Friday, January 21, 2011

CONTEST: Whole Wheat Bread Recipes

I went grocery shopping yesterday. And guess what? I didn't buy any bread. I have a loaf in my freezer and a nearly complete loaf in the pantry, but from here on out, I plan to make my own bread instead of buying it from the store.

Dill's parents got us an awesome manual wheat grinder and some loaf pans for Christmas. I specifically asked for the wheat grinder because I have a ton of wheat sitting out in my garage, practically begging to be turned into flour and then baked into delicious loaves of bread.

I know, you're thinking, Who asks for a wheat grinder for Christmas?! A health-conscious Mormon mom, that's who! Most homemade breads have a handful of simple ingredients. Have you looked at the ingredients list on a loaf of store-bought bread? It's crazy! It often contains high fructose corn syrup and a whole bunch of other unpronounceable additives to make it sweet, spongy and long-lasting. And it's expensive -- you'll spend well over $3 for a loaf of the most natural bread.

Not to mention, have you ever smelled the aroma of homemade bread wafting through the air? HEAVEN. That's reason enough to make your own.

I'm excited to put this wheat grinder to use and make some delicious bread. But, there's a problem: I have no idea where to start! I've never made bread. Ok, I've made cinnamon rolls and bread-like products, but I've never made a loaf of actual bread before. You know, the kind you slice up and slather peanut butter all over. Never done it.

So, this is where you guys come in. I want you to send your best whole wheat bread recipes to momtheintern at gmail dot com. If you have one on your personal blog, feel free to send me a link, too. I am going to try them all and then Dill, Bubs and I will decide which one we like best. And by best, I mean it is both delicious and relatively easy to make.

Winner gets a $10 gift card to Sprouts Farmers Market or Target, your choice. Sprouts is my favorite farmers market-type store because their produce is local, very fresh and oh-so-cheap! They also sell lots of gluten-free, lactose-free, all-natural and vegetarian items. You can get a TON of good stuff for $10. And Target ... who doesn't love Target?

Here are the contest rules:

1. The bread recipe must primarily use whole wheat flour. It can also include white flour or lesser-known kinds (like maybe rye flour), but I want the majority of it to use wheat flour. No white recipes, please.

2. It cannot require a bread machine. Sorry, I don't own one of those. Just an oven and some loaf pans.

3. It does NOT have to be original, meaning it doesn't have to be your own invention. It can be a long-time family recipe, one you got from a friend or one you've used and loved for ages. But please, don't just pull one off of Allrecipes.com unless you've tried it for yourself and can personally testify of its goodness. I mean, anyone can Google for bread recipes, right?

Since I've never done a contest before and I don't know how many people (if any) are going to enter, I'm just going to leave the contest open for a while. No deadline just yet. I'll be sure to let you know when one is coming up.

Let's see what you've got!

4 comments:

  1. My mother has been making whole wheat bread exclusively for YEARS now and I've picked up on a few things. 1)Dough Conditioner/Enhancer. It makes wheat bread that is prone to crumbling apart stick together (something about enhancing gluten). It keeps it fresher longer too. 2) white wheat. I know red wheat keeps longer, but it's because of its tougher exterior. White wheat is much milder tasting and produces a bread that is just as good for you but is lighter and (in my opinion) tastier.

    I'll see if I can get my mom's whole wheat/potato bread recipe. It's to die for. And it uses food storage potato flakes. Rock on.

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  2. I second the stuff Elise said. Pick up some dough enhancer. You can get it in Walmart by the food storage section. Use white wheat. If what you have is red, just use a little more white flour (instead of wheat) to reduce the density slightly. I just made a delicious recipe I got from a friend that I am scarfing down at every possible moment. I'll send it over. And I want to try the on from Elise's mom...any chance you could post some of your favorites eventually?

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  3. Jenna you rock you homemaker you!! I was JUST thinking today that I wish I knew how to make bread cause I forgot to buy some... again! We buy the cheap 99c kinda cause we're cheap like that and eh... We're all gonna die someday anyway ;) But I'd love to learn how to make it! i used to have a breadmaker but I think we threw/gave it away, I'll have to check my pantry. Wonder if I can make some with flour since i don't have a wheat grinder?

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