This firm, sweet loaf of golden whole wheat bread, perfect for sandwiches and toast, is one we worked out for our Zojirushi bread machine. But fear not; we've included directions for baking the bread by the standard method, as well.
Weigh your flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess.
To make bread in a bread machine: Put all of the ingredients into the bread pan in the order listed. Program for basic white bread (or for whole wheat bread, if your machine has a whole wheat setting), and press Start.
Remove the bread from the machine when it's done. Either turn it out of the pan onto a rack to cool; or turn it out of the pan, place it back in the machine (atop the structure that holds the pan), crack the lid open about 1", and let it cool right in the cooling-down machine. This helps prevent the crust from wrinkling as the loaf cools.
To make bread by hand: Mix all of the ingredients in a large bowl, or in the bowl of a stand mixer.
Knead the dough until it's smooth and just slightly tacky, about 8 to 10 minutes. Place the dough in a greased bowl, cover, and let it rise until doubled in volume, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
Gently deflate the dough and shape it to fit a greased 8 1/2" x 4 1/2" loaf pan. Let it rise, covered, until doubled, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
Bake the bread in a preheated 375°F oven for 35 minutes, or until a digital thermometer inserted in the center of the loaf reads 190°F. Remove the bread from the oven, remove it from the pan, and cool it on a rack.
