Fit Friday! Carbs & Whole Wheat Bread

Since I didn't give you guys a recipe for Try-It-Tuesday this week, I think it's fitting to give you one today. Let's just start out talking about carbs. Carbs are given a bad rep. Which is silly, because they're necessary for your body to function. It's the type of carbs you're eating that's important! So which carbs are good and which carbs are less good? (I don't like saying "bad carbs", because less good carbs can be good for the soul ;))

Good carbs include veggies, fruit, and whole grains. I know this graphic says "bad carbs", but try to think of them as "less good"!

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While less good carbs include white breads, pastas, buns, white sugars, instant oatmeal, etc. I'll be honest though, last night I had white pasta for  dinner. It was my Papa's birthday! It's important to treat yourself and enjoy celebrations. Which is exactly why I had a small piece for ice cream cake and some chocolate as well. :) Obviously you shouldn't eat like that all the time though!

Let's not let this happen ladies and gents:

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You need to listen to your body and give it what it needs. And that includes carbs!

Take a look at this graphic:

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So, now that we understand carbs a little better, here's a recipe for some good carbs!

Whole Wheat Bread

(Makes 4 large loaves)

5 cups Warm Water (105-115 degrees F)

3/4 cup Whey Protein Powder

2 tbsp Liquid Lecithin

1/4 tsp Vitamin C Crystals*

2 tsp salt

10-12 cups fresh ground whole wheat

2 tbsp Instant Yeast

*I just used a mortar and pestle to crush up an orange vitamin c. Don't worry, the orange flavour is not at all noticeable in the bread!

1. In a large mixer, with the dough hook attachment, put all ingredients in except for the yeast and 6 cups of flour. Turn on and mix just to moisten. 

2. Add a little more flour and the yeast. Turn on to speed 1 and add enough flour until the dough pulls away from the bottom of the bowl. The dough will appear somewhat moist.

3. Knead dough for 7-10 minutes. **Here's a tip! You can knead the dough IN the actual mixer. I didn't realize that until after, so I kneaded it on the counter.

As you can see, mine does not look moist. That's because I needed to put it back in the mixer after mixing the dough more myself. The mixer didn't incorporate all the dry ingredients the first time. So I put it back in and mixed it again.

Beauty right?!

4. On an oiled surface (counter), form into desired shapes. Let rise until double in a warm oven set at 150 degrees. I let mine rise for about 40-50 minutes, but I think I should've let it rise longer. Preheat the oven to 350 F.

5. Once the dough is doubled in size, bake for 30-35 minutes. Remove from oven and pans, and cool on a rack. (Sorry I didn't get a picture of the bread out of the oven. Just imagine, fluffy, hearty, warm, and delicious!

Now go enjoy some healthy bread! :) 

Love,

Lo