Easiest & Healthiest Homemade Bread

…simple joy by simpler living

The smell of fresh bread wafting through your home is a welcome treat no matter where you are!

I have three criteria if I am going to put forth the time and energy to cook. The food must be: super simple, super nutritious, and super delicious. This recipe is a core staple in my house and meets all three criteria with flying colors. It is a staple because it is a very nutrient-dense, delicious food that everybody loves and there are so many things that can be made from this delicious bread: croutons, french toast, sandwiches, scrambled egg with bread cubes…

Making homemade bread can be easy and delicious with a bread machine! It is also extremely healthy and more delicious when made with freshly ground wheat . Chock full of nutrition and melt-in-your-mouth flavor, I like it best with a little butter and a drizzling of honey.

No Guilt!

Freshly ground wheat is the key! It makes a world of difference to grind your own wheat. Freshly ground grains contain a wealth of nutrition not found in such abundance in other foods. This used to be the norm in society until “white bread” became popular. It was at that time in food history that more diseases and inflammation entered societies. Most of the problems people have with gluten is because of the nutritionally stripped wheat used to make almost everything in stores and not with the whole grain of the wheat kernel itself. For more info see “The Truth about Wheat“.

It sounds so primitive since this generation doesn’t know about it but grinding your own grains is so easy. All it takes is a grain grinder and then the doors to an avalanche of nutrients come falling your way. This bread is low-gluten, high protein, high fiber and flooded with vitamins and minerals. The evidence is how good you feel after you eat it. High, sustained energy and a full-feeling keep you from craving snacks between meals. I was literally the queen of snacking prior to eating this bread. Then I started eating this bread with an egg for breakfast and it filled me up so much that I wouldn’t want snacks or even be hungry for lunch until about 2pm. Good nutrition is what our bodies crave. Even if we get enough calories, we will continue to crave more and more food until the nutrients our bodies need are eaten. Good nutrition is also the best way to keep our weight in check. Filling up on on nutritious food first is a sure way to keep us healthier because our stomachs will be satisfied and our cravings will get under control.

SIMPLE

To make it simple, I keep the ingredients on hand so it is super easy to whip up a loaf of bread at a moment’s notice. I have invested in a bread machine and wheat grinder. I didn’t do it all at once but got a bread machine first and used a friend’s grinder. After I made sure it was something I wanted to do long term, I then investedin a grinder. I have never looked back or regretted the investment! I am going on 7 years of this homemade bread journey and have continued to enjoy all the many health benefits. It literally takes me less than 5 minutes to put all the ingredients in the machine. Then 3 hours later, a delicious loaf of bread is baked and filling my home with a mouth-watering aroma!

Economical

There is an initial investment of the grain mill and bread machine but the cost of the wheat berries to grind is so much cheaper than store bought flour, bread, cookies, muffins,… that you immediately start saving on the cost of groceries. This quickly offsets the cost of the grinder.

Ingredients

Fresh, high quality ingredients are key! I try to buy as much local as I can and it really makes a difference.

Flour – A variety of freshly ground wheat berries can be used but my favorite is a mix of: 2 cups hard white wheat, 2 cups hard red wheat and 1 cup of spelt. All hard white or half hard white wheat and half hard red wheat. Spelt gives a lighter, fluffier loaf. I have made loaves with all spelt and it rises more but is a little too light & airy for me. I think the rise and texture is perfect when adding 1 cup of spelt to 3-4 cups of wheat. The bread machine settings in the recipe work best for me when the wheat is chilled first. I have tweaked the settings over the years and what is listed guarantees a great loaf every time for me. It is SO easy to make! Humidity and altitude affect the rise so it may need to be tweaked for different locations.

Honey – Since honey is one of the most counterfeited foods sold in grocery stores, I only buy local honey. The taste is so delicious, that we often take a spoonful instead of a less healthy treat to satisfy sweet cravings. I buy in bulk to get the best deal from a local honey farm. It adds delicious flavor in this recipe and especially when drizzled on a steaming hot piece of fresh bread!

Salt – I used “Real Salt” from Azure Standard. It can also be bought on Amazon. It is unrefined and natural and good for all cooking and baking. Again, I buy in bulk to get the best price so I can afford this high quality salt.

**For Amazon links, I make a small commission at no additional cost to you for buying through these links. I ONLY recommend products I really believe in.**

Equipment

 Grain mill  I highly recommend this Nutrimill grain mill. I have had this and used it a lot for almost 10 years never having one single problem with it.

I recommend it over the Wondermill for the simple reason that the Wondermill will break if you turn it off while grinding. It was a MAJOR problem when using a friend’s mill and flour was spewing all over the place so it needed to be turned off. The repair was a huge hassle and big expense. Seems to be basic Electronics 101 that you should be able to turn it off if needed without breaking the machine.

The Nutrimill grinds fine or coarse, making great bread or cookies. Therefore, my high recommendation is the Nutrimill.

Bread machine  This machine makes the best bread!! The custom settings and extra heating element in the top really makes this machine the best one that I know of.

Bread Box This is the bread box I have used for years with great success keeping the bread fresher than it does in other packaging.

How To Eat

This bread is so good that you do not need anything on it but my favorite way to eat it is with a little spread of butter and a drizzling of honey. Have fun trying your own spreads on it to serve in a variety of ways!

Once you try this bread, you will realize how easy and delicious it is and you will never want store bought bread again!