Crusty Whole Wheat Italian Bread Recipes

ITALIAN WHOLE WHEAT BREAD

Steps:

• Mix the dry ingredients together.
• Add 1 1/2 Cups of water and start wetting the dough.Mix it toghether roughly-pinching toghether and incorporating the water into the dough.
• Add another 1/4 cup of water and mix till the water is incorporated and you get a "sticky" dough.Add more water if needed 1 tbsp at a time.
• Usually,bread dough is very sticky and soft.Though if you are unable to handle the bread, you can add more flour.
• Knead it inside a large bowl(Indian way) or the counter for 15-20 minutes.If hand kneading, the more you knead the better the bread will be.
• If using a dough machine or food processor-Only process the dough for a max of 30 seconds after all the ingredients are incorporated otherwise it will be over done and the gluten bonds will break.
• Put the dough in a large bowl. At least 3 times the size of the dough.Brush the top of the dough with a little oil and cover with a moist cloth/cling film.
• Let the bread rise on the counter for 3-4 hours till it's doubled.If the bread hasn't reached the double size but has risen, let it sit for another couple hours.
• After you see that the bread has risen to double its size and you see small bubbles underneath the surface, take the dough out.
• Lightly press it so that the air trapped inside escapes.
• You can shape the bread into a round boule or a loaf.Watch this video for help on shaping.
• Keep the shaped dough in the sheet/pan for baking.Let it rise inside the pan for about 1 hour on the counter.
• Scour the bread with a sharp knife or a blade.2-3 rough cuts so that the steam has a place to escape.
• Preheat the oven to 180 degree.Slide about 1-2 cups of ice in the bottom most part of the oven.
• Place the bread inside the oven.Bake for 20-30 minutes at 180 degrees.
• To check it its baked- put a skewer through or knock the back of the bread and it should sound hollow.

CRUSTY WHOLE WHEAT ITALIAN BREAD

Steps:

• ----ForBread Machine----.
• Add all ingredients except cornmeal to bread machine pan in the order recommended by your machine's manufacturer.
• Select dough cycle and start machine.
• ----ConventionalMethod----.
• In large bowl, dissolve yeast, brown sugar, and ginger in warm water.
• Let stand 5 minutes until yeast foams.
• Add salt and bread flour; beat well.
• Stir in whole wheat flour to make a stiff dough.
• Turn out onto lightly floured board and knead 10 minutes or until dough is springy, smooth and satiny.
• Wash bowl, grease it, and add dough to bowl; turn over to grease top.
• Let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour.
• ----Shapingand Baking----.
• Lightly oil or grease a 14x17" baking sheet and sprinkle with cornmeal; set aside.
• Punch down the dough.
• Divide in half and, on a lightly floured surface, shape into long loaves, rolling each piece first into a 5x12" rectangle, then rolling each up along the long side to make a long, narrow loaf.
• Pinch edges to seal, and taper ends.
• Place loaves, seam side down, on prepared baking sheet.
• Let rise until doubled, about 45 minutes.
• Make 4-5 slashes across each loaf with sharp knife or razor blade.
• Brush each loaf with water and sprinkle with whole wheat flour.
• Bake in a preheated 400 degree F oven for 15-20 minutes, until loaves are browned and crisp.
• Remove to a wire rack to cool completely.
• NOTE: I also use a spray bottle filled with water and spray the loaves and oven walls once or twice at 5-minute intervals at the beginning of baking.
• You could also make this into one large oblong loaf or a round loaf, but baking time would need to be increased.

MOM'S ITALIAN BREAD

Steps:

• In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Add the sugar, salt and 3 cups flour. Beat on medium speed for 3 minutes. Stir in remaining flour to form a soft dough., Turn onto a floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes. Place in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour., Punch dough down. Turn onto a floured surface; divide in half. Shape each portion into a loaf. Place each loaf seam side down on a greased baking sheet. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 30 minutes. , Meanwhile, preheat oven to 400°. With a sharp knife, make 4 shallow slashes across top of each loaf. Bake 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from pans to wire racks to cool.

RUSTIC WHOLE WHEAT BREAD

Steps:

• Stir all-purpose flour, whole wheat flour, brown sugar, instant yeast, and salt together in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment. Whisk water and oil together in a cup; pour into flour mixture. Mix on low speed until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl into a ball.
• Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface; knead just until dough is smooth, about 1 minute. Divide and shape dough into 3 balls for small loaves or 2 balls for larger loaves. Dust loaves with flour and place onto a baking sheet; cover with a towel, and let rise until doubled in size, about 25 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Slash an "X" about 1/4-inch deep in tops of loaves with a sharp knife.
• Bake in the preheated oven until loaves are golden brown and sound hollow when tapped, about 25 minutes. Remove from oven to cool completely on a wire rack.

ITALIAN WHEAT ROLLS

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine olive oil, white sugar and salt. Add boiling water and stir to dissolve sugar; let cool to lukewarm.
• In a small bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
• When sugar and water mixture has cooled, add yeast mixture, eggs, whole wheat flour and 2 cups bread flour. Stir in the remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, beating well after each addition. When the dough has pulled together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.
• Divide the dough into twenty four equal size pieces and form into rounds. Place the rounds on lightly greased baking sheets. Cover the rolls with a damp cloth and let rise until doubled in volume, about 40 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bake in preheated oven until golden brown, about 15 to 20 minutes.

WHOLE WHEAT FRENCH BREAD

Steps:

• Combine the flours. In a large bowl, combine 3 cups flour mixture and the yeast. Set aside. Heat water, sugar, salt and butter to 115°-120°. Add to flour and yeast. Beat on low speed for 30 seconds; increase speed to medium and beat 3 minutes longer. Stir in enough remaining flour to make a soft dough. , Turn onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes. Place dough in a greased bowl, turning once to grease the top. Cover and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour. , Punch dough down; divide in half and let rest 10 minutes. Roll each half into a 15x12-in. rectangle. Roll up jelly-roll style, starting with the long side. Pinch seal and turn ends under to form a smooth loaf. Sprinkle 2 baking sheets with cornmeal and place each loaf, seam side down, on a greased baking sheet. Make slashes every 2-1/2 in. in the top of each loaf. Cover and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour. , Beat egg white and water; brush some over loaves. Refrigerate remaining mixture. Bake at 375° for 20 minutes. Brush again with egg white mixture and bake 15-20 minutes longer or until golden brown. Remove pans to wire racks to cool.