YIELDS 2 LOAVES (32 SLICES)

Orange juice adds a nice tang to this bread and helps offset the strong flavor some whole-wheat breads can have.

½ cup cracked wheat

1 cup boiling water

¼ cup butter

3 tablespoons honey

½ cup orange juice

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup whole-wheat flour

1 (0.25-ounce) package instant dry yeast

2-½ to 3-½ cups bread flour

1. Pour cracked wheat into large bowl. Pour boiling water over, stir, and let stand for 20 minutes. Add butter and stir until melted. Add honey, orange juice, orange zest, and salt and mix well. Stir in whole-wheat flour and instant dry yeast and beat for 2 minutes. Gradually stir in enough bread flour to make a medium-s29t dough.

2. Turn dough onto floured surface and knead for 5 to 8 minutes or until elastic. Place in greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover and let rise in warm place for 1 hour. Punch down dough, divide into two parts, cover with bowl, and let stand for 10 minutes.

3. Grease two 9” × 5” loaf pans with unsalted butter. On lightly floured surface, roll or pat dough to 7” × 12” rectangles. Roll up tightly, starting with 7” side; pinch ends and edges to seal. Place in prepared pans, cover, and let rise until bread fills pans, about 35 minutes.

4. Preheat oven to 350°F. Bake bread for 35 to 45 minutes, or until deep golden brown. Turn out onto wire racks to cool completely.

Regular Yeast or Instant?

If a recipe calls for dissolving the yeast in a small amount of warm water before adding to the remaining ingredients, you can use regular yeast or cake yeast. If the yeast is added to the ingredients along with the all-purpose flour, be sure to use instant yeast; it dissolves more easily in the smaller amount of liquid.