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Bread machine whole wheat bread is easier than you think. Just a few ingredients tossed into the machine, and a few hours later a wholesome loaf of soft 100% whole wheat sandwich bread emerges almost by magic.
In the past few weeks, we’ve been our bread machine to nearly daily use. I love making bread at home, but with two toddlers underfoot, I’m glad to have a bread machine that does the work for me. My little ones are especially fond of my simple bread machine white bread, and they go nuts for my bread machine honey white bread, but I was hoping to up the nutritional content a bit by trying whole wheat.
I know there are a lot of transitional loaves out there, with part whole wheat and part white flour, but I decided to go all in and see how they like it. The crumb on this 100% whole wheat sandwich bread is softened a bit by adding a bit of olive oil, and then a hint of sweetness comes through thanks to the addition of maple syrup.
All in all, it’s a very wholesome loaf that stays soft with baking and holds together beautifully when sliced. I couldn’t be more pleased.
The real test comes when I hand a slice to the babies. The verdict! Toddler Approved! Slather a slice with butter, and my little ones clean their plates every time.
This bread is soft and flavorful enough that it allows for a seamless transition from white bread to 100% whole wheat. And this mama’s happy that I didn’t have to sneak the whole wheat into the bread a cup at a time. It makes things simpler, and everyone’s happy with the outcome.
In the next few batches, I’m planning on trying honey (instead of maple) as a sweetener, and I’ll be testing whether or not I can substitute butter for the olive oil to enrich this whole wheat loaf. I may also try adding small amounts adding whole grains like oats or millet, and maybe some flax seeds too.
If you’re not ready to go all in on 100% whole wheat, I’ve recently added a couple of transitional recipes as well. I’d suggest trying my Bread Machine Honey Wheat Bread or Whole Wheat Cinnamon Raisin Bread, as both have a good bit of sweetness to balance the whole wheat flavor.
Ingredients for Bread Machine 100% Whole Wheat Bread
I’m baking this as a 2-pound loaf in my Zojirushi Supreme Bread Machine, which makes beautiful horizontal loaves in a pan that uses two paddles for more efficient mixing. I’ve worked with many different machines over the years, and this one’s my favorite.
I’ve also included instructions for a 1 1/2-pound loaf if you’re working with a smaller machine or a machine that bakes vertically since they don’t work as well with full-sized loaves.
To make an extra small 1-pound loaf, just divide the 2-pound quantities in half.
Two Pound Loaf Ingredients
To make a 2-pound loaf of Bread Machine 100% Whole Wheat Bread, you’ll need the following:
Liquid Ingredients (add first)
- 1 1/4 cups (300 ml) lukewarm water
- 2 Tbsp. (30 ml) olive oil
- 1/4 cup (60 ml) maple syrup (or liquid honey)
Dry Ingredients (on top of wet)
- 3 1/2 cups (400 g) Whole Wheat Flour
- 1 1/2 tsp. (9 g) salt
- 2 tsp. (6 g) SAF Instant Yeast (or 2 1/2 tsp bread machine yeast)
One and a Half Pound Loaf Ingredients
To make a 1 ½ pound loaf of Bread Machine 100% Whole Wheat Bread, you’ll need the following:
Liquid Ingredients (add first)
- 1 cup (240 ml) lukewarm water
- 1 1/2 Tbsp. (22 ml) olive oil
- 3 Tbsp. (45 ml) Maple syrup (or liquid honey)
Dry Ingredients (on top of wet)
- 2 2/3 cups (300 g) Whole Wheat Flour
- 1 1/8 tsp. (7 g) salt
- 1 1/2 tsp. (5 g) SAF instant yeast (or 2 tsp bread machine yeast)
Making Bread Machine Whole Wheat Bread
To make this simple bread machine whole wheat bread, you’ll follow the instructions from the manufacturer of your machine. For most machines, that means starting with the wet ingredients first in the bottom of the pan. You then make an “island” on top of the wet ingredients with the flour, and then make a well in the flour to hold the other dry ingredients (in this case, salt and yeast).
That keeps everything dry until it’s time to start the machine, and allows you to do the time delay cycle if you’d like. (Even if you’re not doing a time delay, adding the dry on top of the wet helps the paddles evenly incorporate the flour without lumps).
turn on the bread machine and select the “whole wheat” cycle. Some machines don’t have a whole wheat cycle, in that case, just choose basic yeast bread.
The main difference with a whole wheat cycle is that the machine gives the bread more rise time, which helps the yeast slowly digest the more nutritionally dense whole wheat flour. If you don’t have a whole wheat cycle, I’d suggest adding 1/2 tsp extra yeast to help make up for that.
Turn the machine on and let it go. It should make a loaf of whole wheat bread without any more intervention from you.
Sometimes, however, it can help to watch for the first few minutes of the knead to ensure the water/flour balance is right. Add an extra tablespoon of water, if necessary, to help the dough come together. I’ve never had to do that with this recipe, but it’s always a good idea to watch just incase.
Otherwise, just let the machine do its thing, and you’ll have a loaf of fresh-baked bread before you know it.
Bread Machine 100% Whole Wheat Sandwich Bread
Equipment
Ingredients
Liquid Ingredients (add first)
- 1 1/4 cups water, lukewarm
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1/4 cup maple syrup, or liquid honey
Dry Ingredients (on top of wet)
- 3 1/2 cups Whole Wheat Flour
- 1 1/2 tsp. salt
- 2 tsp. SAF Instant Yeast, or 2 1/2 tsp bread machine yeast
Instructions
- Place all ingredients into the bread machine in the order listed. The dry ingredients go on top of the wet, making an island with the flour. Make a well in the flour and place the salt and yeast in it, so they don’t get wet until the machine starts kneading.
- Select the "whole wheat" setting if your bread machine has one. If not, choose basic white. If using the "basic white" setting, add an extra 1/2 tsp of yeast.
- Turn the machine on and allow it to run a full cycle, first kneading and then baking the bread in the machine.
- Allow bread to cool completely before cutting.
- Note: This recipe is perfectly fine to do as a time delayed bread. Be sure you keep the salt and yeast above the liquid and in the flour so they don’t get wet until the cycle starts.
Notes
One and a Half Pound Loaf Ingredients
To make a 1 ½ pound loaf of Bread Machine 100% Whole Wheat Bread, you’ll need the following:Liquid Ingredients (add first)
- 1 cup (240 ml) lukewarm water
- 1 1/2 Tbsp. (22 ml) olive oil
- 3 Tbsp. (45 ml) Maple syrup (or liquid honey)
Dry Ingredients (on top of wet)
- 2 2/3 cups (300 g) Whole Wheat Flour
- 1 1/8 tsp. (7 g) salt
- 1 1/2 tsp. (5 g) SAF instant yeast (or 2 tsp bread machine yeast)
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Bread Machine Recipes
Looking for more bread machine recipes?
- Bread Machine Cinnamon Raisin Bread
- Bread Machine Apple Cinnamon Bread
- Bread Machine Brioche
- Bread Machine Challah
- Bread Machine French Bread
- Bread Machine Honey Wheat Oat Bread
Bread Recipes
If you’re ready to make bread without a machine, I have a few more recipes for handmade bread too!
I made this and it looked great! Left to get the mail came back it was gone. My dogs loved it? So I’m now making it a second time and I’ll share how it went and tasted. Thai ou o making it so simple to follow.
Ha! Good to know it’s dog approved too =)
Greetings from Five Dock, Sydney, Australia. I just want to say that this is the most fantastic recipe for bread! I was blown away the first time and now, the second time. Brilliant.
Wonderful, Tony! So glad to hear it.
I used 1.5 plus 1/8 cups Prairie gold wheat berries (the amount stated on a bread making site to use for 3.5 c flour). Ground it to flour, (didn’t measure flour) and added all ingredients to bread maker as directed. The mixture was very soupy! I added 14 T flour to get it to forum a ball. Not complaining, just wondered if I did something wrong?
If you start with just over 1.5 cups of wheat berries…there’s no way that’s going to yield 3.5 cups of flour. Wheat packs tighter once its ground, it doesn’t fluff up to double its volume. Think about sugar cubes, they take up a lot more space (because of the air in between them) than just granulated sugar. A cup of sugar cubes, once crushed up, is less than a cup of sugar.
Loved this recipe. It was the best whole wheat bread recipe for bread machine. Every other I’ve tried doesn’t rise well or it includes white AP flour. It was delicious, great for sandwiches. Thank you!
Hello!
I have tried this recipe several times but the bread comes out dense and doesn’t rise as much. Could you tell me what i might be doing wrong or if you have any tips?
Most bread machines allow extra time for a whole wheat loaf to rise, and they often have a “whole wheat” cycle to accommodate for this. If your machine doesn’t have one, I’d suggest adding an extra 1/2 tsp of yeast to help it along.
The other potential problem is the type of flour. Some “whole wheat” flours are heartier than others, and if yours is a stone ground wheat, the extra bran in there can prevent gluten formation. Try using a lighter wheat flour that’s sifted more thoroughly.
I hate brown bread. I was raised 100% white bread and although I understand the health benefits of whole wheat I just could not stand to eat it. No more!! I tried this as an experiment and WOW!!! For the first time in my over 30 years of baking, I actually really enjoyed a whole wheat bread – to the point that I ate almost half the loaf at once 🙂 I used pure maple syrup as the sweetener and made it exactly as written. It turned out perfectly. This will now be my new “once a week” bread. Thank you so much for an awesome healthy recipe!
You are so welcome, Alison! I’m so glad you’ve changed your mind about wheat bread!
Hi! can you substitute sugar instead of honey or maple syrup? :)))
You can, however, it will screw up the hydration ratio in the bread, so you’ll have to use more liquid to account for the loss in the maple syrup.
Do you have the nutrition facts on how many calories approximately per slice?
I don’t, sorry.
Hello, so far so good, I hadn’t been motivated to use my Kenmore Breadmaker for a few years, until I found your recipe! Looking forward to it,But as a suggestion (based on so many duplicate weight questions, LOL), maybe insert “Makes a 2 lb. Loaf,” near the top of the recipe. Also, I will try converting American measurements to grams and ozs, then test it. If it works, I will publish them to you, for all of our non-US friends out there. Thank you so much, Leslie
I’ve gone in and added gram and ml equivalents for you, along with a 1 1/2 pound loaf recipe too.
I just made this in our bread machine. I used honey and added half a cup of flax seeds. It turned out perfectly! Very soft and delicious! Thank you very much for sharing this.
Do you add seeds at beginning or end