Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread

Why this recipe works Most recipes for whole-wheat sandwich bread either pay lip service to being “whole wheat,” containing so little of the whole-grain stuff that they resemble squishy supermarket loaves, or they call for so much that the bread bakes up coarse and dense. We wanted a sandwich bread with a full-blown nutty (but not bitter) taste and a hearty yet soft crumb. For starters, we knew we wanted to use a sponge for this bread to give it a jump start in flavor development. We preferred bread that contained 60 percent whole-wheat flour (and 40 percent white flour)—more whole-wheat flour than in most recipes. But packing that much whole wheat into our loaf compromised its texture, so we had to take a few structure-building measures. First, we used bread flour for our white flour because of its high protein content. Next, we presoaked the whole-wheat flour before making the dough. Soaking softened the grain’s bran, thereby dulling its sharp edges and preventing them from puncturing and deflating the dough. As a bonus, soaking also converted some starches in the grain into sugars, reducing bitterness. To amp up the wheatiness even more, we added toasted wheat germ to our dough. Honey gave our bread an earthy sweetness, and adding both butter and oil softened the loaf’s texture. The test kitchen’s preferred loaf pan measures 8½ by 4½ inches; if you use a 9 by 5-inch loaf pan, increase the shaped rising time by 20 to 30 minutes and start checking for doneness 10 minutes earlier than advised in the recipe.

MAKES: 2 loaves

RESTING TIME: 8 hours

RISING TIME: 2¼ to 3¼ hours

BAKING TIME: 40 minutes

TOTAL TIME: 18 to 19 hours, plus 3 hours cooling time

KEY EQUIPMENT: two 8½ by 4½-inch loaf pans, water-filled spray bottle, instant-read thermometer

INGREDIENTS:

FOR THE SOAKER 

• 3 cups (16½ ounces) whole-wheat flour
• 2 cups (16 ounces) whole milk
• ½ cup (1½ ounces) toasted wheat germ

FOR THE SPONGE

• 2 cups (11 ounces) bread flour
• 1 cup (8 ounces) water, room temperature
• ½ teaspoon instant or rapid-rise yeast

FOR THE DOUGH

• 6 tablespoons (3 ounces) unsalted butter, softened
• ¼ cup (3 ounces) honey
• 2 tablespoons instant or rapid-rise yeast
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 4 teaspoons salt

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Stir all the ingredients in a large bowl with a wooden spoon until a shaggy mass forms. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured counter and knead it by hand until smooth, which takes about 3 minutes. Return the soaker to the bowl, cover it tightly with plastic wrap, and refrigerate it for at least 8 hours or up to 24 hours.
2. Stir all the ingredients in an 8-cup liquid measuring cup with a wooden spoon until well combined. Cover it tightly with plastic wrap and let it sit at room temperature until the sponge has risen and begins to collapse, which takes about 6 hours (the sponge can sit at room temperature for up to 24 hours).
3. Tear the soaker into 1-inch pieces and place them in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Add the sponge, butter, honey, yeast, oil, and salt and mix on low speed until a cohesive dough starts to form, which takes about 2 minutes. Scrape down the bowl as needed. Increase the speed to medium-low and knead until the dough is smooth and elastic and clears the sides of the bowl but sticks to the bottom, which takes about 8 minutes. Transfer the dough to a lightly greased large bowl or container, cover it tightly with plastic, and let it rise for 45 minutes.
4. Using a greased bowl scraper or your fingertips, fold the dough over itself by gently lifting and folding the edge of the dough toward the middle. Turn the bowl 45 degrees and fold the dough again. Repeat this process of turning the bowl and folding the dough 6 more times, for a total of 8 folds. Cover the dough tightly with plastic and let it rise until it is nearly doubled in size, which takes 30 minutes to 1 hour.
5. Grease two 8½ by 4½-inch loaf pans. Press down on the dough to deflate it. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured counter, divide it in half, and cover each piece loosely with greased plastic. Press and stretch one piece of dough (keeping the remaining piece covered) into an 8 by 6-inch rectangle, with the long side parallel to the counter edge.
6. Roll the dough away from you into a firm cylinder, keeping the roll taut by tucking it under itself as you go. Pinch the seam closed and place the loaf seam side down in the prepared pan, pressing the dough gently into the corners. Repeat with the second piece of dough. Cover loosely with greased plastic and let the loaves rise until they reach 1 inch above the lip of the pans and the dough springs back minimally when poked gently with your knuckle, which takes 1 to 1½ hours.
7. Adjust the oven rack to the lower-middle position and preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Using a sharp paring knife or single-edge razor blade, make one ¼-inch-deep slash with a swift, fluid motion lengthwise along the top of each loaf, starting and stopping about ½ inch from the ends.
8. Mist the loaves with water and bake them until they are deep golden brown and register 205 to 210 degrees Fahrenheit, which takes 40 to 45 minutes, rotating the pans halfway through baking. Let the loaves cool in the pans for 15 minutes. Then remove the loaves from the pans and let them cool completely on a wire rack, which takes about 3 hours, before serving.