A delicious honey wheat bread recipe, that uses both whole wheat flour and all purpose flour, for a lighter loaf, with whole wheat goodness. Sweetened with honey, this bread makes a great everyday bread! Perfect for sandwiches and toasts well, too.

honey whole wheat bread sliced on cutting board

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Why you’ll love this great everyday bread!

  • I bake some sandwich bread pretty much every week, but some loaves I come back to over and over. This is one of them. This honey whole wheat bread is a great everyday bread, perfect for sandwiches and toast.
  • This is a great beginner bread baker bread, too, as the dough is easy to handle and a fast riser.
  • I love this loaf because it is a nice blend of whole wheat and all-purpose. It doesn’t have so much whole wheat that it is heavy or that the kids won’t eat it, but it does have enough to make me feel a little better about eating it.
  • The touch of honey makes for a slightly sweet bread (but not overly so) with a subtle honey flavour.

What you’ll need

Ingredients to make honey whole wheat bread.

Active dry or instant yeast – You can use either active dry yeast or regular Instant yeast, such as SAF Brand. If you are new to bread baking, you might like to read my resource articles How to Know Which Yeast to Use and Getting Started with Yeast Bread Baking.

Honey – A nice neutral-flavoured honey works just fine, but you can use what you have or enjoy. You can adjust the amount of honey up or down, to your taste. If you don’t have honey, you can substitute maple syrup in the same amount. If you don’t have either, use 1/4 cup of white sugar, instead.

All purpose flour – This loaf combines whole wheat flour with all-purpose flour, for a lighter loaf. Unbleached all purpose flour is best for bread baking, but regular all purpose flour is fine, too.

Whole Wheat Flour – It is best to stick to the specified amount of whole wheat flour and resist the temptation to “add more”. Whole wheat flour absorbs more liquid than all purpose flour, so adding more will throw off the proportions for this recipe unless you know how to adapt it and make those adjustments. Adding more whole wheat flour will also slow up the rise and produce a heavier, more dense loaf.

Milk and/or water – I love to use half water and half milk, but you can just as easily use all water if that’s your preference.

Vegetable or Canola Oil – I think a neutral-tasting oil is best in bread, so I suggest vegetable or canola oil. Other oils will work, if you prefer. You could also use an equal amount of melted butter in place of oil.

Salt – Salt in bread is used as both a seasoning and as a bit of a yeast suppressant, so that the bread doesn’t rise too quickly. You can tweak the salt amount if you like or to your taste, but keep the rising thing in mind.

How to make honey whole wheat bread

finished bread dough in mixer
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finished dough in bowl with silicone scraper to remove it
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  1. Mix together the dough as detailed in the Recipe Card. The finished dough should clean the bowl well and wrap the kneading hook, but will still have a sticky bit at the bottom of the bowl, roughly as wide as the dough ball on the hook.
  2. Remove the dough to a floured work surface (a silicone scraper works well for sticky dough) and knead briefly, adding a bit more flour only if the dough is sticking to your hands or the work surface. Set to rise in a greased, covered bowl until doubled, about 45 minutes.

I thought the loaf shaping was best illustrated in video, so refer to the Recipe Video below for the loaf shaping if you are new to shaping yeast loaf bread.

risen dough in loaf pan
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risen dough ready for the oven
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  1. Let the shaped dough rise in the loaf pan, covered with greased plastic wrap until doubled, about 30 minutes.
  2. The dough should crest the pan by about 1-inch in the centre of the pan. When ready to bake, dust lightly with whole wheat flour, if you like, then bake.

Recipe video

Recipe Tips

  • Like all bread recipes, only add as much flour as needed to make a dough that mostly cleans the bowl, but with a bit sticking to the bottom of the bowl (refer to the photos or the recipe video to see how the finished dough should look). You may not need all of the flour specified. Or you may need a bit more.
  • Likewise, rising times are estimates only, and will vary depending on the time of year and temperature in your kitchen. Let the dough rise just until doubled, however long that takes. That said, do note that this bread is an especially fast riser, so don’t wander far.
  • The recipe as written makes one loaf, but you can easily double or triple the recipe to make more. Simply use the 2X or 3X buttons in the Recipe Card to double or triple the ingredients automatically.
honey whole wheat bread sliced on cutting board

Storing and freezing

Store bread in an airtight container at room temperature for 3-4 days. If you’d like to extend the shelf-life, you can pop it in the refrigerator after the first day, where it will keep well for up to a week.

This bread freezes beautifully for longer storage. To freeze, wrap well and freeze for up to 3 months.

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honey whole wheat bread sliced on cutting board

Get the Recipe: Honey Wheat Bread

This delicious honey wheat bread is a great everyday bread, that's perfect for sandwiches and makes great toast, too!
4.91 stars from 11 ratings
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Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Rising Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours 10 minutes
Yield: 14 servings

Ingredients

  • 1/2 cup (125 ml) lukewarm water, warmed to about 105F
  • 1/2 cup (125) milk, warmed to about 105F, or replace milk with more water
  • 1 cup (125 g) whole wheat flour, spooned and levelled
  • 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry or instant yeast
  • 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
  • 3 Tablespoons honey
  • 3 Tablespoons vegetable oil, or canola oil or other neutral tasting oil
  • 2 cups (250-280 g) all-purpose flour, spooned and levelled, plus more as needed

Instructions
 

  • This recipe makes one 8 1/2 x 4 1/2-inch loaf. You can double or triple as needed. I highly recommend using a metal loaf pan in the size specified, for best results.
  • Warm the water and milk in the microwave or in a small saucepan, just until lukewarm (test with a thermometer if possible, to ensure the liquid isn't too hot, which may kill the yeast. Let cool, if necessary) Add the lukewarm water and the honey to a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the kneading hook. Sprinkle in the yeast, stir and let stand 5-10 minutes. (Mixture should be foaming a bit after 5 minutes)
  • Tip! Be sure to measure the flour by first stirring the flour, then spooning it into the measuring cups, then levelling off with a knife. This will ensure that you don't add too much flour and end up with a dry, crumbly dough. Better yet, use a kitchen scale and weigh out the flour to be sure.
  • Add the whole wheat flour, the salt and the vegetable oil and mix until combined. Gradually begin adding the all-purpose flour, adding about 1/2 cup at a time to start and mixing in between additions. As the dough starts to come together, decrease the size of the flour additions, adding just a bit at a time, adding only until the dough cleans the bowl and wraps the dough hook, with just a small sticky spot at the bottom of the bowl. You may not need to add all the flour specified. With the mixer on Speed 2, knead the dough for about 5 minutes
  • Tip! There is a video above this Recipe Card which shows what the finished dough should look like, which you might find helpful.
  • If kneading by hand, turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes. Add in only enough additional flour to stop the dough from sticking.
  • Remove the dough to a floured work surface and knead briefly, adding additional flour only if the dough is sticking to your hands or the work surface. When dough is smooth and elastic, place it in a well oiled bowl or large measuring cup. Turn it several times in the bowl to coat the surface of the dough, and cover with a plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 45 – 60 minutes.
  • Grease an 8 1/2 x4 1/2-inch loaf pan and set aside.
  • Remove the dough from the bowl to a lightly floured surface. (If making more than one loaf, divide the dough into equal sized pieces at this point). Press dough down to deflate, while moving and shaping it into a rectangle shape, about 8-inches wide and 12-inches long. Roll up the dough from the short side, pinching it together with each roll. Pinch together the seam when finished and place seam side down into greased loaf pan(s).
  • Tip! If you'd like to see how I like to shape a sandwich loaf, refer to the Recipe Video above this Recipe Card.
  • Spray a piece of plastic wrap and place over the loaf pan, with the greased side down. Allow the loaf to rise until dough doubles and crests about 1-inch above the edge of the baking pan in the middle, about 30 minutes. If desired, just before baking, lightly sprinkle the top of the loaf with some whole wheat flour.
  • Preheat oven to 375F (regular bake setting/not fan assisted) when dough is almost risen.
  • Bake at 375° F for 30 – 40 minutes or until thermometer inserted in the bottom of the bread reads 195-200° F. (Mine generally needs about 35 minutes). Immediately remove bread from pans and cool completely on a cooling rack before slicing. (Slicing a yeast bread loaf while hot can make for a gummy loaf.)
  • Once cooled completely, store in an airtight container or bag at room temperature for about 3 days or wrap well and freeze up to 3 months.

Notes

Note: This recipe was updated in January 2024, with a slight modification to the original recipe. If you are a fan of the original version, simply reduce the yeast used to 1 1/4 teaspoons, lengthen the rising time and use all water instead of half water/half milk. The new version increases the yeast, for a taller, lighter, quicker loaf and replaces half the water with milk, for a more tender crumb.
Nutritional information for one loaf, cut into 14 slices. You may get more of less slices from your loaf.
You can use the 2X or 3X buttons in the Recipe Card to double or triple this recipe to make 2 or 3 loaves.
Be sure to read the notes above this Recipe Card,  for more tips on making this bread. You’ll also find step-by-step photos and a recipe video, that you might find helpful.
Cuisine: American, Canadian
Course: Bread
Author: Jennifer Maloney
Serving: 1serving, Calories: 143kcal, Carbohydrates: 25g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 4g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g, Monounsaturated Fat: 1g, Trans Fat: 0.02g, Cholesterol: 0.4mg, Sodium: 88mg, Potassium: 84mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 4g, Vitamin A: 17IU, Vitamin C: 0.03mg, Calcium: 17mg, Iron: 1mg
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