The final product: 3 loaves of bread, 2 dozen muffins, 1 dozen biscuits
In light of my goal to simplify my life (schedule and all!), I have began to complete my baking for the month all at once. I am trying to increase eating whole grains as a more substantial part of our diet. They are so nutritious and filling, so we don’t have to eat as much meat (as grain is an excellent source of protein as well and far cheaper!).
I have set the first weekend of the month to be my baking weekend. Now, I do keep it rather simple. I stick to a batch of bread, muffins, and biscuits. I may throw in a batch of cornbread and pizza crust, but these are less frequently (a batch of these lasts two months normally). This has worked really well for the last two months. I even incorporated the process of soaking my grains in the schedule to increase the nutritional content of the grain and break down the phytates (which makes it difficult to digest). This is an optional step. I start soaking on Friday morning and bake everything on Saturday.
I have found that baking the products and then placing them in the freezer in ziploc bags really makes it easy to just pull something out for breakfast or dinner. I figured out how much we would eat in a month’s time and then made a batch large enough to last that duration. For instance, we eat three loaves of bread, approx. 2 dozen muffins, and 1 dozen biscuits in a months time. I serve biscuits with soups, muffins with smoothies and breakfasts, and bread with everything (well, almost!).
So figure out your family favorites and simplify by making big batches at a scheduled time! That way you aren’t rushing at the last minute…and increase your grain diet at the same time!
My Recipes
I have included my soaking step, but this can be skipped if you like and just combined with the next step. For more on soaking, read here. I also use coconut oil now for greasing all my pans, applying it with my fingers, as it is a solid substance. I just rub it into my hands afterwards because it is so good for your skin! You may want to melt it in a saucepan if you want to use it in the following recipes.
Homemade Bread
Raspberry Muffins or Bread
These are to die for!
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (I use whole wheat pastry)
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 cup sugar (I use rapadura, or another natural sweetener)
1 1/2 cups raspberries, frozen
2 eggs, well beaten
2/3 cup oil, coconut oil preferred
1. SOAKING: Since this recipe does not call for buttermilk or other milk liquids, I simply soak the flour in 2 Tbls of kefir/cultured buttermilk, along with the oil and a bit of water to make it a moist texture. Soak 12-24 hours. After soaking, I add remaining ingredients.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a medium bowl, mix the dry ingredients. Make a well in the center and stir in the undrained raspberries and eggs. Thoroughly mix in oil. Spoon batter into lightly greased muffin tins or 1 loaf pan. Muffin cups will be full. Bake for 15-20 minutes. Cool 5 minutes before removing from pans.
Makes 1 dozen or 1 -9×5 loaf pan.
Millet Muffins
A fun way to use other grains!
2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour (I used 1/4 cup barley, and 1 1/4 cup whole wheat pastry)
1/3 cup ground millet flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1 cup cultured buttermilk/kefir
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup oil (I used coconut oil, melted)
1/2 cup honey
3 bananas, mashed
1. SOAKING: Combine flour and cultured buttermilk/kefir, honey & oil. Soak 12-24 hours.
2. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease muffin tins.
3. In a large bowl, mix the flour, millet, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, mix the buttermilk, egg, oil and honey (or combine it all together at once, as I did, since I had already soaked the buttermilk with the flour). Stir buttermilk mixture into the flour mixture just until evenly moist. Transfer batter to muffin tins. Bake for 15 minutes.
Makes 1 dozen
Spelt Biscuits
7 cups spelt flour (or any combination! I use half spelt and half whole wheat pastry flour)
6 tsp baking powder
2 1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups butter (or 3/4 c. butter, 3/4 c. coconut oil)
2 cups buttermilk/kefir
1. SOAKING: Soak flour and buttermilk/kefir for 12-24 hours (covered on the counter). I usually include the butter/coconut oil and additional water (about 1/2 cup) in the soaking to maintain a moist dough.
2. Add remaining ingredients to the flour and buttermilk. Put 1/8 cup of olive oil in the bottom of a 13x 9 pan (you will probably need two pans). Pour flour on counter, and pat out 1 inch thick. Cut out with glass cup that is floured. Dip in oil, top and bottom. Put them close together in pan. Bake at 400 for 18 minutes.
Makes 22 biscuits
Here are muffin batches and the biscuits soaking the day before. The bread is pictured below. Notice it is a moist wet dough. Soaking actually just gets you started on the project in advance and is really quite simple!
This is a great idea. When I bake enough bread to freeze I usually slice it after it is cooled & then freeze it in the bags. Just a suggestion if this isn’t something you do. Lisa
I am realy impressed but this young mother!!!
It took me 28 years to be a “good” mother and wife!!!
How will you be in so many years???a “perfect” mother?!!!
Congratulations from France!
Hmmm, I wish we only ate 3 loaves of bread a month. We go through at least 2 loaves a week!!
Wow! If you really eat that much bread…I would definitely consider making it yourself, maybe twice a month – 4 loaves. My recipe is actually for 4 loaves, but I like larger loaves, so I condense it into 3 loaves. I remember growing up…it was my task to make bread. I would have to make 4 loaves a week to feed our family of 10! We loved bread, but especially that wonderful flavor that it has just coming out of the oven. One loaf would be gone in a flash!
I actually do make my own. My mom and I make sourdough (but we’ve managed to make it not taste sour at all! yes!)- we alternate weeks, so I make four loaves one week and give her two, then she does the same the next week. It works really well- you get a week off from making the bread and from feeding the starter (which happens daily). Yeah, I think it’s a Taylor thing to like bread- Justin just doesn’t get the craze.
What is your secret? How can I make sourdough that doesnt taste sour at all?
We’re right there with you, Amy!
Lindsay, how do you keep them from getting freezer burnt?
I don’t have any problem with freezer burn. I slice them and put them in ziploc bags. Freezer burn would only result over a longer period of time.
Actually I’ve heard that freezer burn comes from your freezer not being cold enough, quite often. Which I do have a problem with…which makes sense because my freezers not that great!
I don’t like the way bread tastes after it’s been in the freezer, but I find that the fridge will keep bread a little longer than room temperature. Weekly baking works for me, but I think I could incorporate the monthly baking idea with some of the muffins we eat. Thanks for the handy tip and the recipes
I used to store my bread in the refrigerator, but it always dried out the bread and made it more dense in texture. Do you experience this? If I freeze it, and then defrost and store at room temperature until we eat the whole loaf, it maintains its more tender and fluffy texture.
I guess I don’t notice because my breads are already dense?
I just way prefer the taste of fresh bread to frozen and thawed bread. 
I freeze our breads all the time. We have a deep freezer, so if bread is on sale, I’ll buy an extra loaf or two. I want to start to bake bread. But I came from a family where we bought everything. We didn’t live simply at all. I never kneaded dough in my life. The thought nearly terrifies me! I have thought about getting a bread maker.
Hi Tia,
Just a thought for you…I wouldn’t buy a bread maker till you had at least tried making bread by hand or stand-up mixer. I have a bread maker, but I use my stand up mixer anyways! (Kithen Aid). I make the same sourdough that Amy does (yeah!) (Or I do when I’m not prostrated by morning sickness
and the bread machine does not do well with it…anyways, my advice would be to experiment with breadmaking by hand. It is so fun, and you get to know the process and the bread can be REALLY good and also REALLY easy.
(And there is such a feeling of accomplishment seeing a nice brown loaf rise that you keaded with your own hands!
Good luck!
I’d love to hear how your breadmaking goes. E-mail me sometime at safeenas.sister@gmail.com .
Thanks Samara! I have Kitchen Aid stuff too! LOVE LOVE LOVE my stand up mixer!!! Definitely worth the money!
I’ve only seen bread kneeded on tv. And then they say to knead for 10 mins, kinda makes my eyes bug out of my head!
Thanks for the tips…when I breakdown and decide to do it, I’ll let you know!! Thanks again!
We need one loaf a day…
One day, who knows …we might need one a week , when we are only two of us left at home!
Lindsay:
I made the raspberry muffins this morning (except that I used blueberries instead). We loved them. Do you defrost your raspberries or put them in frozen?
I used frozen blueberries and I thought the batter seemed a bit dry although the muffins were not dry at all once they were cooked.
Also, I have to agree with Nicole. It took me nearly 20 years to become a proficient homemaker. It is wonderful to see a young lady who has been so well trained. You should give your mother a big hug!!!
Love,
Heather – Doodle Acres
Heather,
I use a partially defrosted berry for the muffins. If they are completely defrosted, the muffin will be really runny. I throw them in mostly frozen and just mash it around a bit until the berries are broken down, not completely though. This recipe does make a drier mix, I have noticed as well, but it always turns out great and moist.
Thanks Nicole and Heather for your sweet comments. I feel far from having it all together, but I am definitely blessed with a mother who taught me well.
When you make your pizza crust ahead of time do you just make the dough or actually cook it? I think that would help me so much if i could make it ahead of time, but I’m kind of clueless on how to do it (I’m new to the whole freezing thing).
K, I posted a link to my pizza crust recipe above. It makes 4 crusts at a time. I freeze the dough individually in ziploc bags. They will rise and expand in the freezer, but that is fine. I just use one at a time and pull it out in the morning when I plan to make it for dinner, to let it defrost. Then I roll it out and put all the toppings on and bake. So no pre-baking is necessary before freezing. It makes pizza nights so much easier to have the crusts already made this way!
That is great you have a system down that works for you. I normally cook or bake in batches. like yesterday I made 6 dozen corn muffins. We can freeze what we don’t eat and have it later. or I make 4 lasagnas or 4 enchiladas at one time and eat one that night and freeze 3 for later.
Wow I am totally inspired! I wish I had a big freezer! I have a little side by side fridge/freezer and it just doesn’t hold too much!
I just made the millet muffins, they are SO good. I didn’t put bananas in because I didn’t have any, but they were still really moist. Thanks for sharing your recipes!
You have totally inspired me also. I have been staying at home for almost two years now. I have always made meals from scratch but now that my boys are getting a little older it is so hard for me to keep up with them and still get everything done every day. Baking 1-2 times per month is such a great idea! I’ve even incorporated using a meal plan for breakfast & lunch. Thanks again for all the ideas!
Thanks for these recipes. I couldn’t limit myself to baking just once a month, however, because we all love the way house smells when I’ve baked something.
i am so glad i found this site. ive just heard about this soaking wheat and i was wondering do you soak it at room temp or in the refrigerator?
See below.
[...] From the kitchen…I am going to be trying a new recipe from Lindsay @ passionate homemaking, Banana Millet Muffins. I am wearing…my white summer PJ’s, trying to stay cool on these hot summer nights. [...]
[...] – Breakfast: Banana Millet Muffins Lunch: Leftovers Dinner: Tangy Roast Beef Wraps, Cole slaw, [...]
Thanks for sharing these recipes. When you soak the flour in the buttermilk, do you leave it at room temperature or do you put it in the fridge?
I leave them covered on the counter or in the cupboard at room temperature. This is necessary to break down the phytates. The refrigerator will slow down the process, as the ingredients are to remain warm.
This is such a great idea. Thank you for inspiring me. I now have dates on my calendar for the next two months to have a baking day!
What kind of oil do you use in your raspberry muffins? I made them the other day, and I used coconut oil. I really liked them, but my hubby said that it was coconut overload, so I think I’d like to try something else.
I’m eager to make the millet muffins and the spelt biscuits. I’ll have to do a non-dairy soak though.
Do you think the taste will be greatly altered by a water/lemon juice soak?
In Christ,
Erica
For the raspberry muffins, I normally use coconut oil or half and half with butter or olive oil.
I think you should be able to soak the other items just fine with a water/lemon juice soak…just don’t use a lot of lemon juice and you should be fine.
Enjoy!
I subsituted pumpkin for the banannas in the millet muffins with WONDERFUL results. My husband LOVED them. I also added some pumpkin pie spice to them too. Just thought I would pass this along as pumpkins are in season and are grown locally pretty much everywhere as banannas are not. Blessings and Happy Baking
I have just discovered your website and am thrilled with all of your wonderful recipes and homemaking ideas. My sister sent your whole wheat bread recipe to me (how I discovered this site) and I made it the same day- it looked too good to pass up. By far the best luck I have had with risen bread! Am looking forward to substituting coconut oil for veg. oil in my favorite muffin recipe. Thanks for all the great tips!!
[...] is the recipe. By the way this is a tasty way to use up bananas that are going [...]
That’s about 3-4 days worth of baking for me. I use spelt a lot, but I haven’t heard of the “soaking” method.
I made the millet muffins and the rasberry muffins this past week and both of them turned out really well. I added more barley flour in the millet muffins as I didn’t have enough spelt and it was great. I also made a double batch with one batch rasberries and one batch with pureed strawberries. Delish!
Lindsay, I just found your website today and am so impressed! I wanted to comment on a couple of things here. One is that coconut oil is not a solid if it is above about 70 degrees, just in case someone gets some and wonders why it is a liquid at some point — like in a few months from now, or if their kitchen is really warm. I have been using it for about 10 years now, and use it for all baking, cooking, as well as skin care.
I’ve been wanting to start baking with soaked grains for awhile now but just haven’t taken the time to do it. Even though I have Nourishing Traditions and some information from Sue Gregg’s books, I have had a hard time figuring out how to translate this to my favorite family recipes. Thanks for such good descriptions of how you do it.
And for those who use lots of bread for your family, when our sons were growing up, I used to bake 16 loaves every other week (freshly ground, whole wheat bread). My husband would slice each loaf after they cooled and we would freeze them. I also often gave a couple of loaves away — people are wild about freshly baked bread!
I did buy heavy bread bags and we would double bag them. I think that made a big difference. They were always just like fresh-baked when we thawed them. We don’t go through as much bread now that it’s just the two of us again, so I’d gotten into the habit of buying bread from our whole foods store, but I plan to start baking my own again. It’s just cheaper and so superior!
Hi there,
This all sounds so yummy! Do you make your own cultured buttermilk or do you buy it?
Thanks
Actually, I just use kefir for all my soaking. I always have it on hand and the nutrional value is superior, but you definitely can use buttermilk.
Hi there,
Do you make your own buttermilk or do you buy it? I love your site!!
Sorry I meant kefir!! do you make your kefir or buy it? Thanks for answering my question about buttermilk
That’s funny…I do make my own kefir as it is so cheap. It is really quite easy. You can learn how here.
Hmmm I will have to make my own kefir then! You dont happen to have a recipe for sourdough and/or spelt english muffins do you? I looked online and all the recipes I find are full of white flower and sugar
I know that Sue Gregg has a sourdough English muffin recipe in her Breakfast cookbook, but I have yet to try it. That is a very useful cookbook though!
Hi. I am wondering what you use for making muffins as far as do you use paper liners or what kind of muffin tins etc. Also do you know anything about the silicone baking cups? I am wondering if they are safe to use? I enjoy your blog and have learned so much. Thanks for all the work you put into it.
Funny that you should ask. Check out tomorrow (Fri) for a post on safe bakeware options!
I just pulled a batch of your raspberry muffins out of the oven and they are sooooo good. Granted, I didn’t wait for them to cool – 21 weeks pregnant, hungry all the time
- so it kind of fell apart on me while I was eating it, but I can guarantee that these are going to become part of my regular baking routine. Thanks!
update on your banana millet muffins
So I tweeked your recipe a little and thought you may be interested in my additions.
I added 4 bananas and decreased the oil by 1/4c
I Sub’d rice syrup for honey
I added ground approx 1/8c ground flax seed, 1 TBSP ground chia seed, and 1 TBSP brewers or nutritional yeast.
I have tried soaking but it makes for a really rubbery muffin in my experience. (the extra mixing required for incorperating the egg, etc…) Though I do like the texture better with the soaking.
These were lower fat and super delish!
lindsay i am assuming you add the bananas with the wet stuff in the millet muffins…i read and reread and reread and it does not say…..
Yes, I add the bananas after soaking with the remaining ingredients.
lindsay…okay this is what i did last night…i 4 times the batch, i ground millet 1/3 and ground 2 cps buckwheat, 1 cp soft white and 7 cp red hard, in my bosch i mixed it with the dough hook and omitted the honey because i wanted rapadura…this morning i switched to the cookie paddles otherwise it would not mix…i added 1 tsp cinnamon and 1 tsp vanilla per batch (so 4 tsp total) and i added the crispy walnuts (nour.trad.)chopped, i also added the banana at the end, i had to cook them about 12 minutes longer…and i use ‘if you care’ natural baking cups so i can reuse my pans right away without washing…they turned out wonderful…this is similar to my banana bread recipe that i messaged you about up there…this is the flavor i was looking for…thanks girlie..i have 5 little munchkins that love muffins that is why so much
i forgot to tell you i lowered the oven to 350 and cooked them for 25 min..perfection and so yum thanks hon
Lindsay,
I just made your raspberry muffins this morning and they are SCRUMPTOUS! My question – do you ever substitute different flours for the whole wheat flour and how does it turn out?
By they way – I just found your website yesterday when googling to find more information about soaking grains/flours. I am delighted to have found you! You have done a most impressive job of presenting so much high-quality, helpful information. And the website is extremely professional. Very impressive indeed.
Sherree, thank you for visiting and for your sweet and thoughtful comments. I am glad to hear you enjoyed the muffins. I have not tried any other flours with this recipe on their own. I have done a combination of whole wheat and spelt with great success. This goes for most all of my baking.
Thank you Lindsay – I will be experimenting because our daughter has so many food alllergies and she has to be on a rotation diet, eating no single food more frequently than every 4 days. I’ll let you know about what works and what doesn’t.
The raspberry muffins are fantastic!! I sprinkled slivered almonds on top of mine before baking.
Lindsay,
I just found your website and am really enjoying all of your recipes/information. This is great! Thanks!
I’m definitely going to add this recipe to my baking list. And as soon as I buy a good stand mixer, I’m going to start a similar monthly baking plan. I think it would work really well for our family. I usually buy a months worth of bread at a time and freeze it anyway so this is a great idea.
And I love raspberries! So these are getting made very soon!
Do you notice any difference in texture or flavor when using the spelt? I’ve not tried it before and have been thinking of doing so but am worried about it being different enough that my kids won’t touch it.
Thanks again,
~Annie
And by the way -
My family and I live in Washington as well – a few hours North of you, just above Seattle.
Annie, Thanks for visiting! Spelt really does not taste any different than wheat in my oppinion. It actually produces a lighter texture, as I have experienced when making my biscuits. I usually use half spelt and half whole wheat pastry for those and it is wonderful! If they like wheat, you will be totally fine with any of these other whole grains!
Hello and thanks for your great comments and recipes. I am wondering if you have ever tried soaking flour for cakes. I am tempted to make my grandaughters birthday cake by soaking the flour first. have you tried this?
I have only soaked flours for basic coffee cakes as you can see on my recipes page. If you want something healthy but free of phytates, try a coconut flour recipe, like Kimi’s Coconut Flour Cake.