This recipe for Bread Machine Whole Wheat Bread with oats, bran, and flax makes my favorite bread machine bread. And if you like the idea of making healthy 100% whole wheat bread at home in the bread machine, you have to try this recipe!

PIN Bread Machine Whole Wheat Bread to try some later!

Square image for Bread Machine Whole Wheat Bread shown on cutting board with some slices and the rest of the loaf.

Back in the days when I was following the original South Beach Diet, I spent weeks on a quest to create 100% whole wheat bread, and this Bread Machine Whole Wheat Bread was the delicious bread I came up with! I wanted to make bread from scratch using all whole wheat flour, very minimal sugar, and a fair amount of fiber.

The bread you see above is the winning recipe, after seven earlier versions and a lot of helpful suggestions from bloggers, relatives, and even a parent from school! This was a tasty healthy bread recipe that has white whole wheat flour, rolled oats, whet bran, and flaxseed meal, and it has 19 net carbs per slice, which is pretty good for a bread made with whole wheat flour. If you want low-carb bread check out low-carb and gluten-free Savory Almond Flour Bread.

What ingredients do you need?

(This is only a list of ingredients; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

Why do I use White Whole Wheat Flour?

When I was trying to eat more whole grains I was a huge fan of White Whole Wheat Flour (affiliate link) which is a made from a white variety of wheat with all the same properties as regular whole wheat flour, but can be used almost interchangeably with white flour, and the White Whole Wheat Flour worked beautifully in this Bread Machine Whole Wheat Bread. Here’s more information about white whole wheat flour if you’re not familiar with it.

Can you use sweetener in this Bread Machine Whole Wheat Bread?

I know some people might raise their eyebrows when they see agave nectar and brown sugar listed in the ingredients here. There isn’t a lot of either of those ingredients, but they’re needed to “feed” the yeast so it will rise so I don’t recommend replacing them with sweetener.

What breadmaker did I use for Bread Machine Whole Wheat Bread?

I’m a long time fan of the Oster Bread Machine (affiliate link) and that’s the one I used for this recipe.

Bread Machine Recipe for 100% Whole Wheat Bread with Oats, Bran, and Flax Seed found on KalynsKitchen.com

How to Make Bread Machine Whole Wheat Bread :

(This is only a summary of the steps for the recipe; please scroll down for complete printable recipe. Or if you use the JUMP TO RECIPE link at the top of the page, it will take you directly to the complete recipe.)

  • My bread started with White Whole Wheat Flour, which is a whole grain flour made from a white variety of wheat. This flour can be substituted for white flour in many recipes.
  • You can use whole oatmeal, but I like the flavor of oats but not the look of oatmeal flakes in the bread, so I grind oatmeal in the food processor. (I keep this in the freezer and often use it in recipes instead of bread crumbs.)
  • Follow directions for your bread machine, but in my machine you add the liquid ingredients first. I combined the lukewarm water, agave nectar, olive oil, and a tiny bit of brown sugar before I put it in the machine. (I used the measuring spoon to stir, eliminating the need to dirty another spoon.)
  • I mixed white whole wheat flour, ground oatmeal, wheat bran, flaxseed meal (affiliate link), vital wheat gluten, dough enhancer, and salt in advance, so it was ready to pour in as soon as I added the liquid.
  • When you make bread in a machine, you need to watch during the first mixing and make sure the bread forms a ball like this.
  • Depending on the humidity where you live, you may need to add more water or flour (one tablespoon at a time) during this initial mixing.
  • I thought this bread was completely a winner! Serve the tasty bread hot, of course!

Cropped image for Bread Machine Whole Wheat Bread showing loaf with slices.

More Recipes with White Whole Wheat Flour:

Bread Machine 100% Whole Wheat Bread with Oats, Bran, and Flax finished bread, sliced
Yield: 12 slices

Bread Machine Whole Wheat Bread

Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 3 hours 40 minutes
Total Time 3 hours 45 minutes

This Bread Machine Whole Wheat Bread with Oats, Bran, and Flax makes delicious homemade bread, perfect for a cold day!

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients - Mix in a bowl:

  • 2 cups White Whole Wheat Flour
  • 1 cup ground rolled oats (oatmeal ground in a food processor, or use 1 cup whole oatmeal)
  • 1/3 cup wheat bran
  • 2 T flaxseed meal
  • 2 T vital wheat gluten
  • 1 T dough enhancer
  • 1 tsp. salt

Wet Ingredients and sweeteners – Mix in measuring cup:

  • 1 1/3 cup lukewarm water
  • 1 T olive oil
  • 1 T agave nectar
  • 2 tsp. brown sugar
  • 2 tsp. yeast (I used Red Star Active Dry Yeast, not a special yeast for bread machines.)

Instructions

  1. Follow directions for your bread machine.
  2. In my Oster Bread Machine (affiliate link) I put the liquid in first, followed by the dry ingredients I mixed in the bowl.
  3. Then I make a small well in the flour and put the yeast (affiliate link) in that. I used the whole wheat setting on the machine.
  4. Watch bread while it goes through the first mixing cycle, and if it doesn’t form a ball you may need to add either more flour or water, 1 tablespoon at a time. The dough should make a firm ball and be only slightly sticky.
  5. If you’re going to be taking photos of the bread for your food blog, you may want to take the dough out of the machine right before the final rise and gently fold sides under to make a loaf with a smooth top. When I didn’t do that, I still had a tasty bread but the top wasn’t as well-shaped.
  6. My bread machine takes 3 hours 40 minutes for the whole wheat cycle. Bread is delicious hot or cold, and also makes great toast.

Notes

I used the following dry ingredients for this recipe: White Whole Wheat Flour, rolled oats, wheat bran, flaxseed meal, vital wheat gluten, dough enhancer (affiliate links).

Recipe created by Kalyn.

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

12

Serving Size:

1

Amount Per Serving: Calories: 136Total Fat: 3gSaturated Fat: 1gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 202mgCarbohydrates: 23gFiber: 4gSugar: 2gProtein: 6g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated by the Recipe Plug-In I am using. I am not a nutritionist and cannot guarantee 100% accuracy, since many variables affect those calculations.

Did you make this recipe?

Did you make this recipe? Please leave a star rating (under the PRINT button in the recipe) or share a photo of your results on Instagram! THANKS!

Bread Machine 100% Whole Wheat Bread with Oats, Bran, and Flax finished bread, sliced

Low-Carb Diet / Low-Glycemic Diet / South Beach Diet Suggestions:
Bread Machine  Whole Wheat Bread is a great choice for phase 2 or 3 of the original South Beach Diet. This bread has 19 net carbs per slice, which is probably a bit high in carbs for traditional low-carb diets.

Find More Recipes Like This One:
Use Desserts and Baking to find more ideas like this one. Use the Diet Type Index to find recipes suitable for a specific eating plan. You might also like to follow Kalyn’s Kitchen on Pinterest, on Facebook, on Instagram, on TikTok, or on YouTube to see all the good recipes I’m sharing there.

Historical Notes for this Recipe:
This recipe for 100% whole wheat bread made in the bread machine was first posted in 2009, after lots of experimenting to get a bread that would work for the original South Beach Diet! The recipe was last updated in 2023.

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