Whole grain Buttermilk Bread

It’s often said by many who have tried their hands at making bread at home. That the store-bought version slowly starts to lose its lure. And for others, bread-making becomes either therapeutic or an obsession. For me, I would say both. I have gone past the “oh my God I only need water, flour, yeast, and salt plus a good amount of effort for the kneading to make bread?!”. And evolved to the: “what else can we do with this?” and “I don’t need to buy bread anymore”!

But don’t get me wrong, I will occasionally buy bread. I am yet to perfect my bagel or croissant recipe but apart from that- sometimes I just run out of time like everyone else. Whole grain bread has grown on me, so much that most often than not I all but sneer at the thought of white bread. Unless it’s a cornetto filled with chocolate or those butter croissants that just dare you to look away knowing full well you won’t manage. What makes this whole grain bread special is that it’s soft and of course, your hips will thank you for the extra fiber.

There have been moments after the autolyze phase when I lean over the kitchen counter and just watch. I watch as the dough hook swirls around and around the bowl picking and dropping; kneading until I’m sure there is almost no need to perform a window test. I lightly wet my hands and scoop the dough, bringing it up to my nose for a long heavenly whiff. Then say my goodbyes as I leave it to rest in a buttered bowl until I have to give it a good punch before shaping and finally baking.

Whole grain Buttermilk Bread Ingredients

Buttermilk: Similarly to many of my recipes; I added buttermilk because I had leftovers and did not want to toss them. The buttermilk also aids in added softness and unmistakable slight tanginess.

Flour: This is not 100% whole grain bread as it has some white flour but is just as tempting. The protein content of the white flour is 12.5% however you can use one with a higher percentage. The wholemeal flour is much higher with 13% protein. Try this recipe and should you want one without any white flour, please let me know in the comments below.

Vital wheat: I use this to increase the gluten structure, but you can still make a decent loaf if you do not have this on hand.

Yeast: I used dry active yeast, however in case you only have instant yeast you can use that too. Substitute the dry active for 8g of instant yeast. Remember, you do not have to dissolve instant yeast into the water to activate it. So just stir it into the flour and add the salt to the water instead.

Egg yolk: For the added flavor and tenderizing

How to Make Whole Grain Buttermilk Bread

Step 1

Mix the flour, make a well in the middle and add the salt to one side. Dissolve the sugar and yeast in the lukewarm water and leave for about 5 minutes to activate.

What to expect: After a few minutes, it should be frothy at the top with some bubbles underneath. That’s a good sign that the yeast is activated.

Step 2

While the yeast activates, add the milk, buttermilk, and butter to a jug. Heat the mixture (over a stove or microwave) just enough to melt the butter. It should not be hot, let it cool before whisking in the egg.

Step 3

Pour the wet mixture into the flour and knead on low just until it’s all incorporated. Leave to autolyze for 15 minutes, then knead on medium speed for 7 minutes then 2 minutes on high. The dough should have quite a bit more elasticity by the time you are done, press the dough and it should slowly spring back. Roll it into a ball and leave it to rise in a lightly buttered bowl covered with cling film someplace warm.

What to expect: Letting the dough rest gives is very beneficial mostly when making whole grain bread. It gives the flour time to absorb the water and makes it easier to work with. It will be slightly smoother and less lumpy. When the dough has been kneaded and you believe it is ready, it might be slightly sticky and if so just wet or lightly butter your hands before performing the window-pane test. Once the dough has risen it will have lot’s of beautiful air pockets as seen below

Step 4

Knock back the dough by giving it a good punch straight down to the middle of the bowl. Tip it onto a lightly floured surface and perform a gentle knead for 30 seconds then proceed to shape it into a rectangle that will fit into your baking tin. Let it rise until doubles in size before you bake

What to expect: The first rise will have taken roughly 2 hours, but this final rise will take half or 3/4 of the initial rise time.

This recipe yields 1 loaf

What is bread baking for you? An obsession, therapy, or both? Let me know in the comments below

Please give the Wholegrain buttermilk loaf a thumbs up below.

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Print Recipe

Wholegrain buttermilk loaf

(+15 rating, 3 votes)

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Bread – International

By My food memoirs – Serves: 1

Prep Time: 20 minutes – Cooking Time: 35 minutes – Total Time: 3 hours 25 minutes

Who said wholegrain bread needs to be tough on the jaw with a punishing bitter flavour? Try this moist wholegrain bread with a 'sprinkle' of white flour.

Ingredients

• 100g strong white flour (bread flour)
• 400g wholemeal strong flour (bread flour)
• 1tbsp vital wheat gluten
• 1 1/2tsp fine sea salt
• 1tbsp granulated sugar
• 9g active dry yeast
• 30ml water
• 50g unsalted butter
• 50ml buttermilk
• 276ml whole milk
• 1 egg yolk

Instructions

1

Measure the dry ingredients

2

Stir the yeast and sugar to the water and leave to stand for 5 minutes

3

Put the butter in with the milk and buttermilk. Heat in the microwave for a few seconds to dissolve the butter. If it's hot, let it cool before adding in the whisked egg inside

4

Mix both flours and the vital gluten into a stand mixing bowl then make a well, sprinkle salt on one side of the flour

5

Pour the yeast and buttermilk mixture into the well and knead on low until all the flour is incorporated then leave the dough to autolyze (rest) for 15 minutes

6

Knead the dough on medium speed for 7 minutes then on high for 2 minutes. It should have elasticity when you pull up the dough hook- perform the window test (pinch a bit of the dough and stretch as far as you can using your thumbs and forefingers. It should be able to stretch enough to form a thin sheet that you could almost see light through).

7

Put the dough back into a clean lightly oiled bowl, cover and leave to double in size- should take an hour or slightly more depending on the environment temperature

8

Knockback the dough and shape it into a rectangle. Butter an 8 x 4-inch bread tin and put the dough inside seam side down cover (with cling film) and leave to rise for an hour

9

Preheat the oven at 200c (if using a fan oven) 5 minutes before baking

10

Bake for 35 minutes or until set and makes a hollow sound when knocked at the bottom of the loaf

11

When it is ready, leave to cool completely then store in an airtight container or ziplock bag to retain softness