Whole Wheat Honey Oatmeal Bread
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Absolutely nothing beats the taste and smell of homemade bread! This honey oatmeal bread is made with white whole wheat flour, honey, and rolled oats. The taste of this bread is far superior to store-bought bread. Once you try making it at home, you’ll never go back to the store-bought stuff!
Hi friend!
Can I be totally 100% real with you today and say that sometimes I have a really hard time deciding how much of my life to share with you on the blog.
I mean, sure I say things like, my kitchen looks like the Tasmanian Devil just ripped through my front door, sometimes. And we talk about how there are 3 dozen eggs in my refrigerator at any given moment now that I food blog for a living.
But i’m talking about the stuff that makes us all feel a little, uneasy.
The stuff that life brings along to test us with. To see how strong we are. The kind of stuff that only bread making can cure. The glorious process that lets you just unplug from life, even if it’s just for a little bit. A little honey and a little butter always makes me feel better. I often can’t decide whether the stuff that goes on in my personal life is stuff that I should be sharing. The downs of life is what i’m talking about in particular. I try to keep the blog a positive place for us to get together a few times a week, cook and share a laugh. Okay, maybe you don’t laugh at some of the dumb stuff I do. Hopefully you at least give a light chuckle? Okay what about a snort. Honestly. I’m good with that. I’ll take it.
What i’m trying to say is that i’ve got a lot on my plate and I just need some good vibes sent my way, please.
Alright alright! Enough of this stuff. Let’s talk honey oatmeal bread!
Bread making. Do you love it or hate it? Though you may be one of those that hate the process, the outcome is always 120% delish.
I mean, is there anyone on the planet that absolutely doesn’t just LOVE the taste of homemade bread? And what about that smell. I’m telling you, the smell of this bread tormented me. I mean, I even resorted to watching episodes of The Vampire Diaries to help get my mind of it while the bread baked. And oh Mahhh gah. I just couldn’t wait for it to come out.
Shamelessly I sliced it hot, smothered butter and a little more honey on there and it.. was love… at first bite…? <– Okay that sounds like a line that’s more appropriate for The Vampire Diaries. Come to think of it, they may have even used it in one of the earlier seasons. But it totally applies to this bread too. It’s soft, and chewy, and warm, and comforting. All the things a good homemade honey oatmeal bread should be.
Homemade bread doesn’t have to be difficult to make. As long as you follow the step by step directions you should be fine. I do suggest reading the whole recipe at least twice before starting. I find doing that before hand really helps ensure you’re doing it right and guarantees success. You can’t buy the glorious bread smells that are about to come out of your oven. So make it for that reason alone.
The first step for making this honey oatmeal bread is to figure out whether you live in humid weather or if it’s raining the day that you decide to make this bread. This bread is pretty straight forward to make, but keep in mind that if you answered yes to either of the above conditions you may need a little extra flour to bring this all together. Fear not. I’ll explain exactly how much and when to add it in.
What I really love about this bread is that there are no refined sugars — at all. And we’re using just 3 tablespoons of butter in the whole bread. Yup, you read that right. Along with that almost half the flour used in this bread is whole wheat flour. I used white whole wheat flour, but regular whole wheat flour would work just the same.
This is the easiest bread to make. That’s especially true if you’re a beginner at yeast breads. Trust me, you have to try this. Homemade honey oatmeal bread with honey and sprinkled oats on top. The texture is fluffy and chewy, yet sturdy enough for a sandwich. The crust, browned to perfection hearty and crunchy around the edges. Trust me, you won’t be removing the crust on this bread. Everything about this bread is perfect. Sweetened with honey.
This the perfect bread for your family to enjoy, week after week.
P.S. Check below the recipe for pictures of the bread making process.
Whole Wheat Honey Oatmeal Bread
Absolutely nothing beats the taste and smell of homemade bread! This honey oatmeal bread is made with white whole wheat flour, honey, and rolled oats. The taste of this bread is far superior to store-bought bread. Once you try making it at home, you'll never go back to the store-bought stuff!
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cup hot water (about 105ºF)
- ⅓ cup honey + 1 tablespoon (for topping)
- 3 tablespoons butter, melted
- 2 ¼ teaspoons (1 standard packet) active yeast (see note)
- 1 ¼ - 1 ½ cups whole wheat flour (I used white whole wheat)
- 1 ¾ cup all purpose flour
- ¼ cup dry milk
- 1 ½ teaspoon salt
- ¾ cup old-fashioned rolled oats + 1 tablespoon (for topping)
Instructions
- In a small bowl or a glass measuring cup, combine the hot water, ⅓ cup honey, butter, and yeast. Allow the yeast to bloom for 5-7 minutes. You should be able to smell and see it foam up at the top.
- Combine all the dry ingredients, 1 ¼ cup whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, dry milk, salt, and ¾ cup rolled oats in a bowl. Stir until just mixed.
- Add the dry ingredients to the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough hook attachment. Once the yeast has bloomed, add the liquid ingredients to the mixer, and mix on medium speed for 10-12 minutes or until the dough comes together. If after 10 minutes, the dough is still not forming a ball, add the whole wheat flour in 1 tablespoon at a time until the dough just holds together. You may or may not need all 4 of the remaining tablespoons of whole wheat flour.
- Using a dough scraper, dump the dough into a lightly oiled bowl that's at least 2-3 times larger than the dough. Flip the dough around so that all sides are oiled. Wrap the bowl with plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm place for 1-2 hours or until it has doubled in size (see notes for where I let my dough rise).
- Spray a 9x5 loaf pan with cooking spray and set aside. Dump the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Flatten the dough into a 9 inch square with your fingers, but do not over-work the dough. Bring one side of the dough into the center and roll the dough to the end. Pinch the seams together and tuck the two ends and seal. Place the seam side down in the loaf pan so that the top of the bread is nice and smooth. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for 1-2 hours again or until the dough is half an inch away from the top of the loaf pan.
- Position a rack near the center of the oven and preheat the oven to 350ºF. Heat the remaining tablespoon of honey in the microwave then, spread it on the dough gently, sprinkle with the remaining tablespoon of oats. Place the bread in the oven and allow the bread to bake for 50-60 minutes or until you tap the surface and hear a hollow noise. If your bread is starting to brown on top quickly, tent the bread with a piece of foil after the first 30 minutes of baking so the top doesn't brown too much.
- Let the pan cool on a wire rack for 10-15 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool completely before slicing. Top with butter, honey, or jam. Enjoy!
Notes
- Instant yeast will also work for this recipe but the rising times listed will not be accurate. Your dough will rise in almost half the time than what is listed.
- Let the dough rise: I like to run my dryer on the low heat setting for 5-8 minutes prior to placing my covered dough bowl inside. Since it is both a warm and dark place, it is the ideal environment for bread proofing.
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37 Comments on “Whole Wheat Honey Oatmeal Bread”
Hi Marzia,
I made this bread and I love the taste. I think it is as perfect base for a cinnamon raisin variant. However, I live in a warm tropical country, the Philippines and I think the weather might have affected the rising time of the bread. I followed your instructions but I over proofed the dough. It was still under an hour but the dough ballooned, rising above the pan’s rim. The middle collapsed a bit while I was cooling the baked bread. I will make this again but will adjust the rising times. Thanks for the recipe!
Hi Roselyn! I warmer weather would definitely cause the bread to rise much, much faster. Instead of using the full 2 1/4 teaspoons of yeast, I would suggest reducing the amount to 1 teaspoon instead. This will allow you to keep everything else constant and slow down the growth of the yeast and put you in that 1-2 hour window. I would also keep the dough somewhere in the room temperature range (instead of the suggested warm spot) Hope that helps!
You got me into bread making! I’ve been making this bread almost every week for the last two years…it’s that good! Sometimes I add a 1/2 cup of a mixture of seeds, poppy, sunflower, sesame, etc. BTW, there are only two of us in my home and there are always 3- 4 dozen eggs in my refrigerator, too!
I’m so glad to hear you’ve been making this recipe and that we’re not alone in having that many eggs ? thanks so much for taking the time to come back and comment!
This was so delicious and easy to make. Not too sweet at all. I want to make more but am all out of all purpose flour. Can I use bread flour in its place?
I think bread flour should work here. You may end up needing a little more liquid though when you’re bringing the dough together!
Hey , Could I skip all purpose flour and use only whole wheat flour?
I think that should be fine but the bread may take slightly longer to rise though!
The bread sounds wonderful. Can sourdough starter be used instead of the active yeast? Thank you
I’ve never experimented with sourdough starter here so I can’t really say. If you decide to give it a go, would love to know how it went 🙂
Can this be baked free form? My bread tin is being borrowed at the moment and I just made the dough. Haha Here we go! hope it works!
Haven’t tried baking it without the baking pan so I’m really not sure!
I have made this bread a few times now, twice in the last few day’s. It is so easy and so very tasty! Not too strong a wheat taste, for those who don’t like or cannot have. I can’t wait to try it with oat flour as someone else tried and praised.
Excellent bread! I made this for my picky son and he loved it. Making my second loaf this afternoon. It’s excellent for toast and makes great peanut butter and jelly sandwiches!
Can this dough be frozen and baked later? I’m at our house in Central America and getting bread pans and other things are not easy. I have one loaf pan. Can I freeze one for later?
I loved the first three loaves of this bread that I baked. The last three I’ve baked, though, have been verrrrry dry. It starts to crumble the second day and is almost too dry for toast (if that’s even possible.) I store it in a zipper top bag after baking. I’ve tried decreasing the baking time 5 minutes, but really hesitant to add more liquid. Any ideas on how to keep it moist and chewy?
Also… The butter to be used is salted or unsalted?? The recipe does not specify…. Sorry if my question sounds stupid????
either will work. I just usually prefer salted butter.
Ur bake looks beautiful Marzia…
This is my first try for a bread….so lil excited!!
I m gonna use “Convection Bake” mode to prevent uneven/quick browning… Do i need to make any changes in the baking parameters u suggested in the recipe..??
There may be a slight change in baking time. You’ll need to monitor your bread towards the end to ensure it doesn’t burn.
Hi,can I also use 2tbsp unsalted butter and 2tbsp shortening instead of the 3 tbsp butter?
You would only need 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter and 1 tablespoon of shortening as the recipe calls for 3 tablespoons of butter total.
I made this recipe late last week and it is truly a thing of beauty, both to look at and to eat. However, my son didn’t like the sweetness. Can the amount of honey be reduced without affecting the end result? Thanks!
Hi Julie! Glad you enjoyed the oatmeal bread. You can cut the honey back to about ¼ cup and this won’t affect the recipe but will definitely be a little less sweet.
Hola , me gusta mucho tu receta, me podrias por favor porner la receta en gramos?, soy española y aquí no usamos las medidas en tazas, gracias.
Can I make this dough in my bread machine?
You could definitely make the bread dough in the machine but I wouldn’t recommend baking the bread in it.
I hate making bread as well but this looks so worth it!
Hi! In my country im having hard time to find whole weat flour (ar any other whole flour). Can I replace it maybe with oatmeal flour?? In the same amounts? Maybe it will be less healthy (?) but still the same results?
Hi Dyana! I’d love to tell you that you could replace it with oatmeal flour, but unfortunately, I’ve only tested this recipe with whole wheat flour. I did do some research and I don’t think the recipe will work with oatmeal flour as oatmeal flour recipes will require more yeast than recipes using whole wheat flour.
Hi! I found the whole wheat flour!! But instead of using all purpose flour, I used oatmeal flour and the result was AWESOME!!!! This is such a great recipe!! This is my very first bread and my family was stunned! The flavour and texture are great! Thank you very much for sharing this recipe!!!!!!
Omg! That’s awesome! Glad it worked out! 🙂
Dear Marzia sending you good vibes and positivity from India xx
I would love to try this bread soon however
One question – we dont get rolled oats here, just the Quaker Oats instant oats, presume this should be okay ?
Thank you Rukhsana! 🙂 You can replace the rolled oats with instant oats, but just keep in mind that instant oats are usually just cut into smaller pieces so the texture may be a little different. Also, you will definitely need to tent the top of the bread sooner as the instant oats will brown a lot faster.
This looks so warm and wonderful and lovely! Thank you for sharing it! Do you know if there is something I could replace the dry milk with? My husband can’t have Milk, and I know he’d be sad to see this in the kitchen and not get to enjoy it as well! 🙂
Thanks, Erica
Hi Erica,
You can replace the 1/4 cup of dry milk with 1/4 cup of almond or soy milk. Also, cut back on the water by 1/4 cup. So it’s 1/4 cup almond/soy milk and 1 cup of water. Add the milk to the water and heat it to 105ºF. Though I haven’t tried this myself, the results should be similar if not the same. Enjoy! 🙂
Sending you lots of good vibes from California, sunshine and ocean air.
Thank you Elaine! 🙂