Fluffy Whole Wheat Honey Bread – The Best Homemade Loaf with Freshly Milled Grains

Name: Fluffy Whole Wheat Honey Bread
Prep time: 105 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 140 min
Ingredients: 540 grams warm water; ½ cup olive oil (110 grams); ½ cup honey (160 grams); 16 grams salt; 800 g about 6–7 cups freshly milled whole wheat flour, divided; 1 Tbsp instant yeast (see note for active dry yeast)

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There’s nothing quite like the smell of fresh bread baking in the oven, and this Fluffy Whole Wheat Honey Bread using freshly milled grains is one of those recipes you’ll come back to again and again. With a soft, tender crumb and a slightly sweet flavor from honey, it makes the perfect everyday loaf. Whether you’re building sandwiches, serving it alongside soup, or toasting it for breakfast, this homemade bread beats anything you can find at the store.

The best part? This bread is made with simple pantry staples and comes together with very little effort. The honey adds natural sweetness, olive oil keeps it moist, and freshly milled flour gives it a hearty yet light texture. Once you’ve baked your own loaf, you’ll see just how rewarding homemade bread can be.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

Soft & fluffy: Perfect for sandwiches and toast.
Wholesome: Made with whole wheat flour and natural sweetener.
Beginner-friendly: No complicated steps, no sourdough starter, & the stand mixer does the hard work.
Two loaves at once: One to enjoy fresh and one to freeze or share.
Dairy Free: Using olive oil makes this dairy free and also helps it come together really quickly, no melting butter!

Ingredients

2 1/4 cups warm water
½ cup olive oil
½ cup honey
2 tsp salt
800 g (about 6–7 cups) freshly milled whole wheat flour, divided. I’m using 600 grams hard red wheat and 200 grams kamut for added nutrition.
1 Tbsp instant yeast

A Note on Yeast

If you only have active dry yeast, you just need to re order your steps a bit here. Add the yeast at the beginning with the water, honey, and oil and make sure your water is warm to the touch. Your yeast wants a warm cozy temperature to BLOOM. Once that yeast looks foamy, add in your flours.

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Make the Dough: In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the warm water, olive oil, honey, and salt. Add about half of the flour (3–4 cups) and mix until combined. Let the mixture rest for 30 minutes to hydrate the flour.

For best results, I recommend using a stand mixer like this one. It saves time and gives you perfectly kneaded dough that is gentle on freshly milled grains and develops that gluten naturally without the arm workout.

2. Add Yeast & Knead: Sprinkle in the yeast and gradually add the remaining flour. Knead for about 10-15 minutes until smooth and elastic.

3. First Rise: Cover the bowl with a towel and let the dough rise until doubled in size, about 1-2 hours.

4. Shape Loaves: Punch down the dough, divide it in half, and shape into two sandwich loaves. Place them in greased loaf pans and let rise for another 45 minutes.

woman shaping sandwich dough on marble counter

5. Bake: Bake at 350°F for 35 minutes or until golden brown and internal temperature reaches 190. I like to use 2 9×4 usa pans for this. Be sure to grease the insides well with some avocado or olive oil.

6. Cool & Slice: Cool completely before slicing to keep the texture soft and fluffy. For an extra touch, brush the tops with butter while they are still warm, it will make the tops soft and glossy.

fluffy sandwich bread with freshly milled flour cooling on counter

Tips for the Best Loaf

There are many variables when making homemade bread. Don’t be discouraged if a recipe doesn’t turn out exactly as you hope, this is a learning process. Extra humidity in your flour or your environment, and the temperature of the room, all have an impact on the final results. The key is learning what tweaks need to be made.

If the dough seems too dense, let it rest longer before kneading. The longer the rising process, the more flavor develops, so it’s ok if this whole thing takes longer. You can also stunt the rising of your dough by placing it in the fridge. This allows those flavors to develop and slows down time for you if you are not ready to tend to your dough.

If you are looking for some extra fluffiness and rise, try adding 1 egg! It can cause the tops to brown a little faster but it adds that extra rise and fluffiness you may be after.

Most Common Problems + Fixes:

1. Not enough gluten development

Whole wheat needs thorough kneading.
Knead 8–15 minutes by mixer. In my ankarsrum mixer I sometimes go 20 minutes because it’s so gentle on the dough, which mimics hand kneading and really helps with gluten development in freshly milled flour.
Dough should feel elastic and slightly tacky.

👉 Fix: If it tears easily instead of stretching, keep kneading.

2. Too much flour

Whole wheat absorbs flour slowly.
If you add flour too quickly, the dough gets stiff and can’t rise well.

👉 Fix: Add flour gradually and stop when dough pulls from the bowl but still feels soft.

3. Yeast not active

Water too hot kills yeast; too cool slows it way down.
Ideal water temp: 100–110°F.

👉 Fix: If dough doesn’t noticeably rise in the first hour, move it somewhere warmer or start over with fresh yeast.

When Bread Isn’t Rising Well

Check these first:

1. Cold kitchen

Whole wheat rises slower than white bread.

👉 Fix: Let it rise in:

the oven with the light on
near (not on) the stove
wrapped with a towel

Expect 1½–2 hours for the first rise sometimes.