ARLENE RAINES (Goodlettsville, Tennessee) shares that her Nana, ELLEN OGLESBY MAYS (Asheville, North Carolina), passed away in 1986 at the age of ninety-seven. Nana was married at eighteen, widowed at twenty-eight, and was left with two young children to raise on her own—a tough task anytime, but especially before the advent of Social Security. She was resourceful, resilient, unafraid to try new things, and very independent. Arlene likes to think that observing Nana’s life infused some of those qualities in her, the only granddaughter. “Nana loved to bake whole wheat bread. As she got older, she was unable to knead the bread. She found and adapted a recipe for no-knead whole wheat bread so she could continue to bake fresh bread. It was always a little bit crumbly, but oh so delicious. If she were still alive, she would love today’s bread-making machines. I believe her healthful eating contributed to her long life, and she instilled in me a true love for homemade whole wheat bread,” Arlene concludes.
1 to 2 tablespoons vegetable shortening, plus extra to prepare pan
1 (.25 ounce) package dry yeast
1 ½ cups warm water
⅓ cup molasses
½ teaspoon salt
4 ½ to 5 cups whole grain flour
1 Grease a loaf pan.
2 In a large bowl mix the yeast in warm water. Add the molasses and let stand for 5 minutes.
3 Stir the shortening, salt, and flour into the yeast mixture. (One learns from practice whether the particular flour being used calls for the larger or smaller amounts of shortening and flour, since all grains are not the same texture.) Do not use an electric mixer.
4 Spoon the bread mixture into the loaf pan, set in a warm place, and let rise until nearly double in size, 45 to 60 minutes.
5 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and bake for 45 to 50 minutes.
MAKES 1 LOAF.
ARLENE’S NOTE: One should expect a heavier, coarser texture but more delicious bread when using whole grain flour. Mixtures of whole soy flour in proportion of 1 to 4 with whole wheat flour make a nice bread, but less shortening is required. I prefer a loaf of soy and whole wheat bread started with the oven at 150 degrees and brought up to 350 degrees, then cut back to about 275 degrees to finish the last 15 minutes of baking.