I’ve spent the last year and a half learning how to bake bread. It’s been fun, not always easy, and to be honest, not always successful. There are so many nuances to it: proper kneading techniques, making sure you don’t over-proof or under-proof the dough, getting the flour-to-water ratios just right, understanding the gluten structure of different types of flour, and having all the right tools — not to mention enough time — for all the steps.

When I came across this method I was very skeptical because it kind of goes against everything I’d learned so far. For one thing, it only takes about 15 minutes to throw together, if that. After a 10-minute rest, a bit of shaping, then a 30-minute rise, it’s ready to bake. You “knead” it in a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (!) on high (!!) for just two minutes. It doesn’t compare to an artisan loaf with it’s overnight ferment and beautiful open crumb, but it makes a perfectly acceptable sandwich loaf and best of all, it’s something you can make on the fly.

I’ve listed the ingredients (in grams) so you can make your loaf along with the video instruction linked below. I also made four different versions so you have the option to make either a whole wheat, white, oatmeal raisin or ryre.

• 300g bread or all pupose flour < OR >
  • Whole wheat: 240g whole wheat flour+ 60g bread or all purpose flour
  • Oatmeal raisin: 300g bread or all purpose flour + 50g oats
  • Rye: 125g rye flour + 175g bread or all purpose flour
• 7g (2 tsp) yeast
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup milk (any kind: dairy, oat, almond, soy, etc.) at 120 degrees
• 2 Tbsp honey < OR >
  • Whole wheat: 2 Tbsp brown sugar
  • Oatmeal raisin: 2 Tbsp maple syrup + 1 tsp cinammon
  • Rye: 1 Tbsp sugar + 2 tsp caraway seeds + 1 tsp dill seeds
• 1 egg (if you want to omit the egg, use 1 Tbsp oil in its place)
• 2 Tbsp oil or melted butter (I use butter for the white and oat versions)

Notes:

1. The video is for the whole wheat version. I translated the cup measurements into grams because it’s so much more accurate. If you don’t have a scale, it’s 1-2/3 cups whole wheat flour + 1/3 cup all-purpose or bread flour.
2. She uses 1/4 cup of flour once the batter is mixed to stiffen it up a bit. I add it in one tablespoon at a time, because you might not need that much, and if you dump it all in at once, you can’t take it back.
3. You can use 8 x 4 loaf pan if that’s all you have, but 9 x 5 is better
4. She doesn’t grease her pan, but I went ahead and greased mine just in case
5. If you let it rise for too long, and it gets too high, you’ll over-proof it, and it’ll collapse in the oven. So no highter than 1″ for sure. It’s always better to underproof a little than over proof!
6. Mine definitely got too dark on the top, so do cover with foil

If you want all whole wheat try Week 21: 100% Whole Wheat from Year 2020. It’s a bit more complicated (a lot, really), but well worth the effort for such a healthy, delicious result!