Making Basic Whole Wheat Bread Using a Stand Mixer and a Dehydrator

I am always on the look-out for great videos** that can illustrate a concept or recipe that I am including on my blog.  "Making Basic Whole Wheat Bread" is a current interest of mine.  I have the books.  I have bookmarked the links.  I went out and bought a Kitchen Aid stand mixer after having drooled and dreamed about one for a very long time.  I thought that I would start turning out perfect bread loaves (something I have never in my life done) but it was not to be.

This looks like a high maintenance bread recipe, eh?  Stand mixer and dehydrator for raising the dough?  I can see my grandmother chuckle.  She was always able to make more loaves from scratch than I could from with whatever "no fail" recipe I had at hand.  But somehow I know there are others out there who have the fancy equipment and are dreamers like I am.  This bread is for you!

Please watch the video (above) to get all the fine points you will find transcribed below in the recipe.  A video is really worth about 10,000 printed words, right?  After you watch the video you might want to copy and paste and print the following recipe:

RECIPE FOR MAKING BASIC WHOLE WHEAT BREAD USING A STAND MIXER

Set up the Mixer.

INGREDIENTS:

Measure out :
10 C. Fresh-Ground Whole Wheat Flour OR 6 C. Whole Wheat/ 4 C. White Flour (60% Whole Wheat)
1 T. Sea Salt
2 T. Instant Dry Yeast
6 T. White Sugar
5 C. Water at 110 degrees F. (you can barely keep your finger in it for 10 seconds) From the "The Back to Eden Cookbook" there is a suggestion that you use nut milk instead of water to get a tastier bread.

METHOD:

1. Set up the Mixer with the Cookie Mixer (General Mixer)
2. Add 5 C. W/W Flour to bowl
3. Add 1 T. Sea Salt to bowl
4. Add 2 T. Instant Dry Yeast to bowl
5. Add 6 T. White Sugar to the bowl
6. Put on your General Mixer / Cookie Mixer
7. Raise your bowl (Kitchen Aid) or Lower your Mixer (Viking)
8. Mix on LOWEST setting for a minute to get all mixed together
9. Slowly add the 5 C. of 110 degree F. water while the mixer runs on lowest setting
10. After water has all been poured in, let it continue to run for about another minute until mixture is fully incorporated.
11. Begin to add other 5 C. of flour little by little. You can turn up the speed on the mixer when the flour will not be flying all over. You may NOT need all 5 C. of flour.
12. Bread should be pulling away from the sides of the bowl. When you see that the dough is pulling away, stop the mixer and Lower the bowl (Kitchen Aid), Raise the mixer (Viking)
13. Remove the cookie dough mixer.
14. Put in the bread hook and Raise the bowl (Kitchen Aid), Lower the mixer (Viking)
15. The dough hook should pull the dough from sides of the bowl more. You may increase the speed again. .
16. Wait for flour to work itself in before adding any more (and keep your eye on the sides of the bowl)
17. Add small amounts of flour until the pulling away is pretty much complete
18. The magic in the bread happens when it pulls everything off the sides and it sticks unto itself and not to the mixer.
19. When you judge that all the flour is off the sides, stop the machine and flip the bread dough over carefully to see if there is any flour on the bottom of the pot.
20. Run the mixer for another minute or so, adding another tablespoon of flour if you think it is warranted. Whole wheat dough is better a little on the wet side than it is if it is too dry (=bricks or paperweights). Stop the mixer and lower the bowl (Kitchen Aid) or raise the mixer (Viking)
21. Remove dough hook.
22. Pat dough lightly to even out a bit in bowl.
23. Let it rest for about 20 minutes (make yourself some tea?)

RAISING THE DOUGH IN THE DEHYDRATOR

My old Excalibur-- bought on eBay, back when people did that-- makes a good dough raiser.  95 degrees Fahrenheit

You do not need to use the dehydrator-- it is standing in for something people have used for generations called a "proof box".  If you live in a house where lots of bread yeast is in the air, you can just do it old-school, sitting on top of the fridge with a warm damp cloth on top.  Or in a very cool oven (100 degrees F.) I have this idle dehydrator that I am experimenting with.

24. Get the Excalabar Dehydrator ready for the raising.
25. Take out all shelves except for one.
26. Put a flat tray of warm water on the bottom of the dehydrator
27. Fit the dehydrator shelf  just above the flat tray of water
28. Place the bowl of dough with a clean damp tea towel (linen works great) over the dough bowl and engage the setting for the raising.
29. Raise for one half hour (30 minutes) to 1 hour.
30. Preheat baking oven to 410 degrees F.

The dough rose enormously after 30 minutes in the dehydrator!

31. DO NOT PUNCH THE DOUGH DOWN. There will be big air bubbles in the dough and the bread will have holes in it. Put the bowl back on the mixer and using the dough hook, mix down for about a minute and a half. (Really, watch the video a couple of times)
32. If you want a fluffier loaf of bread, you can let it do a rise in the bowl for another 30 minutes in the dehydrator, or you can divide it into loaves/buns at this point and let it rise for about 20 more minutes on the kitchen counter before putting into the oven to bake. If you choose to do the second rising, then preheat your oven to 410 degrees before putting the bread in the dehydrator (and kneading afterwards with dough hook again).
33. Bake bread for about 30 minutes for a small loaf. About 20 minutes for buns. (This recipe made me 3 medium sized loaves)
34. Cool completely on racks before slicing.  If you want a tender crust, pat the crust when you put it on the racks with a sponge dipped in olive oil (this is from the "The Back to Eden Cookbook").       I haven't tried that... yet.

**I am very thankful to the woman who made the video for this recipe.  She appears to have had a blog with the recipe on it, but it no longer exists, so I took the recipe from the video and transcribed it to fit with adjustments as to what I was planning to do.

HERE ARE SOME OTHER BREAD-RELATED ARTICLES:

Bread Baking Tips by Darlene Blaney, PhD Nutritionist

Cranberry Orange Bread Recipe (Healthy Choices Recipe)

Millet-Honey-Nut Bread Recipe by Wyona Hertwig, Master Baker

Multi-Grain Sunflower Seed Mineral Bread Recipe, by Wyona Hertwig, Master Baker

Grandma's Health Bread Recipe (Adventist Cooking School)

Mediterranean Pocket Bread Recipe (Adventist Cooking School)

Delicious recipe for Lentil-Rice-Chia Flatbread https://t.co/aLQRw9HkDD #glutenfree #plantstrong #vegan pic.twitter.com/kxR4eK63c7

— Cynthia J. Zirkwitz (@healthiacynthia) May 15, 2019

Blueberry Nice Cream on Raspberry Chia Pudding

Blueberry Nice Cream on Raspberry Chia Pudding

If you follow the recipes on Organic Granny (you can do that on this site itself, or by joining the group on Facebook called Organic Granny Veggie Recipes) you will know that I have a longstanding relationship with chia seeds.  These high protein, high omega3 tiny seeds just happen to be the base for many of my dessert recipes-- either as a primary content or as a binder-- and some other recipes as well.  I sometimes make up something called Chia Gel-- basically, chia seeds gelled in water-- and keep it on hand in a mason jar in the fridge.  I often use the gel as a base for the puddings.  You can find out more about the chia gel and how to use it HERE.  Find more recipes at the base of this recipe post.

RASPBERRY CHIA PUDDING
INGREDIENTS:

• 2 Cups Organic Chia Gel (make ahead of time, up to 24 hours)
• 1/4 Cup Organic Raspberry Jam or Jelly (vegan is preferred - or blend and sweeten ripe fresh or frozen berries)
• 1 Cup Non-dairy Milk (such as Almond, Coconut, Hemp, etc.)
• 2 T. Maple Syrup or other preferred sweetener (optional)

BLUEBERRY NICE CREAM
INGREDIENTS:

• 3-4 Very Ripe Organic Bananas, peeled, chunked and frozen in a baggie for 24 hours
• 3/4 Cup Frozen Organic Blueberries

PUT THE PUDDING TOGETHER:

• Stir together the Chia Gel, the Non-dairy Milk, the Sweetener, and the Jam or blended raspberries.  
• Spoon into 1/2 pint mason jars (or old-fashioned glasses)
• Put into fridge again to set for a couple of hours, or during the time you make the Nice Cream

PUTTING THE NICE CREAM & CHIA PUDD TOGETHER: 

• AT SERVING TIME: Put frozen banana chunks and blueberries together into a high-speed blender like Vitamix, and process until smooth.
• Scoop a 1/4 of the Nice Cream over each of the 4 chia puddings 
• Sprinkle a few hemp seeds on each NiceCream as a garnish (optional, but yummy)
• Serve immediately!

This is a lovely dessert that can be eaten by itself anytime and as breakfast!

OTHER CHIA RECIPES YOU MIGHT LIKE TO TRY:

Good Morning Chia Pudding

Chia Chocolate Banana Ice Cream

Chia Chocolate Avo Banana Pudding

Make-Ahead Chia Breakfast Recipes incl. Breakfast "sausage", cookies, pudding

Recipe for Chickpea Tofu: By Ally

A dear long-time friend has passed along this recipe for Chickpea Tofu for anyone who is sensitive or allergic to Tofu (soy).

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup "Raw" Chickpea Flour
1 1/2 cup Water
Pinch of Turmeric



METHOD:

1. Dissolve 1/2 cup of Chickpea flour in 1/2 cup of the water.  Add a pinch of Turmeric powder for colour.
2. Heat remaining cup of water over medium heat.
3. Add in the Chickpea paste and whisk/stir, scraping sides down.
4. When the mixture is boiling and thickened, pour into a pan and let it cool.  
5. Cut into desired shapes after completely cool. 

Ally also states that she often eats it with a Burmese Salad:  Fried Onions and Garlic along with Green Spring Onions, Tamarind Juice, chopped Cilantro and optional Chili pepper and Fish Sauce.

Chickpea (Garbanzo Bean) and Spinach Patties- Burgers (Vegan, Gluten-Free)

This chickpea-spinach patty or burger recipe grew from some consternation with a commercial brand of chickpea-spinach burger that had more than a few ingredients, a few of which I felt could be excluded from a recipe and still have the same flavourful and 'kind' appeal without those ingredients.

 Plus, as an ethical vegan, I was not crazy about the idea that the particular brand is just a side line for a longtime "meat packing company."  While I think it is wonderful that there are an amazing number of vegan "meats" hitting the market, I don't think that I am reduced to buying a product that is likely just a way for this company to capture some of the 'new' revenue coming in with vegan foods, while they continue to support the factory-farming of animals, their "inhumane" slaughter  (is there a humane way to kill a sentient being to eat?) and the ongoing other ethical and morale concerns perpetrated by the meat industries.


So, yeah, this recipe was developed.  There are quite a few other vegan chickpea burger recipes online that you might want to google.  Some modified versions of them will likely turn up on here in the near-ish future since I plan to do a series of recipes that are (not exactly) copy-cats of some of the commercial burgers to show that these recipes can be put together without the kinds of ingredients that are often just meant to preserve shelf-life or be more like the solid-bulky texture you got used to with a hamburger, for example.

This recipe uses fabulous aquafaba (or a gel produced from chickpea "juice") as the "eggs" that appear as binders in the non-vegan burger recipes.  I was originally set to use the usual "flaxseed egg" (2 Tbsp. Flaxseeds plus 1/4 cup water) but noticed the chunky gel that I had poured off my home-cooked chickpeas as it sat in the fridge in a mason jar.  I subbed a 1/4 cup of it (picture below) for the flaxseed egg.  And it worked well!  I would suggest that you use the flaxseed gel if you feel less comfortable with using aquafaba.

Here is a close-up of the Aquafaba magic gel.... the thick liquid that came from cooking my chickpeas in the Instant Pot

 The original recipe I was most attracted to had 18 ingredients.  At the time I was "developing" this recipe (or "throwing it together" might be a less pretentious description), my husband and I were quite hungry, having gone past our usual suppertime schedule.  So, while I knew that it might be minimally tastier if I searched for and measured out a bunch of individual spices (cumin seeds, coriander seeds, cardamom pods, ground ginger, etc.) it would work just as well for our not very discerning taste buds if we just used a really good variety of organic Mild Curry Powder that involves all the of the above spices, and then some.  If you have experience with dealing with spices, or have a favourite formula that you love, by all means, use that in this recipe!

I also did a short cut on the 2 Tbsp. of Lemon Juice and the 1 Tbsp. of Garlic Puree because I use a combo frozen cube of Lemon Juice-Garlic every day in our smoothie (yes, it IS potent).  I just tossed a cube of that in-- easy peasy.  I include that in the recipe in case you want to go ahead and try making those cubes yourself, the recipe is HERE.  It really comes in handy for a lot of recipes (as well as for our smoothie, of course heheh).

So, here is a photo of the reduced number of ingredients:

INGREDIENTS FOR VEGAN CHICKPEA AND SPINACH PATTIES/BURGERS:

• 2 Tbsp. Flaxseeds plus 1/4 cup Water OR 1/4 cup thick Aquafaba (Chickpea juice gel)
• 1 medium Onion
• 1/2 Bell Pepper (red, yellow or orange-- green are unripe peppers)
• 1 tsp. Oil
• 1 tsp. Mild Curry Powder
• 1 tsp. Red Chili Powder (I used Chipotle)
• 1 Tbsp. Garlic Puree and 2 Tbsp. Lemon Juice or 1 Garlic-Lemon cube
• 1 Tbsp. Tomato Puree/paste
• 14-oz/114 ml can Chickpeas (save the 'juice') OR 1 1/2 - 2 cups of cooked Chickpeas
• 1 cup Baby Spinach
• Salt to taste
• 1 cup Chickpea Flour

DIRECTIONS:

1. If making a Flaxseed egg, combine the seeds and water in a small bowl and set aside.
2. Finely slice the onion, and chop the pepper into small cubes.  
3. Stir-fry the Onion in the Oil over high heat, stirring continuously  Add in the Curry Powder. Stir for 3-5 minutes until golden.
4. Add in Bell Pepper, Chili, Garlic Puree, Lemon Juice (or cube), and Tomato Puree/Paste.  Stir another 3-5 minutes until soft.
5. Set aside to cool (briefly)
6. When cool, add the mixture to a blender or food processor and blend until a smooth paste.
7. To the food processor, add in the Chickpeas, Spinach, Flax egg or Aquafaba gel,  and a pinch of Salt.
8. Process until mostly smooth, although a rougher texture of Chickpeas is great.  If you think it is too smooth, mash up some more chickpeas and add them in without further processing.
9. Dump this mixture into a medium-large bowl and mix in the cup of Chickpea Flour.
10. Stir until it is evenly mixed in.
11. You can either divide the mass into six equal lumps and fry with in a pan with some oil, or you can turn the oven to 400F, cover a pan with parchment paper, and spoon six burger shapes onto the pan.  Bake for about 15 minutes on each side, more if you are not happy with the texture.
12. These patties (baked in the oven) resemble pancakes, but are savory and have a very nice texture that is not like a cookie or a pancake...

Here are some other recipes you might also like to try:

How to make ChiaSeed Gel and How To Use It

How to Make Yummy No-Meat Balls (Gluten Free)

Barley Pecan Burger

Mushroom Walnut Burger

Vegetable Burger

The Classic Vegan Roast or Burger

Join  Organic Granny Veggie Recipes Facebook for lots more Transitioning-to-Vegan Recipes