Converting to whole wheat

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Forum -> Recipe Collection -> Challah and Breads

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seeker

Wed, Aug 18 2010, 11:42 am

or half whole wheat...

I want to eat healthier but I have all these white recipes we love: pizza dough, pita, onion rolls, etc. I've tried just replacing white flour with whole wheat but the texture comes out all wrong. Is there a rule or something for how to convert it or do I just need to get new recipes?

DH is not a big fan of the whole wheaty taste and I don't really blame him - I can handle it in some things but it's not the same flavor for other ol' favorite recipes. So I'm trying to maybe wean us by going half and half. Still have the texture problem though.

mummy-bh

Wed, Aug 18 2010, 2:07 pm

100% whole wheat is a very aquired taste. Wean yourself in slowly, using first 30% ww / 70% white, then gradually increasing. Personally I don't use more than about 75% ww in any recipe .Whole flour absorbs more liquid than white, so you need to adjust accordingly.

Interestingly, the one recipe that I put more ww than any other, is pizza dough. I guess with all the veggies and cheese, my family don't notice that it's ww.

Perhaps rather than trying to convert your existing recipes, you could try looking (online?) for new recipes that match the flour you wish to use.

suzyq

Wed, Aug 18 2010, 2:17 pm

You can try using white whole wheat, which gives you the nutritional benefits of whole wheat but tastes and looks much lighter. It can be used pretty much interchangably with white flour. I make my challah with it and people love it.

When I used to use plain whole wheat, I usually would do half whole wheat and half white - all whole wheat was very heavy and usually didn't rise as well.

soldat

Wed, Aug 18 2010, 9:26 pm

use white whole wheat flour and maybe splurge for the king arthur brand which is awsome quality! you can also add vital wheat glutten to bread recipes which makes a huge difference.

I have a yummy challah recipe, as well as plenty of others even for cinnamin buns and cakes.

let me know which ones you want and I'll post.

seeker

Thu, Aug 19 2010, 11:37 am

"Splurge" really isn't in my plans these days :-/

Do you have a good recipe for pizza dough or pitas? And I suppose I could use a cake or something too though my husband might freak out at the thought ;-)

esther11

Sun, Dec 31 2017, 7:35 pm

Bump!

I recently tried changing my challah recipe over to white whole wheat and it came out very dense. Anyone know if I could add more yeast to lighten it? Or more water/eggs/liquid? What if I change the sugar to honey, is it equal conversion?

Any ideas appreciated! Thanks!

Rubber Ducky

Sun, Dec 31 2017, 8:40 pm

Make a sponge. After proofing the yeast, add some of the flour — 3 or 4 cups if the recipe calls for 5 lbs of flour — and let it sit for about 2 hours (45 minutes minimum, 3 hours max).

This will make a huge difference in the texture of the challahs.

Something like this: http://www.projectpastrylove.c.....king/

esther11

Sun, Dec 31 2017, 9:33 pm

Interesting..do I let it rise for the regular amount of time after?

Rubber Ducky

Sun, Dec 31 2017, 9:41 pm

Yes. it's an extra step and requires extra time, but you will get a better texture. I mix bread flour and white whole wheat, but people using all whole wheat also use this method to lighten the texture.

esther11

Sun, Dec 31 2017, 11:20 pm

I’ll try it out thanks!

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