Global Table, Week 5: Remembering Grandma with Honey Wheat Loaves

Lena's mixing bowl 

Grandmother Lena died several years before I was born.  My mother, however, has transported her to me through stories, life lessons, and a few select artifacts.  I especially treasure her mixing bowls. As I create my favorite recipes, I imagine her doing the same.

My mother reported that Grandma Lena could bake anything, from simple muffins to complex pastries.  However, like me, she believed that food should first sustain and second entertain.  In a nutshell, nutrition should come first.

This recipe produces
12 - 16 crescent rolls.

Rather than considering mundane tasks involving food sustainability beneath a woman with a master's degree, she saw potential as a community model and leader in her efforts.

Ahead of  her time, Lena studied nutrition and adapted her recipes accordingly.  Modern preservatives, pesticides, and genetic-engineering never entered her kitchen.  Before community or even victory gardens, she highly valued growing and cultivating her own food.  

Unfortunately, when she passed, many of her recipes died with her. Perhaps she never wrote them down, or perhaps my grandmother, a baking rival, discarded them.  

I tried to recreate recipes combining her nutritional approach with current research trends.  The following recipe can make 12 - 16 rolls, or 2 - 3 small loaves, depending on pan size. Feel free to experiment and find what works for you. 

Image Credit: Julie Magro 

Several natural ingredients contribute to the nutritional and flavor values of this dough.  Let's unpack a few of their benefits. 

Coconut Flour

In equal amounts, coconut flour contains less calories but more protein, fiber, and healthy fats. I replace some of the white flour, maybe a 1 to 1 1/2 of the white flour.

Image Credit: Bruce Matsunaga

Coconut Oil 

Experts disagree about whether coconut oil helps with cholesterol. Pacific Islanders have used coconut products without heart or cholesterol problems, but some research suggests that Americans may yield different results.  Check out coconut oil and cholesterol for yourselves. 

However, coconut oil contains long-chain fatty acids (LFCAs).  The liver breaks them down into energy. Small cell structure allows for cell permeability and easily access to immediate energy. For both reasons, our bodies digest LFCAs easily rather than storing them as body fat. 

Image Credit: theimpulsivebuy

Coconut oil provides the consistency of butter and a slightly nutty taste.  I suggest using it in moderation, like in this recipe.

Nutritional Yeast

This super food concentrates all the B vitamins, 15 minerals, and 18 amino acids.  The yeast is technically dead.  However, it still adds puffiness and flavor to whatever I bake. Without adding fat, it adds the richness of butter and taste that kids love.  Even my cats attack the bags if I leave them out.

White Whole Wheat Flour

Image Credit: Rebecca Siegal

White whole wheat flour comes from a lighter-colored, lighter-tasting variety of whole wheat.   It packs in the nutrients and fiber of whole wheat with the light, versatile taste of white flour.  For most baking, it provides a healthy alternative to processed white flour.

Honey Wheat Loaves

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cup warm water

2 1/4 tsp. baking yeast

1/3 cup honey

2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour

2 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour (can use coconut flour for part, or white flour for all)

1 cup warm milk (cow, soy, coconut or other)

1 tsp. sea salt

2 1/2 tbsp. coconut oil

1/2 cup soy flour

1/2 - 1 cup nutritional yeast

Directions: 

1.  Put the warm water into a large mixing bowl.  Sprinkle in the baking yeast and add the honey.  The yeast should dissolve and bubble within a few minutes.

2. Add the warm milk, oil, salt, and white wheat flour.  Fold in the whole wheat flour, soy flour, and nutritional yeast and mix well.

3. Sprinkle flour on a clean table.  Turn out the dough onto the table. Knead it until it is soft and stretchy (6 to 8 minutes).  Spread oil inside a large container and put in the dough.  Let it rise in a warm place for an hour or more.   Otherwise, let it rise overnight in the refrigerator overnight.

4. Shape into loaves and place into two 9" x 14" pans (or smaller if you wish).  Bake at 375° for 30 to 35 minutes.  Cool on a rack.  Tap on pan bottoms to release after 5 -8 minutes.  Enjoy!