Sourdough Honey Oat Bread
This easy honey oat sourdough bread is incredibly soft, with the perfect balance of sweetness from the honey and nutrition from the oats, whole grains and sourdough.
Servings: 2 loaves
Ingredients
Bread
- 2 cups (180 grams) rolled oats or quick oats
- 3 cups water, divided
- 2 1/2 tsp instant yeast
- 100 grams unfed/discard sourdough starter
- ½ cup honey
- ¼ cup unsalted butter melted or softened
- 2 tsp salt decrease to 1 1/2 tsp if using salted butter
- 1 cup (120 grams) whole wheat flour
- ~5 cups (approx. 600 grams) bread flour, to touch
Topping
- 1 large egg
- 1 tbsp water
- ~1/3 cup (30 grams) oats rolled or quick oats are fine
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer (or large bowl if mixing by hand), add the 2 cups of rolled oats and 3 cups of hottest tap water. Wait for about 5 minutes for the oats to soften and water to cool down slightly.
- When the water is lukewarm (110℉) add the yeast, unfed starter, and honey. Mix together until combined. *If your water is too hot, it can kill your yeast, preventing it from rising. Make sure it is comfortably warm. You can start adding other ingredients like honey and butter before adding the yeast to help cool it down faster.
- Add the butter, salt, and whole wheat flour. Mix again.
- Add the remaining bread flour, slowly. You are looking for a soft, just hardly sticky dough, that has come together and begun to clean the bowl as it mixes. Add more or less all purpose flour until you reach that consistency.*
- Remove the dough hook from mixer and let the dough rise for about 1 hour, or until doubled in size. *You can also stick in the fridge overnight to extend the rise process.
- After it has doubled in size, divide the dough into 2 sections and gently fold into a loaf. See my classic sandwich bread recipe for pictures and a video of my folding method.
- Place in 2 - 9x5" metal loaf pans. Let it rise for about 30 minutes until almost doubled in size and puffy. While rising, preheat oven to 375℉. (350℉ for lower altitude)
- Once risen, whisk together one egg and 1 tbsp water to make an egg wash. Gently brush the tops of the loaves using a pastry brush. Sprinkle on additional oats. *For extra sweetness, you can brush with honey instead of an egg wash.
- Bake for 25-28 minutes until the bottoms reach a rich golden brown color or internal temperature is about 190℉.
Notes
flour quantities: Every brand of flour is different and elevation impacts amounts, so doing it by touch and sight is my safest approach every time to ensure great results. Providing a number by weight would still have varying results for people depending on where you live and what brand you are using.
can I substitute the flours: yes, you can use ALL bread flour instead of using whole wheat flour with it. Or you can substitute all purpose flour for the bread flour, but I love the higher protein content and structure the bread flour provides.
can I make into mini loaves instead?: yes! this recipe will make 6 mini loaves instead of 2 9x5 loaves.