can be made by hand. Let me show you how easy it is:

Here is your list of ingredients for a 1 & 1/2 pound loaf of 50% Whole Wheat Bread:

1 & 1/4 Cups Warm Water (75 - 85 degrees)
1 Tb. Honey
2 Tb. Butter or Margarine (melted or softened)
1 & 2/3 Cups Bread Flour
1 & 2/3 Cups Whole Wheat Flour
2 Tb. Brown Sugar, packed
2 Tb. Dry Milk
1 & 1/2 tsp. Salt
1 & 3/4 tsp. Active Dry Yeast
 (You can substitute the warm water and dry milk with 1 & 1/4 cups warm milk if you would like.)

I made two batches of bread following the same recipe here they are side by side. On the right is my bread machine pan and on the left is the batch I plan to mix and knead by hand. First you put in the warm water, butter, honey, and yeast.

On top of the water mixture you put your flours, then brown sugar, dry milk, and salt. At this point the bread machine pan is ready to go into the machine. Simply lock it into place and start it on the dough setting. 

Mix together your dough until all of the dry ingredients are incorporated into the wet ingredients. 

You will end up with a ball of dough that should look something like this. 

Your ball of dough will be a bit sticky and this is how you want it. You might need to add a little flour but not much. Just lightly flour your kneading surface, with a couple of tablespoons of flour. You don't want to use too much flour or your bread will become dry.

Knead your bread for at 8 to 10 minutes. To keep your bread from sticking just keep it moving. Use quick motions pulling and pushing the dough and turning it with each motion. 

Once your dough has been kneaded place it back into a lightly oiled bowl, turn it once so that all sides of the dough are covered with oil. Cover with a light towel and place it in a warm, draft free area, and allow it to raise until doubled in size. 

 Here are my two batches of dough side by side, both have raised once. My batch of bread machine dough fell when I took it out of the machine, but that is okay, you punch it down at this point anyway.  Take your dough out of the bowl, punch it down, and shape it into loaves.

Place your shaped loaves into a greased bread pan. I just use some non-stick spray in my pans. Cover your loaf pans with a light towel and allow them to raise until double again.

 Here are my raised loaves side by side. The bread machine loaf is on the right and the loaf I did by hand is on the left. My bread machine loaf raised a bit faster. At this point I popped that one in the oven and allowed the one I kneaded by hand to raise a bit longer.

Homemade Whole Wheat Bread

Bake your bread in a 350 degree oven for about 45 minutes. By the time my bread machine loaf was done the loaf I had kneaded by hand was ready for the oven. Here they are side by side, bread machine on the right and handmade on the left. Easy right! and oh so yummy! and healthy too! - Not a whole bunch of preservatives and junk and made with 50% whole grain flour. Check back for more yummy bread recipes. I will share all of our favorites with you.

As a side note: You can double this recipe and make two loaves at once, but only if you are doing it by hand, a double loaf won't fit in the bread machine. You can also use your kitchen aid mixer to do the work for you.