Tips for Baking with Whole Wheat Flour

We’ve all heard about the benefits of eating more whole grains. More and more recipes have been popping up featuring whole wheat flour, but lots of people I know still resist making the switch.

Some common complaints about baking with whole wheat flour include:

• Dense texture
• Dry texture
• Bitter taste

I totally understand the apprehension at using whole wheat flour in baking recipes. I have definitely made my fair share of dense and dry baked goods. For me, the dense texture isn’t always a problem. In some recipes I actually like it better, it reminds me of the texture of Japanese baked mochi. Dry though, I can’t stand. And fortunately I haven’t run into the bitter problem.

If you are interested in baking with whole wheat flour, here are 3 tips to get you started:

• When changing a recipe from all purpose to wheat flour, start with replacing just half of the regular flour with whole wheat. If it works pretty well you can then try a ratio of 2/3 to 1/3.
• Add more liquid since whole wheat flour tends to absorb more, making the baked goods dry. What I do is keep in mind what the batter usually looks like. I imagine my regular muffin or pancake batter and add a little extra liquid to get it close to that. Sometimes it’s 3 Tbsp more liquid, other times it’s 1/3 cup more.
• Try using white whole wheat flour. It has the same nutrition as regular whole wheat, but is lighter with a milder flavor.