Whole Wheat Bread : 'TWD : Baking with Julia'

What a difference eight months has made! It was in February that we started baking from the 'Baking with Julia' book. And I clearly remember how I almost chickened out of the group when I saw that they had chosen 'White Loaves' to be their very first recipe. Yeast had never been my friend and my melodramatic post at the time was about how I still went ahead and was, surprise, surprise, successful. I still remember how I fretted through that whole recipe and patted myself on the back, with a certain amount of relief and wonder, when that loaf emerged from the oven!!

 

All these months on and a number of bread recipes with yeast under my belt (all thanks to the 'Baking with Julia' group), I made a go at the whole wheat version of the white loaf!! And what a breeze it was! I am now happy to announce that yours truly has conquered the beast called yeast. I may have lost my fear of yeast, but evidently, I haven't lost the touch of drama in my writing!!

 

The recipe for this whole-wheat bread is more or less along the lines of the white loaf of bread with the ratio of the whole wheat and plain flour being roughly 50:50. Because of the presence of the whole wheat, we add a bit of honey to help the yeast along. And no, the bread does not taste sweet!!

 

A shade darker in colour than the white loaf of bread, this bread can simply be described as a wholesome and tasty bread. As with any homemade bread, there is a certain freshness of flavour that is always appreciated. You can also clearly see the tight crumb of this bread from the photographs.

Importantly, the presence of whole wheat makes it a tad healthier than its all white flour counterpart. As I have become more comfortable with yeast, I can easily see myself revisiting this recipe again and again.

 

Dorie Greenspan writes how this bread is ideal for sandwiches. It is such a flavourful bread that when taken out fresh from the oven, you can eat it plain. So, I simply toasted a few slices and slathered some butter that just melted on the hot toast. Paired that with a steaming cup of chai, that uniquely Indian  concoction of milky, sweet tea that is flavoured with a whole lot of spices. It really doesn't get better than that!!

Due to copyright considerations, only the person hosting the recipe for the group 'TWD:Baking with Julia' can post the recipe on their blog. You will find the recipe for this bread on the blogs of Michele and Teresa. Alternately, you can write to me at bakerindisguise@gmail.com and I will mail you the recipe