Step-by-Step Whole Wheat Quinoa Bread {My New Fave}
Healthy, hearty, and absolutely delicious, this whole wheat quinoa bread is light, fluffy and packs a protein punch. Pretty sure it’s my new favorite homemade bread!
I have been so excited to share this homemade bread recipe with you! It’s no secret I love making homemade bread. I’ve used this tried-and-true fabulous recipe (Darcy’s recipe in that post) to make my family’s everyday bread for years.
There’s just something about making bread that feels wholesome and good. It’s hard for me to explain.
I guess I’m just always amazed that such simple ingredients can come together to create fluffy domes of hearty goodness; it’s a mini miracle.
I wasn’t always good at making bread. And even now, sometimes my bread flops, but it is definitely one of the most satisfying things I make at home.
Having said that, can I take a minute to just throw this out there:
You don’t have to make homemade bread to be a a good mom, a decent human being, a rockstar in the kitchen, a role model to young children, or anything else that your guilt complex might want to fill in that blank.
THERE SHOULD BE NO GUILT OVER STOREBOUGHT BREAD, PEOPLE. And likewise, there shouldn’t be any guilt if you decide to make bread every day of your life in lieu of cleaning your bathrooms.
Sorry to get all lecture-y on you; I just feel strongly that we all need to stop the guilt.
Anyway, moving on.
A little while ago, I decided to branch out and try a new whole wheat bread recipe. With quinoa! I know. It sounds a little strange, but since we eat quinoa with dinner quite a bit, it wasn’t too much of a stretch to throw it into bread.
And oh, my goodness. This whole wheat quinoa bread is the best bread to ever come out of my kitchen.
So good, in fact, that this is the only sandwich bread I’ve been making for weeks. I’ve even converted several of my staunch bread making friends to this recipe, too. We are all in love!
The quinoa lends a deliciously nutty flavor to the bread. It also makes the loaf extremely tender.
And if you are wondering, like I was, what happens to the quinoa in the bread dough, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised. The loaf is intensely soft and fluffy without any hard bits of quinoa in the crumb.
The quinoa melds and absorbs in the bread dough as it mixes and bakes. There’s a hint of nutty flavor, but it’s not an in-your-face-quinoa punch as you eat it.
My kids are convinced this whole wheat quinoa bread makes the best toast in all the land. They’ll often eat through a whole loaf at breakfast (or for an after school snack, particularly if I let them slather it with nutella).
Because I want you to love this bread as much as we do, I’ve included a step-by-step tutorial below.
The recipe really is straightforward, but the method is a little unique, and the texture may be a bit different than other classic sandwich bread recipes.
Speaking of mixers, I know the world is divided when it comes to which stand mixer reigns supreme, but I make all of our bread in my beloved Bosch stand mixer. It is a powerhouse when it comes to bread.
I haven’t made this whole wheat quinoa bread in a KitchenAid mixer or by hand. Both could work, although keep an eye on your stand mixer if it has a weak motor.
I don’t want any stand mixers burning out (and people getting mad at me!).
UPDATE: I’ve been getting a lot of questions about the bread pans I use. My favorite bread pans are the USA bread pans and the Chicago Metallic pans. I have a few of each and love both of them.
This whole wheat quinoa recipe is softest, fluffiest, best bread ever!
And if you are wanting to delve into the world of bread making but don’t know where to start or feel a little intimidated, here’s a step-by-step guide on my other go-to whole wheat bread recipe. And here is a tutorial on yeast (an oldie but a goodie of a post).
Please leave any questions in the comments below (or on specific recipe threads). I don’t have all the answers, but I can definitely try to help!
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Two Years Ago: Foolproof No-Stir Homemade Caramels {With Step-by-Step Tutorial}
Three Years Ago: Simple Homemade Haunted Halloween Houses
Whole Wheat Quinoa Bread
Ingredients
- 1 cup uncooked white quinoa, rinsed
- 2 ¼ cups water
- 8 cups whole wheat flour, don't pack the flour in the measuring cup
- ⅓ cup vital wheat gluten, optional, see note
- 1 ½ tablespoons instant yeast
- 4 teaspoons salt
- 2 ¼ cups milk, lightly warmed (about 110 degrees F)
- ¾ cup room temperature water
- ½ cup honey
- ¼ cup oil, canola, vegetable, avocado
Instructions
- Combine the quinoa and 2 1/4 cups water in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer. Cover and let cook for 10-12 minutes. Take the pan off the heat, remove the lid, stir the quinoa, and let it stand for 10-20 minutes.
- In a stand mixer, combine the wheat flour, gluten, yeast, and salt. Mix.
- Add the milk, 3/4 cup water, honey and oil. Continue mixing; the dough will start out looking very crumbly and come together in a stiff mass. That’s ok! It will soften as the quinoa is added.
- Spoon in the warm quinoa while the mixer is running. Gradually add all the quinoa and any excess water (there shouldn’t be much; most of it should have absorbed in the quinoa).
- Continue to mix until the dough comes together and forms a soft ball of dough that clears the sides and bottom of the bowl. If for some reason (and this can depend on elevation, humidity, temperature, etc), the dough is sticky and wet, gradually add 1/4 cup of flour at a time until it forms a ball of dough that clears the sides of the bowl – but avoid adding extra flour unless you really need to.
- Let the dough knead for 7-9 minutes.
- Place the dough in a greased bowl or container, cover, and let it rise until double.
- Lightly punch down the dough and portion into three equal loaves, about 32-35 ounces each. Form the dough into loaves by patting each piece into a thick rectangle and rolling it up, pressing with the heel of your hand to get rid of air bubbles and form a taut loaf.
- Place the loaves in greased 8 1/2-inch by 4 1/2-inch loaf pans. Let rise, covered, until 1-inch above the rim of the pan.
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake for 30-35 minutes. Remove the pans from the oven and gently turn the loaves out on to a cooling rack to cool completely. Brush the tops with butter while still warm, if desired.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: whole wheat quinoa bread adapted from this recipe in America’s Test Kitchen Bread Illustrated (I swapped out all the white flour for whole wheat and added a few extra ingredients to help with tenderness, and I changed up a few other minor things with ingredients and method)
I read all of the comments. My dough was very wet too. I threw in a handful of cornmeal, flaxseed meal, wheatgerm and then enough whole wheat flour to get the consistency needed. So why not throw some sesame seeds on top? Next time I think I’ll make 4 loaves out of it since I added at least 2 more cups of dry ingredients. Or three 9 x 5 loaves. We ate it hot out of the oven with honey butter. Yum!
Why did my bread deflate in oven?
It may have overrisen before baking…that can sometimes cause bread to deflate.
No it didn’t override, but it was bit sticky. Could it be that it was little to soft. Maybe could have added little more flour. Would that probably have helped?
Yes that’s probably it…if the dough is overly sticky or doesn’t have enough flour, the bread won’t have enough structure to keep it upright while rising.
This recipe is just amazing! I make it every week with red whole wheat flour using my hamilton beach bread machine. It turns great. I put the machine on cycle 8 which is “dough”. I follow the recipe and add all ingredients but do not add the cooked quinoa. As soon as the dough is ready and the machine starts to heat the dough, I turn the machine off and wait for 10 minutes. Then I again put the machine on cycle 8, add the cooked quinoa and start the machine. This time I let the machine to continue normally and rise. When the dough has risen and is ready, I take it out of the bread machine and cut it and place it in the pieces in greased loaf pans and let them to rest for another hour. Then I cook them in the oven.
Thank you for this great healthy recipe.
I love this bread!! Do you think it would work to make one regular loaf and use the other 2/3 of the dough to do a “pull apart garlic bread” in a bundt pan? I guess like a monkey bread but buttery an delicious garlicky?
Thanks Mel!!
Sounds like a great idea! I haven’t tried it but I think it might work. Report back if you try it!
Reporting back! I used 1/3 dough in a bread pan as a normal loaf, the other 2/3 of the dough I rolled into balls and then dipped in butter before placing in a greased bundt pan. I melted 1 stick of butter and had 1-2 tbsp left over that I just dumped on the “rolls”. Next time
I would save it and brush it on the bread and rolls after baking.
The pull apart rolls were a little dense, but the outside ones had a nice crispy crust. Would go well with a pasta or soup as a dipper.
Thanks for the update, April!
I left out the second lot of water, halved the recipe and used 1 cup wholemeal, the rest plain. Still had to sprinkle lots of flour while kneading by hand.
Also used only two teaspoons yeast, which is plenty. Many recipes use far too much. Bread rises and keeps better with the addition of bread improver.
I would love to try this recipe, but I don’t eat dairy. Can I replace the milk by vegan milk such as almond milk?
I haven’t tried that so I’m not sure but you could experiment!
I used almond milk. It’s fine. I use it all the time in baking.
I realize it’s been 2 ½ years so you’re probably not still looking for this answer…but I made this bread with water and it was excellent.
I made this bread today. I have made several of Mel’s recipes and they have been very good, especially her pretzel rolls. This bread was good but not great. I guess my tastes are different. The bread was very hearty and rich, but just a little too heavy for me and my wife.
I have been making Darcy’s whole wheat recipe for about 6 months and it’s been great. I was hesitant to try this as it just seemed too good to be true with the added nutrition of the quinoa. Just followed the recipe carefully and made this as directed and it was absolutely amazing. I did have to add maybe an extra 3/4 cup of flour or so but stopped adding flour once the mixer sides came clean. The kids said it was the best bread I’ve ever made and gobbled up several pieces each! Thanks so much. I think this is going to be my new go-to!!
Glad you loved it, Marsha!
When you double this, do you use 3 T of yeast?
Yes, I do!
I tried this recipe but used oats flour with the whole wheat 1/2 and 1/2.
I mixed a half recipe of this bread in my 5 qt KitchenAid mixer (since I knew it couldn’t handle a whole recipe), and it was good. I used half bread flour and half wheat since I didn’t have the vital wheat gluten. I did need to add extra flour than the recipe called for.
I recently got the Bosch mixer, and I’m looking forward to trying out the whole recipe with the wheat gluten. I was wondering if you’ve ever tried substituting oatmeal for some of the flour. I love oatmeal bread and think oatmeal/quinoa bread would be awesome. I may try substituting half a cup oatmeal for half a cup of the flour and see how it goes.
Thanks for the recipe!
I make this in my 5-quart Kitchenaid all the time and it handles the full recipe beautifully.
I have made this bread several times and we love it but I have some problems everytime that I hope you can help me with.
The dough before you add the quinoa is never that stiff. I even added two extra cups of flour before adding the quinoa to have it look like your picture and have it clean the bowl. (I have a bosch also). Then when I add the quinoa, and knead it the 7-9 minutes it gets really soft–alot softer than roll dough! I added more flour to attempt to get it to clean the bowl but finally gave up and just put it into my raising bowl. Remarkably, the dough at that point felt pretty good even though it had not cleaned the bowl.
Am I kneading too long? It is very dry here in AZ so it is not the humidity! Help!
I think you’re making it just fine! This dough is much softer than most whole wheat bread doughs and the quinoa absorbs a lot of flour due to its moisture. Much of why you might need more flour may be the amount of moisture left in the cooked quinoa and that will vary a little from person to person. As long as the dough isn’t too sticky to handle, it should be fine. Did the baked loaves rise and bake up well?
Love the bread . Are the loaves suppose to be heavy
I made 4 loaves that were each just over 25 ounces and they were the perfect size, not too huge. We loved this, so yummy!
I love this bread! I have not had my bread turn out so soft and fluffy. I did not use the gluten and it worked great!
So first, I am THRILLED to report that my 7 qt professional KitchenAid passed this test! Handled the dough like a champ! And I love the bread!
I do have a question:
1. About how long do each of your rises take? I realize this can be different based on all the factors that affect the recipe as well, but I could use a ballpark time. I think I probably cut the first rise short. It appeared to be doubled, but the loaves didn’t quite come out to 32 oz each. The first rise for me was almost 3 hours. Second rise was almost 2 hours, My loaves weren’t tall or as light and fluffy as yours. Was it the rise? Can I let dough rise too long? What would be the effect of that? I also didn’t have the vital wheat gluten, could it be that? Or both? The bread is nice and soft, just not airy.
This bread rises super fast when I make it, Jodi. I’m guessing my first rise is right around an hour (maybe slightly less) and about an hour in the bread pans. The vital wheat gluten definitely helps develop the natural gluten in the bread (which assists in light, fluffy bread) but a lot of people make whole wheat bread without it, so I don’t think it would be the sole factor.
This was pretty easy (as most breads are). It turned out better than any bread I’ve ever made. It was fluffy and light. I could tell there was quinoa in it, but not in a bad way, just made it feel healthier and “nutty”. Another awesome recipe Mel. 🙂
Why not just leave the dough in the Bosch bowl for the first raise?
You could definitely try that…I’m just in the habit of transferring to a greased bowl (makes it less sticky to work with when shaping into loaves).
Best whole wheat bread I’ve ever made. The recipe is very fool proof and easy. This while be the new monthly bread I make. Delicious!
Do you think it’s possible to make this with almond milk, making it dairy free? We are new to this food allergy thing and I’m not sure if almond milk substitutes in bread?! Thanks!
That’s a good question, Natalie – I definitely think in the case of bread, it’s worth a try.
This bread SERIOUSLY is the yummiest! My family has loved it! Thanks again for a wonderful recipe, Mel!
Happy to hear that, Julie!
Can you please post a video tutorial for shaping the loaves? I’ve been making a different recipe of yours for the past few years. This dough is. Wet different to work with and I can’t figure out how to shape smooth loaves.
Correction: “The dough is different to work with and I cant figure out how to shape smooth loaves.”
Also, I have added over 2 cups (10 ounces) of additional flour and still the dough is quite wet. I live in AZ where the weather is typically dry and sunny—and shouldn’t have any effect on the dough. I think the wet dough is another reason why I can’t get the loaves smooth.
Hi Amy, it’s ok if you have to add more flour than even that (some of it may just be a difference in how we each measure flour). You can also try decreasing the water to 1/2 cup. I’m not sure if/when I’ll be able to work on a video for this particular post but I shape them just like in the picture tutorial below the recipe – hopefully that helps a little. I think if you can get your dough more floured, you’ll have better luck shaping them. Let me know if you have other questions.
Can you taste the honey much in this bread? I’m wanting to give homemade whole wheat bread another go, but I can’t stand the blatant taste of honey in my sandwiches. Lots of whole wheat recipes call for honey, but I’m hoping I can find one that’s not overtly sweet.
I haven’t noticed an overt honey taste, but I like the flavor of honey so maybe I’m just not aware of it. You could try subbing in regular white sugar for part of the honey.
Just curious if you have ever heard of or tried dough enhancer? My store (I live in the middle of no where Montana!) didn’t have vital wheat gluten so I am trying the enhancer. Its made by Augason Farms. Hopefully it works!
I haven’t ever used dough enhancer, but I know a lot of people do. Let me know how it goes!
The flavor is great, it’s a bit dense & didn’t raise as nicely as yours did, think I should have done half & half for the flour, its been years since I’ve made bread & I was never real successful at whole wheat. Its still a very nice bread, I’m not sure the enhancer did anything at all tho. l need to get the vital wheat gluten & try it again. I love the idea of using quinoa in bread! Thanks for your wonderful step by step!
I’ve never had the vital wheat gluten–I guess it’s not vital after all, ha. This bread works great without enhancer or added gluten. Don’t be scared to give it a try.
Hi Mel! I’m so excited to try this bread recipe, question- I am wondering if a non-dairy milk (almond, cashew) would work in place of the cows milk? Any thoughts or experiences with this?
Thanks!
I haven’t tried a non dairy milk, Tabitha, so I’m not sure, but I think it’s definitely worth a try!
I put the Quinoa in when it was too hot and it made the dough a wet mess 7 minutes into kneading it!! I had to add 1-2 more cups of flour and knead it for longer. But it still turned out edible! I’ll just have to follow instructions better next time!
Can this recipe be made in bread machine?
I’m not sure – I haven’t ever used a bread machine so I don’t know how the capacity of dough would work.
This is my go to wheat bread recipe I’ve been making for months, but it’s failing me the last few times I’ve tried to make it. The loaves keep sinking, dough is too wet and difficult to shape, despite adding nearly 2 extra cups of flour. The only thing I’ve changed is the brand of vital wheat gluten. Is it just a bad batch of gluten? Is that even a thing? Help! I miss my sandwich bread!
I don’t think the gluten would make that much of a difference. Has the weather been different there? More humid? Rainy? Something like that can wreak havoc on bread making and cause the need for extra flour.
It was amazing how much joy I have from making my own healthy wheat bread! Thank you for this recipe it worked wonderfully. I am making a second batch today!
I made this bread for the first time yesterday. It tastes good but I made it too wet so it came out more like a cake texture. It did rise though. Next time I will hold back on the milk.
I was a little skeptical about putting quinoa in bread?? Needless to say I am now a believer!!! My loaves turned out almost as pretty as yours did. The softness of the bread is so so good. Even after three days, it is still soft. And my husband loves it!! Thank you, thank you!
I have made used this recipe twice and it is delicious, but mine don’t turn out as pretty as yours. As my loafs are rising the second time they get bumps and grooves all over them. The tops of your loves are so smooth! Any tips on how to get my bread to turn out as pretty as yours?
Any chance they are over rising? Are the loaves smooth when you place them in the pans? If they are bumpy then, you might try greasing your hands as you shape the loaves.
I made this today, and even my quinoa-hating hubby enjoyed it! I was worried about my KitchenAid, so I made half the recipe and formed the dough into a long loaf (similar to a loaf of French bread, but thicker). I placed it diagonally on my rimmed baking sheet, so it fit nicely. Great recipe, Mel!
Forgot the rinse the quinoa – oops! Hand kneaded it. Still turned out delicious. Certainly a keeper! Thanks for the recipe!
Thanks for the recipe. I wondered, have you ever tried this with pre-cooked quinoa that maybe you have leftover in the fridge? How much do you think it would require? It would just be nice to use up leftovers and cut out a step.
I haven’t tried that yet, Briahna…mostly because I think the dough benefits from warm quinoa (and often precooked quinoa is salted or cooked in broth which wouldn’t work for this recipe). I’m guessing it’s around 2 1/2 cups quinoa…
Hello Mel,
I’m not in the habit of posting comments but find I need to do it now! I thought that a kitchenaid was my coveted prize have used them in the past but not for bread making. Started really researching for best and easy to use machines for bread making. Was into bread making many years ago mostly batter breads. Bought a bread maker machine (again) as my family is much grown and gone wasn’t satisfied even just using the dough cycle. In my researching discovered the Bocsh compact which was to my surprise very affordable which in turn jogged my memory of a time 32 years ago being introduced to a lady who sold Bocsh that I could never dream of affording. Enter Bocsh compact at last I could afford a Bocsh! And a note to those who have negative views on its looks, I love it’s sleek compact light weight looks! The day after it was delivered I made your Quinoa wheat bread. I just can’t express how thrilled I am with the results I didn’t have quite the high loaves you did and was dissapointed at first but after tasting it OMG! So glad I found your site! And as far as the Bocsh, for me the ease of making bread and the performance is everything and more! Sorry this was so long couldn’t be helped. Thank you thank you again for your site!
I loved your comment, Gloria! Thank you! And I agree that the Bosch is unparalleled when it comes to bread making!
Misspelled Bosch! Another comment regarding the quinoa bread… even though my loaves were not perfect looking like yours I was so pleasantly surprised at how good the bread was days later. At last I am finally having success at bread making and I have to give a lot of praise to the Bosch. I have my second batch of your recipie rising now along with your flaky cornmeal dinner rolls. I’m a very happy camper!
Well, I’m officially looking into buying a Bosch mixer. And ONLY because of you and your fabulous bread recipes.
A word of warning- don’t use your Kitchenaid for this one!!!! I definitely burned out my motor (yikes!) but thankfully I’ve done it before and the part costs like $10 and is a (relatively) easy fix.
I left the room to let it “knead” and came back to my mixer literally SMOKING! Holy cow!
That being said — my dough was WET. Like, super wet. I added a good 2 cups of flour to it and it was STILL wet. I just decided to grease it up, grease up a bowl, and let it rise and see what happens, since you warned against adding too much flour. Thankfully, it was manageable after the rise. (and my daughter loved helping me punch it out and form it into loaves!)
I usually HATE 100% whole wheat bread but this was pretty good! Hubby liked it a TON as well, so did my toddler. My bread was a little spongey, though, not quite airy and fluffy (maybe b/c the dough was more moist than it should have been). Also, I do get a few pieces of hard quinoa when I ate my slice – you can’t see the quinoa in the bread itself, but I did get the bite of some (uncooked??) quinoa. Not sure how that happens, maybe it’s typical for quinoa to have a few bits that don’t cook up and swell? (never made it more than once before, so I’m not sure).
Anyhow— definitely a re-make according to the family! Thanks for the receipe! Now time to try to find a used Bosch on Ebay! 🙂
Hey Jen, I’m SO sorry about your mixer! Yikes! I’m glad you know how to replace the part, but WHAT A PAIN! As for your dough, I think the sponginess was probably because the dough was a little on the wet side. As for the quinoa, depending on how it’s cooked, sometimes little bits of quinoa will stay up high on the sides of the pot/pan and not get fully tender. Just make sure to scrape those hard pieces of quinoa out of the pan before using it in the dough (and make sure the quinoa is super soft as a whole…increase water slightly or cook longer, if needed). I hope you can find a Bosch! Seriously life changing for bread.
Hi Jen. I’m trying to venture away from rolls and into bread loaves…in poring over Mel’s recipes, I ran into your comment. I love my (23-yr old!) KitchenAid but do have to scale down some recipes to minimize overflow and “traveling” across the counter!:) May I ask what is the exact part you’ve had to replace? I’m wondering if I have a few more years left with my mixer if replacing parts is so simple…thank you!
Oh my goodness, this bread came out perfectly!! I am declaring it as my new favorite bread. Haha we seriously devoured it at dinner tonight! Thanks for an incredible recipe!
Glad you loved it!
I got the huge stainless steel bowl for Christmas and have doubled this recipe twice. I have to say, it is a TON of dough and both times I looked at my dough mixing and thought, “No way is this gonna work!” But it works! And the process of hauling out the giant popcorn bowl (for rising) and all of my bread pans pays off when I have a freezer fully stocked! You mentioned you make 7 loaves when you double it, are they smaller? My 6 loaves all came out about 34 ounces and that was after adding quite a bit of extra flour. And just to mention, I always use skim milk for this recipe. I hoard my 2% for making kefir and yogurt.
My loaves weigh right around 29-30 ounces when making seven loaves for this recipe (which means our dough is probably right around the same mass – I’m just splitting them into 7 loaves instead of 6). I haven’t noticed they are noticeably smaller, but maybe they are slightly.
Hi Mel, 2nd time I’ve made this yummy bread now. My kids love it for sandwich bread in their school lunches! So both times I’s struggled w my Kitchenaid mixer. It’s obvious your mixer must be superior to mine as it’s really difficult to mix. I started mixing this time before my quinoa was done & it made me wonder…could I mix for the 7-9 mins & THEN add the quinoa in? That way there is less stuff in there & it will mix easier without overflowing so much! Then I would add the quinoa, mix it in for maybe a min & be done mixing? What do you think of that idea? That way the yeast & flour are getting a good mix to make the gluten still I think?? Thanks for your thoughts!
Hey Erika – I think that’s definitely worth a try. Next time I make it, I’ll try it that way and report back. I think it stands a good chance of working – I only worry that the quinoa may be more “present” in the bread. I think the mixing helps it absorb into the dough.
I have made this bread a few times now. We love it. But I am wondering if you can also use traditional active dry yeast.
Hi Brenda – yes, you can…just proof the active dry yeast in a bit of water and maybe a pinch of sugar until it is bubbling before using in the recipe.
I love your bread recipes. We make homemade bread weekly. Do you have a great Multigrain bread tucked some where? I worked in a bread store when i was in high school and my absolute favorite bread there was the 9 grain. Also, just a plain old white sandwich bread? Thank you.
Hy Shawnda – I am actually about ready to post my go-to white sandwich bread recipe. I don’t have a tried-and-true multigrain bread (yet) but I’ve been working on one and hopefully will post it sometime this year. 🙂
Hi Mel. I just finished making this bread and it came out great. I do have a couple of suggestions for making the instructions more “beginner friendly.”
In step 3 of the “Directions” you say to add the liquid ingredients and continue to mix. Using a Kitchen Aid mixer is this using the paddle attachment or dough hook? I tried using the paddle for mixing and it got way to hard to get the job done. I switched to the hook to knead the dough for 7-9 minutes. The dough continually came up over the top of the flat part of the dough hook, got into the upper part of my mixer and was a real mess! My mixer began to over heat and smoke. I turned it off and finished kneading the dough with my hands just like grandma did. The bread came out fine but it was truly frustrating to get to the finished product. I have a Kitchen Aid Artisan 5 qt. high-performance mixer yet this recipe was too massive for this appliance.
Hi Linda – all my bread recipes are written for a Bosch mixer which is what I use. I don’t have experience making bread in a KitchenAid mixer but I’ll try to do a better job at making a note that the recipe is written for a Bosch and may need to be scaled down for other mixers.
haha. Same exact mixer, same exact thing happened with mine. You can replace the stripped plastic gear relatively cheaply (less than $10 last time I had to) and youtube the how-to videos and it’s relatively painless (though messy!!!) to do!
Mel, your bread makes me look like a baking rockstar! Thank you for giving such detailed recipes that gave me the confidence to jump into baking ALL our bread. I’ve been making it for about a year and I don’t plan on stopping. Not only am I proud of it, I really enjoy working with the dough. Which leads me to my piece of advice: DO NOT try to double this in a Kitchen Aid Professional. The recipe will be way too big and then you’ll have to turn it out on the counter and hand knead it. And while you’re elbows deep in a mountain of dough, your kids will clean out one of the cabinets and turn it into a burrow from which they serve popsicles. My kitchen looked like a bag of flour exploded and I had been ransacked. But you know what? I learned that I can knead dough without my machine and still have it turn out fabulous! And that my kids CAN entertain themselves completely without my providing them toys/crafts. Thank you a million times over, your blog is my very favorite and a daily go to for kitchen inspiration. Merry Christmas!
Haha, Lindsay – I’m sorry but that made me laugh! I’m so glad your bread turned out…I would have loved to be a little fly on the wall observing the antics of your kids. 🙂
I just tried to make this bread and it did not work for me at all. I ended up having to add an extra 2-3 cups of flour and it was still so wet that it wouldn’t hold its shape. Any idea what I did wrong? Could I have kneaded it too long?
Hi Mara – sounds like you had more liquid to flour ratio in your dough. How did you cook the quinoa? On the stovetop? Was there a lot of excess water after it had cooked when you added it to the dough? Adding more flour is totally fine – in fact, based on where you live (elevation, temperature, humidity) you might need to add more than the 2-3 cups. As long as a soft, tacky dough forms and you’ve followed the rest of the recipe, it should be ok adding more flour.
Quick question…my husband can’t have whole wheat. Would white bread flour work instead? I love the idea of getting a whole grain in bread for him.
Yes, I think this would work with bread flour (eliminate the gluten in the recipe).
Awesome, thanks!!!
Hi Mel!
I made this bread today and I can see why it is your favorite! My family loved it and finished off one loaf with dinner. I cut the recipe in half to fit my kitchen aide and ended up with 1 regular loaf and one mini. I asked Santa for a Bosch for Christmas
I cook my quinoa in pressure cooker (instant pot). It takes only a cup and a half water — would I need to add extra water to the bread recipe if I use the quinoa from pressure cooker?
I make the quinoa for this recipe in the pressure cooker often, too…I use the water amount given in the recipe.
Mel! This bread is AMAZING! You know how I’ve spent the past several years trying to make the Darcy bread work for me, and now all that work is out the door, because this is my new go to. Can the mighty bosch handle doubling this recipe? Also, to cook the quinoa, I used the pressure cooker so I could set it and forget it while I got kids ready for school. I did 1 cup quinoa to 1 1/2 cups water and cooked at high pressure for 1 minute with a natural release (which was more like an hour release because I was trying to get kids out the door!) It was fluffy, moist, and warm when I was ready for it. Thanks Mel, total perfection this one!
I was wondering about doubling too. Will you comment if you try it?
I have doubled it and it made 7 loaves. However I do have the large stainless steel Bosch bowl with the dough hook in the bottom that I use for bread and it’s bigger than the classic white bowl…so I wouldn’t do more than 1 1/2 the recipe using the white bowl for the Bosch probably.
Is this the bowl you’re talking about? Is this a decent price?https://www.amazon.com/Stainless-Steel-Bosch-Universal-Machine/dp/B0050E1N70/ref=sr_1_14?ie=UTF8&qid=1478350044&sr=8-14&keywords=bosch+mixer+parts
Yep, that’s the one I have and I think I paid about that (although I ordered it through pleasant hill grain).
After I added the milk, water, honey, and oil, the bread was not thick and dense. I am in Utah, so if would have expected it to be more dense rather than less. At the end, I added two extra cups of floor (1/4 cup at a time). Any suggestions?
I actually think it’s fine – so much depends on what kind of flour you are using (storebought is more packed vs freshly ground is light and fluffy) and a lot of other factors. Did the bread turn out ok? It’s ok to have to add flour at the end to achieve the right consistency of dough. Let me know how it turned out.
I was so worried about all the extra flour I added (not floor, ha!), but the bread turned out beautifully!! Delicious and perfect! Thank you!!
Hey Mel!
I made this bread today. So yummy! Most beautiful and easiest to work with dough I have ever made. But I feel like I definitely am crunching on some quinoa. Especially in the crust. Like I feel like some of the quinoa is getting stuck in my teeth…
Is your bread a little crunchy? Or did I do something wrong?
Ps love you and your site and everything you do.
I can feel a tiny bit of the quinoa texture in the crust but definitely not in the crumb of the bread. Is there a chance you quinoa was undercooked at all? It should be really soft and tender.
I am happy to report that day 2 bread has no crunchys! So I must have undercooked the quinoa.
I took the bread to mom’s group and it was a hit! Everyone assured me they couldn’t tell there was any quinoa inside the bread.
Also I used half white wheat and half red wheat that I grounded just before I made the bread. The combo worked great! I also had to add a little extra flour. But it’s wasn’t more than 1/4 cup. I live in Colorado. Thanks again!
I am happy to report that day 2 bread had no crunch! I stored it in gallon zip lock bags last night and so maybe the moisture helped? I guess I must have under cooked the quinoa…which probably means I have been under cooking quinoa all along haha oops! Anyway, I took a loaf to mom’s group and they all assured me that they did not notice any crunch at all.
Also, I used half white wheat half red wheat combo and it turned out beautifully! Maybe just a tad bit darker in color than your pictures but not overly heavy or anything. I also added some extra flour. Mine was fresh ground and I added no more than 1/4 a cup. I live in Colorado!
Thanks again!!