Baked

Regular, gluten-full wheat bread, I've missed you. Life has been pretty crazy lately, and I needed to "knead", so I made a good old fashioned loaf of whole wheat bread and added apricots and pistachios. Gluten-free bread can be tasty, but I miss the kneading. ;)

Whole Wheat Bread with Apricots and Pistachios - makes one large loaf

1/4 cup honey or maple syrup (I used honey this time)
1 packet yeast
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 cups whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup dried apricots, chopped
1 cup pistachios, chopped

In a medium bowl, mix together 1 3/4 cups warm water (about 115f), honey and yeast. Let stand for about 5 minutes, or until mixture becomes foamy. In a separate bowl, stir together whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, salt, apricots and pistachios. Add yeast mixture, then oil. Stir to combine, then turn dough out onto a floured work surface. Now here comes my favourite part: knead for about 8 minutes, or until dough is elastic and smooth. Whoohoo!

Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl, turning to coat. Cover with a damp cloth and let stand, in a warm spot, for about 90 minutes or until dough doubles in size.
Punch down dough, and knead a few times, on a lightly floured surface. Shape into a round loaf, and place on a lightly oiled baking sheet. Cover with a damp cloth and let rise for another 45 minutes or until doubled in size. Preheat oven to 375f.  Make a couple of slashes, with a sharp knife, on top of dough and bake for about 45 minutes or until bread sounds "hollow" when tapped. Cool on a wire rack. This bread is perfect, toasted, for breakfast, and also makes great sandwiches. Love it.

Have a good day! Back soon.
janis