This easy homemade honey wheat bread is soft and slightly sweetened. Made from scratch, this everyday bread is great for sandwiches, toast and more!
This post was originally published in October 2019 and has been updated for content.
One of my fondest memories as a kid is the smell of fresh baked bread made by my mom. There is nothing better than a slice of freshly baked bread, slathered in butter and drizzled with honey. This honey wheat bread is both light and airy, but dense enough to be used for sandwiches.
Try this homemade bread topped with homemade blackberry jam or to make a BLT!
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🍞 Ingredient notes
- Yeast - This recipe uses dry active yeast to leaven the bread, but instant yeast can also be used. The difference between instant and dry active yeast is that dry active yeast needs to be dissolved in liquid, while instant yeast can be mixed right in. Instant yeast will cause rising times to be less than when dry active yeast is used.
- Honey - This bread does not contain sugar, but uses honey instead. Your favorite store bought honey or local honey can be used to slightly sweeten this homemade bread.
📋 Substitutions and variations
- Whole Wheat - For a whole wheat version of this bread, simply use only wheat flour instead of a blend. This will produce a denser loaf of whole wheat bread.
- White - Instead of a blend, using only all purpose flour to provide an everyday white sandwich bread.
🥣 Step by step instructions
First, combine the warm water, yeast and honey together in a bowl and let it sit for a bit till it gets foamy. Add in the salt, wheat flour and 2 cups of the white flour and mix in a stand mixer or by hand until the ingredients are combined.
Next, slowly add in the remaining white flour, a little bit at a time, until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and forms a ball.
Continue to knead the dough by hand or in the stand mixer for 5-10 minutes until the dough is smooth and bounces back when you press a finger into it. Cover and let the dough rise covered in a warm spot for about an hour until it's doubled in size.
Once the dough is risen, punch it down in the bowl. Gently stretch the dough into a rectangle that is about as wide as the loaf pan.
Starting on the short side, roll the dough up tightly and place in the greased loaf pan. Cover and let it rise again in a warm spot for hour, until doubled in size.
Bake the loaf in a 350˚ oven for 35-40 minutes until golden brown. Thump your finger on the baked loaf of bread and if it makes a hollow noise, then it's done.
Rub the top of the freshly baked loaf with butter and then let it cool for 10 minutes in the pan. Remove it from the pan and let it finish cooling on a rack.
If you ever don't recognize a tool or skill that is mentioned, be sure to look it up in our Glossary of Cooking Terms and Definitions for more information.
⭐ Expert tips
- Make sure your water is warm, but not too hot so the yeast can activate properly. It should be about 110˚ when checked with a kitchen thermometer or the temperature of luke warm bath water.
- You may not need to use all of the white flour and you may need more. The amount of flour needed depends on the weather and how the flour is measured. The dough should not be sticky, but tacky to the touch.
- Rub the top of the freshly baked loaf of bread with butter to help make a softer crust.
- Try to let the bread cool until just barely warm to help prevent the bread from drying out or becoming gummy.
⏲️ Make ahead and storage instructions
This honey wheat bread recipe can be doubled or even tripled and stored for use later. Make sure your stand mixer will accommodate the dough or mix it by hand in a large mixing bowl.
Freshly baked and cooled bread will last in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days. To freeze this bread, make sure it is fully cooled and then wrap it tightly in plastic and store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 4 months.
🥖 More homemade bread recipes
If you loved this recipe for honey wheat bread, check out these other homemade bread recipes that I know you will love too!
📖 Recipe
Homemade Honey Wheat Bread
Ingredients
Instructions
- Grease the inside of a 9 inch loaf pan with butter or baking spray and set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl or in the bowl of a stand mixer, combine water, yeast, and honey. Let it stand for about 5 minutes until the mixture starts to become foamy.
- Add in salt, all of the wheat flour and 2 cups of the white flour. Using a wooden spoon or dough hook, mix the ingredients slowly until they just come together.
- Continue to add more white flour, a little bit at a time, while mixing until the dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl and forms a ball.
- Continue to knead in the mixer on medium speed or turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead by hand. Knead for about 5-10 minutes until the dough is smooth and bounces back when a finger is pressed into it.
- Spray the bowl used to mixed the dough with baking spray and place the kneaded dough in it. Cover with plastic wrap or a towel and let it sit in a warm spot to rise until doubled in size, approximately 1 hour.
- Remove the cover from the bowl and punch down the dough.
- Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and stretch into a rectangle that is approximately 9 inches by 12 inches.
- Starting on the shorter side, roll up the rectangle to create a loaf shape.
- Place the shaped dough into the prepared pan and cover with a towel or plastic wrap. Let the dough rise for a second time in a warm spot, until doubled in size, approximately 1 hour.
- When the dough is almost done rising, preheat the oven to 350°. Bake for 35-40 minutes in the preheated oven until golden brown. It should also make a hollow thumping sound when tapped on.
- Remove the bread from the oven and rub the top of the loaf of bread with butter to make a softer crust.
- Allow the bread to cool for 10 minutes in the pan and then turn it out onto a cooling rack to finish cooling.
Notes
- This recipe will yield a 9-inch loaf of bread which can be sliced in 12-16 slices.
- Make sure the water is warm, but not too hot, so the yeast can activate properly. It should be about 110˚ when checked with a kitchen thermometer or the temperature of luke warm bath water.
- All of the white flour may not need to be used and more might be needed. The amount of flour needed depends on the weather and how the flour is measured. The dough should not be sticky, but tacky to the touch.
- Rubbing the top of the freshly baked loaf of bread with butter will help to make a softer crust.
- Try to let the bread cool until just barely warm to prevent the bread from drying out or becoming gummy.
Substitutions and Variations
- Yeast - This recipe uses dry active yeast to leaven the bread, but instant yeast can also be used. The difference between instant and dry active yeast is that dry active yeast needs to be dissolved in liquid, while instant yeast can be mixed right in. Active yeast will cause rising times to be less than when dry active yeast is used.
- Whole Wheat - For a whole wheat version of this bread, simply use only wheat flour instead of a blend. This will produce a denser loaf of wheat bread.
- White - Instead of a blend, using only all purpose flour to provide an everyday white sandwich bread.
Make Ahead and Storage Instructions
- This recipe can be doubled or tripled and then stored for use later. Make sure the stand mixer will accommodate the large amount of dough or mix it by hand in a large mixing bowl.
- Freshly baked and cooled bread will last in an airtight container at room temperature for 2-3 days. To freeze this bread, make sure it is fully cooled and then wrap it tightly in plastic and store in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 4 months.
Maya Mallaby-Kay
These look gorgeous! I normally use sugar in my loaves but I love the idea of honey instead!
Amanda | Saporito Kitchen
Awww thank you so much! I love using honey, let me know how you like it!