King Arthur Classic 100% Whole Wheat Bread
on Nov 25, 2011, Updated Jun 06, 2024
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King Arthur classic 100% whole wheat bread is the perfect loaf for all the favorite sandwiches and toast that you and your family love!
Homemade bread, anyone? In all my years of blogging, baking, and cooking, one of the most common questions I hear again and again is some variation of how to not ruin bread. Sometimes things get a little wonky when bread baking ensues. Things like the temperature of the room and the age of the yeast and flour play big parts in a successful loaf of bread.
But let me tell you, this homemade whole wheat bread recipe is one that I’d even trust my kiddos to make. It’s really that easy. Sure, there’s some kneading and some waiting for the dough to rise. And yes, you’ll want to keep an eye on it when it bakes. But this recipe is great for a perfect bread that requires little to no effort.
Table of Contents
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Whole wheat bread is a hearty side for any soups or stews.
- This is a super easy bread that is hard to mess up. If you’ve made bread before and there always seemed to be problems or things that went wrong, this is the recipe for you to make a good loaf right.
- All the ingredients can be kept on hand in a well-stocked pantry.
Recipe Ingredients
- Vegetable oil
- Honey — molasses or maple syrup works too!
- King Arthur Premium 100% Whole Wheat Flour
- Instant yeast — or 1 packet of active dry yeast dissolved in 2 tablespoons of the water in the recipe
- Nonfat dried milk
See the recipe card below for full information on ingredients and quantities.
How To Make Classic Whole Wheat Bread
- Combine all of the ingredients, and stir until the dough starts to leave the sides of the bowl.
- Knead until smooth and supple, adding additional flour if necessary.
- Allow the dough to rise till puffy, and then shape it into a log.
- Allow the bread to rise again, and then bake
Recipe FAQs
Whole wheat bread is generally thicker and denser than fluffy white bread because whole wheat flour has far less gluten than white flour. I really love the texture of whole wheat bread because it is such a hearty loaf and holds up well to toppings.
No, I use 2 1/2 teaspoons of instant yeast or simply a packet of active dry yeast dissolved into a couple tablespoons of the required water for the recipe.
According to All Recipes, whole wheat, spelt, oat, rye, and pumpernickel flour are the healthiest flours to use in bread. Check out my healthy homemade rye bread recipe for another hearty bread.
Knead the dough for about 6 to 8 minutes by hand or using a stand mixer.
Expert Tips
- This whole what loaf makes an excellent sandwich bread!
- Double this recipe to make 2 loaves, as this bread keeps well and also freezes and thaws beautifully.
- See my post on how to make homemade bread for more details and tips.
- I love serving this delicious hearty bread with soup, like Classic Chicken Noodle Soup and this quick and easy Instant Pot Broccoli Cheese Soup.
More Bread Recipes To Consider
Homemade Bread
100% Whole Wheat Bread Recipe
Salads
Homemade Croutons
Easy Appetizers
Bosco Sticks Recipe
Homemade Bread
Soft Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread
Did you make this recipe? Leave a ⭐️ review and share it on Instagram, Facebook, or Pinterest!
King Arthur Classic 100% Whole Wheat Bread
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water
- 1/4 cup vegetable oil
- 1/4 cup honey, molasses, or maple syrup
- 3 1/2 cups King Arthur Premium 100% Whole Wheat Flour
- 2 1/2 teaspoons instant yeast, or 1 packet active dry yeast dissolved in 2 tablespoons of the water in the recipe
- 1/4 cup nonfat dried milk
- 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients, and stir until the dough starts to leave the sides of the bowl.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface, and knead it for 6 to 8 minutes, or until it begins to become smooth and supple. If you don’t want to do this by hand, a stand mixer works great too. This dough should be soft, yet still firm enough to knead. Add additional flour, if necessary.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl, cover it, and allow the dough to rise till puffy, but not necessarily doubled in size, about 1 to 2 hours, depending on how warm your kitchen is.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly oiled work surface, and shape it into an 8-inch log. Place the log in a lightly greased loaf pan, cover the pan loosely with lightly greased plastic wrap, and allow the bread to rise for about 1 to 2 hours, or until the center has crowned about 1 inch above the rim of the pan. Toward the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- Bake the bread for 35 to 40 minutes, tenting it lightly with aluminum foil after 20 minutes to prevent over-browning. The finished loaf will register 190 degrees F. on an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center.
- Remove the bread from the oven, and turn it out of the pan onto a rack to cool. Rub the crust with a stick of butter. Cool completely before slicing. Store the bread in a plastic bag at room temperature.
Notes
- This recipe comes from the King Arthur Flour Whole Wheat Baking cookbook, and it’s a great one.
- See my post on how to make homemade bread for more details and tips.
- You can double this recipe with great success.
- Whole wheat bread is generally thicker and denser than fluffy white bread because whole wheat flour has far less gluten than white flour.
Can I use this recipe in a Bread Machine?
It should work great! Will you let us know if you make it and how it turns out?
Thank you Melissa, I have my whole wheat bread in the oven and I think everything is coming out wonderfully!! I can show a photo if possible.
Why do you need to add the dry milk? Thank you.
It improves the texture! Makes it softer.
Can you substitute liquid milk instead of dry milk in thisxrecioe
This would be perfect to bake this weekend! Thanks for Sharing!
Do you think this recipe would work without the milk? My littlest guy can’t have any dairy products.