Friday, January 3, 2014

Food Share Friday: Grandpa's Whole Wheat Bread

I have decided to make Fridays, my "Food Share Friday." I will be sharing recipes from my Grandpa's, self published cookbook.

It's called, "Natural Foods Sampler: Whole Food Goodness for You!" He first published this cookbook in 1980. My mom tells me that he would hand these out free of charge. Since he is gone now, I will continue on in that spirit and offer up these recipes to you. The only thing I ask in return is that you don't take them as your own. Please give credit where credit is due. My Grandpa had a passion for spreading the word of good natural health and this cookbook was part of that. He put many years of hard work and passion into creating these recipes. So when you make them for yourself and your family, just remember the man behind the recipe.

He said it best, when he wrote in his cookbook;

"What wonders our Creator has wrought in giving to all of us the ability to prepare the food that is our sustenance, to feel the dough come alive in our hands as we kneed our daily bread, to taste the fresh goodness that He had permitted to grown in our gardens, to revel in the flavor of honey from the hive, and to relish the pungency of the herbs that spice our lives -- natural foods all, and designed to nourish in in joy, health, and love o four fellowman!

I believe that life can be, at the very least, a little more pleasant when we return of while grain nourishment and relearn the benefits to be found in foods that come to us more naturally. In striving to reach the goal of whole food goodness for us all, I offer this collection of recipes, May you eat and enjoy!" ~James Francis

Grandpa's Whole Wheat Bread
Plain and Simple,
Oh so good!
Whole Wheat bread
Is heaven's food!


2 1/2 Cups warm water (110-115 degrees)
1 tsp molasses or honey
2 TBS dry yeast
3 TBS honey
3 TBS safflower oil
1 tsp sea salt (note from Laura: I use Himalayan crystal salt. You can find it at Swanson Vitamins)
1 TBS liquid lecithin
1 egg, beaten
1/3 Cup non-fat dry milk
5 1/2 - 6 1/2 Cups Whole Wheat Flour
1/4 Cup gluten flour

1. Stir together in a large mixing bowl the molasses and 2 cups of the water. Sprinkle with the yeast and let stand until bubbly, about 5 minutes. 

2. Mix the 1.2 cup of water, honey, oil, and lecithin in a small bowl. Add the beaten egg and pout into the yeast mixture, beating gently with an electric hand mixer or wooden spoon. 

3. Stir together three cups of the flour, slat, gluten, and milk powder. add this to the large bowl. Beat well, This is the sponge. Set it in a warm place to rise until doubled, about 3/4 to 1 hour or more, depending on warmth.

4. Stir down with a wooden spoon and add flour gradually until dough leaves the sides of the bowl. Turn out on a floured board or counter and let stand a few minutes while you wash out the bowl and oil it. 

5. Knead the dough 8-10 minutes, adding flour as necessary to make a smooth elastic dough. 

6. Return the dough to the bowl, turning so that oil coats all of the surface. Cover with a warm damp towel and let rise until doubled. 

7. Punch down, squeezing out all air and shape into the required number of loaves. This recipe will make three loaves in 7 1/4 x 3 1/4 pans (preferable) or two loaves in 8 1/4 x 4 1/4 pans. Grease pans well. 

8. Let rise in pans until almost double. Bake in preheated oven at 375 degrees for five minutes, then at 350 degrees for balance of baking time. Time for three loaves, about 25 minutes; two loaves 30-35 minutes. 

9. Check if done by removing loaf from pan. If it is nicely browned and sounds hollow when tapped on bottom, it is done. Remove from pans at once and cool on racks, away from draft. 

Being a diabetic myself, I thought I would share the carb counts for all of these recipes. There are 525.82 grams of carbs if you use 5 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour, and 609.82 grams if you used 6 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour. That is for the whole recipe. If you make three loaves, just divide it by three. If you make two, divide by two. I made three loaves and got 16 slices out of one loaf. That would be about 11 grams per slice. 

Making bread is an art form. It definitely was for my Grandpa. I hope you enjoy this recipe for bread from him. If you are interested in having a copy of his cookbook for your own, I can send one to you at my cost. Feel free to e-mail me at peaceoftheprairies@gmail.com with your request and I will get you a price. 



*The link to Swanson Vitamins is a referral link. I do get credit for it. 




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