Recipe by: Erin Anz
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September 1, 2025
Making homemade bread for my family has long been one of my favorite activities. Just the smell draws everyone together! I’ve been using this recipe for the last twenty years and wanted to share it with you. I hope your family enjoys it as much as mine has!
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment add the water (2 cups), yeast (1 ½ Tbsp), sugar (½ cup), salt (1 Tbsp), oil (½ cup), and whole wheat flour (2 cups)whole wheat flour. Mix on low speed just until combined. With the mixer running, add the all-purpose flour (5 ⅔ cups) one cup at a time and mix until combined. Take the paddle off the mixer and cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Let rest for 20 minutes.
This rest is called an autolyse and gives the flour time to hydrate and the gluten a chance to develop.
After resting remove the plastic wrap and place the bowl on the mixer fitted with a dough hook. Knead on medium speed until stretchy, about 10 minutes.
Lightly oil a medium size mixing bowl and a small space on your counter. Dump the dough out of the mixer bowl onto the counter and fold into a ball by stretching the sides of the dough and folding towards the center. This aligns the gluten strands and makes a stronger dough. Place the ball in the oiled bowl then flip over so the top will be lightly oiled. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until doubled in size, about an hour.
Spray two loaf pans with cooking spray. Dump the dough onto the counter then divide in half with a bench scraper or knife. Gently press into a loose rectangle then roll the dough into a 8x12 rectangle. Starting on a short side, roll the dough toward the other end, pressing out any air bubbles as you go. Pinch the seam together, along with the ends and place seam side down in the prepared loaf pan. Repeat with remaining dough. Cover both loaves with plastic wrap and let rise until the center is about an inch above the pan, 45-60 minutes.
About 20 minutes before you’re ready to bake, preheat your oven to 350 °F. Once the oven is hot and the dough has risen gently remove the plastic wrap. Using a serrated knife, quickly cut three diagonal slices about half an inch deep down each loaf. Place both pans in the oven on the lower middle shelf. Bake for 20 minutes then rotate the pans back for another 10-15 until the top is deeply browned. Remove from the oven and carefully dump the loaves out onto a cooling rack.
Congratulations! You’ve made it to the hardest part: waiting until it’s cool enough before your family can cut some slices and enjoy your homemade bread!
If you want more of the whole wheat taste feel free to swap out some of the all-purpose flour for whole wheat. Just keep in mind that whole wheat flour absorbs more moisture than all-purpose so be sure to decrease the amount of flour you swap out.
This recipe freezes well! Freeze two hours after baking for the best results.
You can also make excellent dinner rolls with this recipe. I like to make a whole batch and use half of it for a sandwich loaf then use the other half for dinner rolls. To make dinner rolls cut the dough into golf ball sized pieces then shape into a ball by pulling the cut side under the ball and pinching to seal. Place on a greased cookie sheet. Cover and let rise until nearly doubled. Remove plastic and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes or until nicely browned. Brush with butter while still hot to make the tops soft and give them a nice shine!
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