James Fox's Whole Wheat Bread

James Fox's Whole Wheat Bread

2 cups milk
2 envelopes active dry yeast
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons sweet butter
1/2 cup clover honey
1/4 cup wheat germ
About 5 1/2 cups whole wheat stone-ground, water-ground flour

1. Heat 1/2 cup milk until lukewarm. Dissolve yeast in milk. Let stand 10 minutes.

2. Scald remaining milk, pour over salt and butter in large mixing bowl. Cool to lukewarm. Add honey, dissolved yeast, and wheat germ. Add whole wheat flour, beating vigorously with wooden spoon until dough forms a ball.

3. Turn out on a well-floured board. Knead vigorously until dough is elastic and bubbles form. Place dough in a lightly greased bowl. Cover and set in a warm place until doubled in bulk.

4. Place dough on floured board. Divide in two parts, shaping loaves to fit 5-inch by 9 1/2-inch baking pans. Grease pans well with unsalted shortening. Cover. Let loaves rise in pans until almost doubled in bulk (about 1 hour) in a warm place.

5. Bake in preheated 400 degree oven 15 minutes or until loaves begin to brown. Reduce oven to 350 degrees and bake about 40-45 minutes longer or until bread is done. Makes 2 loaves.

Thoughts: Wrap cooled loaves tightly in aluminum foil to keep fresh. A lighter loaf can be made by substituting 2 cups of all-purpose flour for whole wheat flour.