Use Your Food Processor to Make Whole Grain Honey Wheat Bread With Cranberries

I don’t think anything can compare to freshly baked homemade bread. The intoxicating aroma fills your home as the bread bakes, hinting at what’s to come. The first bite will blow away your taste buds; the nutty background flavor from the whole grains combines beautifully with the sweet honey and tart cranberries. Words fail to properly describe the scrumptious nature of this healthy bread, so you will have to bake it and try it for yourself!

Special Equipment:

You will need a well powered food processor equipped with a dough blade.

Whole Grain Honey Wheat Loaf

Makes 1 loaf

• 2/3 cup of whole milk
• 1/3 cup of filtered water
• 3 tablespoons of unsalted butter, cut into chunks
• 3 tablespoons of honey
• 1 package or 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
• 3 cups of whole grain wheat flour
• 1 teaspoon of sea salt
• 1 cup of dried cranberries, roughly chopped

Directions:

Combine the whole milk, filtered water, unsalted butter and honey in a small saucepan. Heat over a very low flame until warm but not hot. The ideal temperature range is between 105 and 115 degrees F. Do not allow to get any hotter or the heat will kill the yeast. Stir in the active dry yeast until dissolved and set aside.

Position the dough blade in the work bowl of your favorite food processor. Add the whole wheat flour, salt and cranberries. Process for 15 seconds, then use a spatula to scrape the sides of the bowl. Process again, this time until thoroughly mixed, scraping the sides of the bowl if necessary. With the food processor running, slowly add the liquid mixture through the feed tube. Process for about 1 minute; this will knead the dough which will form a slightly sticky ball.

Remove the dough from the food processor and transfer to a greased bowl. Turn over to grease all sides. Cover with a clean kitchen towel. Let the dough rise in a dark, warm place until it doubles in size. This should take about an hour; the exact time will depend upon the temperature and humidity.

Punch the dough down. Shape into a loaf and put into a greased loaf pan, 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 x 2 1/2 inch. Cover and let it rise again until doubled in size.

Bake the bread in a pre-heated 375 degree F oven for 30 to 40 minutes. There are a couple of ways to tell if it’s done. The most accurate is with an instant read thermometer. You are looking for an internal temperature of 205 to 210 degrees F. If you are without such a device, look for a browned loaf that sounds hollow when tapped.

Cool on a wire rack for at least 20 minutes before eating.

The Best Food Processor for Making Bread

You will need a relatively well powered food processor to make bread. An inferior food processor will struggle when kneading the dough, often leading to complete motor failure.

The Author:

Heather Krasovec