Why I decided to bake my own bread: Whole Wheat Bread

We live in a "push a button" kind of society.  Whatever negative stimuli we experience, we have the option to "push a button" and make everything better.  Need to deliver a message? Push the "talk" button on your cell phone or the "send" button via email, text, or tweet.  Cold on a winter night? Push a button and turn the heat on, or turn your electric fireplace on.  No need to gather wood and start a fire.

Technology is wonderful.  But there are numerous problems that can be attributed to it--like obesity.  When we are hungry, we don't have to go outside and pick berries or hunt animals.  We can "push a button" and pizza or chinese food will be delivered to our door. Or, we can stop at a Fast Food place and order french fries.

My point is: maybe it's a good thing if it takes you longer than 5 minutes to make your food.  Which leads me to one of my latest projects: bread.  If you read the ingredients on your "Roman Meal" or "Sara Lee" bread, you will likely find high fructose corn syrup and hydrogenated oils.

I really like this recipe because the bread was moist and tasted wholesome.  If you have never worked with yeast before, it can be intimidating.  I don't have a bread machine, so I used the dough hook on my stand mixer.  If you don't have a stand mixer, you can knead the dough with your hands. I used water instead of milk which made it lighter.

Recipe- Honey Whole Wheat Bread (one 9"x5" loaf)
1 package active dry yeast
1 cup milk, heated to warm (105-115F)
1/8 cup honey
1 egg
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature

1. Dissolve the yeast and warm milk in a bowl.  Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes.  Using a wire whisk, stir in the honey and egg.  [By hand: Add the flour, salt, and butter and stir with your hand or  wooden spoon until a rough mass forms.  Scrape the dough out of the bowl onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth, 5-7 minutes.] [With a stand mixer: put the liquids into the bowl of your mixer.  Add the flour, salt and butter.  Attach the dough hook and knead on low speed until the dough is smooth, 5-7 minutes.]

2. Form the dough into a bowl and transfer it to a lightly oiled bowl.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rise in a warm, draft free spot until the dough doubles in size, two hours.

3. Punch down the dough on a clean work surface.  Flatten the dough with the heel of your hand.  Fold the dough (like a letter) into thirds.  Preheat oven to 375F.

4. Place the folded dough, seam side down, in a buttered 9x5" loaf pan.  Cover loosely with a kitchen towel and let it rise in a warm, draft-free spot until it has doubled in size, one hour.

5. Place the loaf pan on the middle rack of the oven.  Bake until golden brown, and sound hollow when tapped on the top, 35 minutes.  Careful not to overbake, or it will be dry.  Let cool completely on a wire rack.