Soft Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread

Here is another great recipe from Healthy Bread In Five Minutes A Day. I still love making bread in this method. It is just so easy and saves so much time. It really takes the work out of making fresh bread.

This bread is true to it's name. It is soft and tender and great for sandwiches or for toast. I have started to half the recipe just because we just don't need to eat that much bread and as all homemade breads, it just does not last that long.

Ingredients

5 cups whole wheat flour

2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 1/2 tablespoons granulated yeast, or 2 packets

1 tablespoon kosher salt

1/4 cup vital wheat gluten

2 1/2 cups lukewarm water

1/2 cup honey

5 large eggs

2/3 cup neutral-flavored oil or unsalted butter, melted

Directions

1. Whisk together the fours, yeast, salt, and vital wheat gluten in a 5-quart bowl, or a lidded (not airtight) food container.

2. Combine the liquid ingredients and mix them with the dry ingredients without kneading, using a strong spoon.

3. Cover (not airtight), and allow the dough to rest at room temperature until it rises and collapses (or flattens on top), approximately 2 hours.

4. The dough can be used immediately after its initial rise, but is easier to work with when cold. Refrigerate it in a lidded (not airtight) container and use over the next 5 days. The flavor will be best if you wait for at least 24 hours of refrigeration.

5. On baking day, lightly grease an 8 1/2x4 1/2-inch nonstick loaf pan. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a 2-pound (cantaloupe-size) piece. Dust the piece with more flour and quickly shape in into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go.

6. Elongate the ball into an oval and place it into the loaf pan; your goal is to fill the pan about three-quarters full. Cover it loosely with plastic wrap. Allow the loaf to rest for 90 minutes (40 if you are using fresh, unrefrigerated dough).

7. Thirty minutes before baking time, preheat the over to 350*F.

8. Place the loaf on a rack near the center of the oven and bake for about 45 to 50 minutes, or until golden brown.

9. Remove the bread from the pan and allow to cool before slicing.

Recipe from the book Healthy Bread In Five Minutes A Day.