Whole Wheat Buttermilk Bread
If you have purchased an Ankarsrum Assistent mixer, you want to make the most of it. This gorgeous workhorse is capable of producing extra large batches of homemade bread, so you can bake to stock the freezer!
In our quest as homemakers to safeguard our family’s nutritional health, we sometimes we get ahead of ourselves. Ian the video I share one such instance that will make you laugh!
I am sharing a family treasure, my recipe for Old-Fashioned Buttermilk Bread. It’s soft, slices easily, and makes great toast and sandwiches. And we are making it in the Ankarsrum Assistent mixer.
Watch the video to learn all of my special tips and techniques for baking Old Fashioned Buttermilk Bread. All of these tips work with any other yeast bread recipe!

This is the recipe I started baking over 25 years ago and have refined over the years. This is the one that helped me help my family not only adjust to, but appreciate, whole wheat. A gradual transition to whole grains is easier on the baker and on the eaters.

Sliding Scale for Whole Wheat Flour
We are going to use a sliding scale to decide how much whole wheat flour to use. This gives your family time to adapt to whole grains. We want them to LOVE the bread you are baking! After all, you are putting time, love, and good ingredients into your baking.
When making the transition to whole wheat flour one-third whole wheat to two-thirds white flour is a good place to begin.
Total cups of flour in recipe | Proportion of whole wheat | Whole wheat flour | White flour | |
Hesitant to eat whole grain bread | 21 cups | 1/3 or 33% | 7 cups | 14 cups |
Willing to eat whole grain bread | 21 cups | 2/3 or 66% | 14 cups | 7 cups |
Confident about eating whole grains | 21 cups | all – 100% | 21 cups | none |

You can use whole wheat flour from the grocery store, or if you have a grain mill, use your own freshly ground whole wheat flour.
For white flour, unbleached all-purpose flour or bread flour are both suitable. Organic is best, if available and affordable to you.
As your and your family’s tastes adapt to appreciate the nutty flavor of whole wheat, you can increase the proportion incrementally until you reach your nutritional goal. You will find that you need to slightly increase the amount of water as you increase the ratio of whole grain flour as the bran is absorbent. An extra 2 tablespoons of water per additional cup of whole wheat flour is usually about right.
Other ingredients are adjustable as well. You can increase or decrease the salt, honey, and butter as you like.
Checkpoints in Breadmaking
- Dough pulls away from the sides of the mixing bowl and forms a ball. Enough flour has been added.
- Windowpane test ~ to check gluten development
- Poke Test ~ tells you when the dough is done rising
- Touch Test ~ tells you when the loaves are ready to bake
- Thump Test ~ along with color of crust tells you when the bread is fully baked
Each of the Checkpoints listed above are explained in detail in the video. Mastering these timeless skills will help you develop your baker’s intuition and can be applied to any bread recipe you want to bake!

By the way, I have created separate videos and recipes specific to the Bosch mixer and the KitchenAid Artisan mixer, so if you own one of those, you can go right to the video and see how it’s done using the same mixer that you have in your kitchen.
If you haven’t yet purchased a heavy duty stand mixer for bread making, be sure to check out my video: KitchenAid vs. Bosch vs. Ankarsrum, Best Mixer for Bread Dough, to help you make the best decision.

Old Fashioned Buttermilk Bread with Your Ankarsrum Assistent Mixer
Get ready to bake a BIG batch of bread with the help of your Ankarsrum Assistent mixer! This bread is soft and slices beautifully for toast and sandwiches.
- Author: Michele Pryse, FNTP
- Prep Time: 4 hrs
- Cook Time: 70 min
- Total Time: 42 minute
- Yield: 7 loaves 1x
- Category: bread
- Method: mixer
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 3 tablespoons + 1/2 teaspoon yeast dissolved in 2 1/2 cups warm water
- 1 3/4 cups melted butter
- 3/4 cup + 2 tablespoons honey
- 7 cups cultured buttermilk, shaken
- 7 cups whole wheat flour
- scant 1 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 2 tablespoons + 1 teaspoon salt
- 14 cups all-purpose (plain) flour or bread flour
Instructions
Set the Ankarsrum up for bread dough with roller and scraper.
Proof yeast in lukewarm water in the mixing bowl. If your kitchen is cool, rinse the bowl with warm water to warm it up first. Activate the mixer briefly to combine. Set aside for 5-10 minutes to allow the yeast to bloom.
Melt butter in a saucepan. Shake the buttermilk and stir it into the melted butter to bring the butter down to a temperature that is safe for yeast. Test it with a finger, it should just feel warm, if you use a thermometer, 110°F. Add butter mixture to the mixing bowl and then add the honey.
Turn the mixer on low speed, 1:00. Add the first 4 cups of whole wheat flour, then add 2 cups at a time until you have added all the whole wheat. Sprinkle in baking soda and salt. Once those are nicely incorporated, add the white flour a cup at a time until you have a soft dough that pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Hold back some of the flour, you may not need it all! In fact, with the Ankarsrum Assistent, most home bakers find they need less flour than most recipes call for.
Cover the bowl. Let rest for 5 – 10 minutes. This gives the bran in the whole wheat flour time to hydrate which softens the edges making the dough more elastic.
Set the mixer on low speed again, 1-2:00, and let it knead for 12-15 minutes. Bread dough made with whole grain flour will retain a certain amount of stickiness, like the sticky side of a Post It note. This is okay and does not need to be eliminated.
When you think you are done kneading, let the dough rest 5 minutes and then perform the windowpane test. Use clean scissors to cut off a walnut-size piece of dough. Slowly pull and stretch the dough to see if it will hold a thin membrane. Hold it up to a window; if you can see light through it, you are done kneading; if not, knead another minute or two, rest 5 minutes, and re-check.
Give the dough a few turns by hand on a lightly greased counter and shape it into a smooth ball. You will need 1-2 extra-large mixing bowls because this amount of dough will climb out of the stainless-steel bowl.
OPTIONAL: If you have a scale, weigh the bowl, and mark the weight on a piece of tape on the bowl. Grease it well and place dough in the bowl, smooth side up. Now weigh the bowl again. Subtract the weight of the bowl, from the total to determine the weight of the dough.
Cover the bowl of dough with a clean, lint-free cotton towel or plastic wrap. Allow it to rise in a protected spot until almost doubled, about 1 hour. Meanwhile, grease 7 loaf pans and set aside.
To check if it is done rising, do the poke test: take 2 fingers and gently press the dough. When you withdraw them, the indentation should remain, but the dough should not “sigh” or deflate.
Turn the dough onto the work surface and gently but firmly flatten the entire surface to remove large air bubbles. Use a bench knife or a chef’s knife to divide the dough into 5 equal portions. This is where your scale comes in handy. By weighing the portions, you will have an easier time making even-sized loaves. Each loaf should weigh 800-850 grams. The total weight of your dough can vary, depending on the amount of flour used. If you don’t have a scale, that’s fine. You can eyeball it.
Shaping: pat a piece of dough into an 8×12-inch rectangle. Fold in thirds like an envelope. Pat it out into a rectangle again, then roll it up from one narrow side. Pinch bottom seam to seal. Place seam side down in prepared loaf pan.
Cover the pans and let the bread rise until dough curves nicely over the top of the pan, about 45 minutes. Set the oven to 350°F (175°C) to preheat. Most ovens will fit 3 to 4 loaves at one time. Cover the extra loaves with oiled plastic wrap and e them in the fridge to slowly rise and wait their turn in the oven.
The touch test will help you determine if your bread is ready to bake. Instead of poking your fingers into the dough, this time simply touch the dough. It should barely show your fingerprint.
Bake 35-40 minutes, until each loaf is well-browned and done. To test for doneness, carefully tip the loaf out of the pan and inspect the bottom. The crust should be evenly browned and sound hollow when thumped with a finger. A food thermometer will read 195-200°F (90-93°C). You will want to check each loaf individually to be sure it is baked completely. And if your oven heat doesn’t circulate properly, you may need to rotate the loaves on the rack about 15 minutes before the end of baking time.
Cool baked loaves on a wire rack for a crisp crust or on a wooden breadboard for a softer crust. If desired, brush warm loaf with melted butter. Wait at least an hour before slicing to allow the crumb to set.
Notes
When making the transition to whole wheat flour one-third whole wheat to two-thirds white flour is a good place to begin. As your and your family’s tastes adapt to appreciate the nutty flavor, you can increase the proportion incrementally until you reach your nutritional goal. You will find that you need to slightly increase the amount of water as you increase the ratio of whole grain flour as the bran is absorbent.
🛒 Shopping Guide
(Some links are affiliate links and I earn a small commission when you make a qualifying purchase. This does not change your price. Thank you for supporting my business!) You may also find supplies at thrift shops for cheap! If not, take a look below.
🌼 Flour wand for sprinkling flour
🌼 Solid copper measuring cups and spoons for measuring ingredients
🌼 Bench knife for dividing dough and scraping word surfaces clean
🌼 Bowl scraper for scraping bowls and surfaces clean
🌼 USA bread pans quality loaf pans
🌼 Emile Henry loaf pan heirloom quality loaf pan
🌼 Flour sack towels to cover the rising dough
🌼 Bread bags to store your baked loaves
🌼 Cooling racks to cool the bread
🌼 KoMo Fidibus 21 grain mill grind wheat berries into flour
🌼 Ankarsrum Assistent mixer the Swedish super mixer
8 Comments
Hello! Thanks so much for your videos and recipes. I’m going to try this bread today. Is this for 5 or 7 loaves? It says get 7 pans ready but then says divide the dough into 5 equal portions. Thank you so much for sharing. I really love your YouTube channel.
Thanks for letting me know about the discrepancy. I’ll have to fix that. This is a 7-loaf batch, yes. If you have a smaller mixer, take a look at the Bosch version or the KitchenAid version. Thank you for being such an encouragement to me, Dianne. 💐 Michele
One more question! Can the dough be frozen and baked at another time? If so, would I let it rise first? Thank you 😊
The dough can be divided into loaf portions and frozen for about 2 weeks for best results. If you want a better recipe for freezer dough, take a look at this one:https://chocolateboxcottage.tv/videos/can-you-freeze-bread-dough-before-first-rise/ or this one:https://chocolateboxcottage.tv/videos/how-to-make-freezer-bread-dough/ Blessings, Michele
Thank you Michelle!
I’m sorry I have one more question. What size bread pans did you use? I have the Norpro 8″ and10″ pans. Which size would I use for these loaves? Thanks so much!
I use 8×4-inch pans in this recipe.
If i want to make this recipe using 100% whole wheat flour would I increase the water by an extra 3.5 cups? (2T of water x 14 cups wheat flour)?
Hi Jill, it just needs a little bit more water. For this recipe, you can leave the water as is and use slightly less flour OR add an extra cup of water for this big batch. That’s an estimate. You will still need to use your baker’s intuition to determine when the dough has had enough flour added. You do this by following along with the basic directions in the video and touching the dough at the points I show so that you begin to learn what it should feel like. (Remember the post-it note trick, that is really helpful.) If you are new to the Ankarsrum mixer, try starting with a smaller batch until you get comfortable. The 2-loaf batch (shown with the KitchenAid mixer) is a good place to start. And I would encourage you to use half whole wheat and half white flour at first. Here is a link to the 2-loaf recipe. You can do this – soon you will be baking beautiful whole wheat bread.
https://chocolateboxcottage.tv/videos/buttermilk-bread-kitchenaid-mixer/