Whole Wheat Rosemary bread

[blackbyrd2]

This is my first try at homemade bread;

3 3/4 cups whole wheat bread flour (King Arthur Brand)
1 pkg rapid rise yeast (The very fast acting stuff, not the normal 'active')
1 1/3 cups warm water
2 tsp sugar
1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk (Recipe called for nonfat dried milk, in smaller quantity))
1/8 cup olive oil
1 tsp rosemary
3/4 tsp oregano
dash of black pepper (maybe 1/8 tsp?)

Mixed 3 1/2 cups flour, sugar, salt, pepper and herbs. Nuked the water to approx 120 degrees and added it. Added oil and milk, mixed and kneaded by hand, adding flour as needed to get it all mixed and approx the right consistency. (It was too thin to start.) Let it rest for about 20 minutes. (The water felt less than 120, so I wanted to give it time to rise.) Punched it down and separated it into two bread pans. (Should have been one.) 375 for 25 minutes, and it was just fine. The herbs barely even register, so I could have been more aggressive with them.

This could be slightly sweeter, and (depending on how it turns out tomorrow, when it isn't all warm and fresh,) could probably use some butter or honey for moistness. One of the recipes I butchered for this said to use 1/4 cup of honey, molasses or maple syrup.

Made my fingers awfully doughy, which I guess is normal, but not something I remembered from when I was a kid.
I suppose I could have used the bread machine, but I wanted to do this batch this way instead. I enjoyed it, and will probably do it again sometime, with the noted modifications.

Comments

[sara]

I do something v. similar, often, when I do pizza crusts -- chop some rosemary and mix it in there. SO GOOD. I have cleverly planted a little perennial herb garden outside the downstairs door, so when I want something to cook with, all I have to do is duck down there with a pair of scissors.

[blackbyrd2]

I've been planning on planting some herbs for several years now. Unfortunately, with the job taking me out of town for weeks/months on end, it hasn't been a reasonable choice recently.