There were times growing up when money was really tight and my mom would make this bread to save money. Later on, though we could afford store-bought bread, some of my family members faced some health challenges, so we returned to this recipe. In my home, I made this recipe to help my daughters’ health as well!
When my daughter started preschool, we began the usual slew of sicknesses that come from having a bunch of kids in a room together all the time. I grew really tired of being constantly sick, so I started to search for options to strengthen our immune system. Among other things, like kefir and bone broth, I discovered the negative effects of added sugar.
It turns out, sugar suppresses the immune system and makes us more vulnerable to illness. I started reading labels and realized just how much added sugar is in store-bought goods! The first switch I made was from store-bought bread to homemade bread. It not only saves us money, but it is an extremely nourishing food when made from freshly-milled grains.
Our family enjoys better health, less illness, and more money in our pockets from this simple bread recipe!
Nourishing Wheat Bread
Ingredients
- 2.5 cups warm water
- 1 tbsp active yeast
- 1-2 tbsp sugar/sweetener of choice
- 1 tbsp salt
- 1/3 cup olive oil or oil/butter of choice
- 5-6 cups flour for best results I do 3-4 cups of freshly-ground wheat flour and the rest with bread flour
Instructions
- Put warm water, yeast and sugar into a mixing bowl and stir. Let the yeast rise until bubbly. About 5-10 minutes
- While the yeast rises, I grind the wheat I'm going to use for the bread. If you are using already ground flour, skip this step.
- After yeast is bubbly, add 4-5 cups of flour, mix a little bit and add in the salt and oil.
- Add the last 1-2 cups of flour while mixing. The dough is ready to rise once the dough cleans the bowl as it mixes and doesn't stick to your finger if you lightly poke it.
- Once all the ingredients are mixed in, cover the dough in a bowl with a wet towel or plastic wrap. Let it rise for 1 hour. The dough will double in size.
- Once the dough has risen, scoop it out and shape it into two loaves of bread. Place them into greased bread pans.
- Heat the oven to 375. Allow the dough to rise for about 30 minutes while the oven is heating. The dough will not quite double in size and will fill the bread pans nicely.
- Put the bread in the oven for 30 minutes. It is ready when it has a nice golden crust.
- Enjoy!
Notes
Recipe yield: 2 loaves / about 24 slices total
| Nutrient | Amount per slice | % Daily Value* |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 134 kcal | — |
| Total Fat | 3.7 g | 5% |
| • Saturated Fat | 0.4 g | 2% |
| Cholesterol | 0 mg | 0% |
| Sodium | 296 mg | 13% |
| Total Carbohydrate | 22.6 g | 8% |
| • Dietary Fiber | 2.5 g | 9% |
| • Total Sugars | 0.6 g | — |
| Protein | 4.0 g | 8% |
| Calcium | 8 mg | 1% |
| Iron | 1.1 mg | 6% |
| Potassium | 95 mg | 2% |
| Vitamin D | 0 mcg | 0% |