High Fiber Bread (Bread Machine & Oven Recipes)

This high fiber bread recipe is simple to make, delicious and contains lots of whole wheat and ground flaxseed. It is perfect for making high fiber sandwiches or toast. Moreover, this recipe shows you 2 different ways to bake this bread – in your machine or in your oven. I want to make this bread easy for you to make whether you have an oven and/or bread machine.

As I have been getting older, I have found myself needing to eat higher fiber foods. Ahh… the joy of aging! And since I am a Bread Dad (aka baking mad scientist), I decided to create a homemade high fiber bread for myself and family. Thus the creation of this whole wheat and flaxseed high fiber bread recipe!

Sliced High Fiber Bread

Disclaimer – Always check with your doctor if you are making changes to your diet (such as switching from a low fiber diet to a high fiber diet). Also please consult with your doctor before adding any new foods to your diet.

Recipe Sections

• Ingredients
• Instructions
• Helpful Tips

Close-Up of Golden Flaxseed Meal

Ingredients

• 1 1/4 Cups – Milk (warm) – 296 milliliters
• 4 Tablespoons – Unsalted Butter (softened) – 57 grams
• 2 1/2 Cups – Whole Wheat Flour – 288 grams
• 1 Cup – Golden Flaxseed Meal – 104 grams – It can also be called finely ground golden flaxseed, ground golden flaxseed meal, etc. You want to use ground-up seeds and not whole seeds.
• 1/3 Cup – Light Brown Sugar – 72 grams
• 1 1/2 Teaspoons – Salt – 9 grams
• 1 1/2 Teaspoons – Instant Yeast (or Bread Machine Yeast) – 4.5 grams – This recipe does not use active dry yeast.

Servings – Roughly 18 slices (oven-baked version) or 12 slices (bread machine version)

Equipment Needed (for oven-baked version) – Measuring cup & spoons, flexible spatula, cutting board, 9×5 bread pan, oven mitts, oven, wire cooling rack and a kneading machine to make the dough (either a bread machine or electric stand mixer with dough hook).

Equipment Needed (for bread machine-baked version) – Measuring cup & spoons, silicone spatula, oven mitts, cooling rack and a bread machine.

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Bread Machine – High Fiber Dough Being Mixed

High Fiber Bread Dough Rising In Bread Pan

Instructions (Bread Machine-Baked Version)

• Mixing, kneading & baking in a bread machine

Instructions (Oven-Baked Version) – Click on links to jump to appropriate sections

• Creating dough with a bread machine
• Or creating dough with an electric stand mixer & dough hook
• Shaping the dough & baking the bread in the oven

Instructions – Mixing, Kneading & Baking in a Bread Machine

• Bread machine settings – 2 pound loaf, light color and “basic” bread setting.
• Unplug your bread machine.
• Remove the bread pan from the unplugged bread machine (so when you add the ingredients, they can not accidentally spill into the machine).
• Soften the butter. FYI – I like to use a microwave to semi-melt the butter for better mixability.
• Pour the milk & softened butter into the bread pan and then add the other ingredients. Place the instant yeast/bread machine yeast in last and the yeast should not touch the liquid (until the bread machine is turned on and the ingredients start to be mixed together by the bread machine). FYI – Many bakers like to make a crater/pocket in the top of the flour to hold the yeast so the yeast does not contact the liquid or salt in the bread pan.
• Put the bread pan with ingredients back into the unplugged bread machine.
• Plug in the bread machine. Enter the correct settings (2 lb, light color, basic bread) and press the “start” button.
• When the bread machine has finished baking the bread, unplug the bread machine and remove the bread pan from the bread machine. Wear oven mitts as the bread pan & bread machine will be hot.
• Remove the bread from the bread pan and place the bread on a wire cooling rack. Use oven mitts when removing the bread as the bread & bread pan will be hot.
• Optional (but Recommended) – Right after removing the bread from the bread pan (while the bread is still very hot), brush on 1 or 2 tablespoons of melted butter on the top crust of the bread. This creates a more buttery top to the bread. Use a pastry brush to brush on the butter.
• Let the bread cool on the wire cooling rack for 1-2 hours before cutting.
• Please read the tips section below for extra information on how to make this recipe successfully.

Instructions – Creating Dough with a Bread Machine

• Your bread machine should be unplugged.
• Remove the bread pan from the bread machine (so when you add the ingredients, they can not accidentally spill into the machine).
• Soften the butter. FYI – I like to use a microwave to semi-melt the butter for better mixability.
• Pour the milk & softened butter into the bread pan and then add the other ingredients. Place the instant yeast (bread machine yeast) in last and the yeast should not touch the liquid (until the bread machine is turned on and the ingredients start to be mixed together by the bread machine). Some bakers like to make a small indent on top of the flour to prevent the yeast from spilling into the liquids or mixing with the salt before the machine is turned on.
• Put the bread pan with ingredients back into the unplugged bread machine.
• Plug in the bread machine. Enter the “Dough” setting on your bread machine and then press the “Start” button.
• When the bread machine has finished making the bread dough, unplug the bread machine.
• Remove the bread pan from the bread machine.
• Now go to the instruction section below on “shaping the dough & baking the bread”. FYI – Ignore the instructions for the electric stand mixer below if you are using a bread machine to make your dough. Skip down to the shaping the dough & baking the bread section.

Instructions – Creating Dough with an Electric Stand Mixer with Dough Hook

• Your electric mixer should be unplugged.
• Remove the mixing bowl from the electric mixer.
• Insert a dough hook into the electric mixer.
• Soften the butter. FYI – I like to use a microwave to semi-melt the butter for better mixability.
• Pour the milk & softened butter into the mixing bowl and then add the other ingredients. Place the instant yeast (bread machine yeast) in last and the yeast should not touch the liquid (until the electric mixer is turned on and the ingredients start to be mixed together). Some bakers like to make a small indent on the top of the flour to prevent the yeast from spilling into the liquids or mixing with the salt before the machine is turned on.
• Place the mixing bowl back into the electric stand mixer.
• Plug in the electric mixer and use a low speed (i.e. setting 2) to mix the dough. Mix the dough for 7-10 minutes.
• When done with the kneading, turn off the electric mixer and unplug the machine.
• Remove the mixing bowl from the electric mixer. Pour the dough into a second large mixing bowl that has been lightly “greased” with olive oil, cooking spray, etc.
• Optional – Lightly coat the top of the dough with olive oil in order to prevent the dough exterior from drying out.
• Loosely cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rise for 60-90 minutes until it doubles in size.
• After the dough has risen, go to the instruction section below on “shaping the dough & baking the bread”.

Instructions – Shaping the Dough & Baking the Bread

• Sprinkle a little bit of flour onto a large cutting board.
• Remove the dough from the bread pan or mixing bowl and place the dough on the cutting board.
• Press down on the dough with your hands and create a “flattish” rectangle with the dough. The dough should be roughly 1 inch high.
• Roll up the dough into a tight “jelly roll”. FYI – Please see the short instructional videos in the tips section below on how to shape the dough if you haven’t shaped bread dough before. It is easier to watch & learn from these short videos versus trying to explain the rolling technique step by step.
• Place the rolled up dough into the bread pan.
• Press down on top of the dough so the edges of the dough press out towards the sides of the bread pan. This should result in little or no gaps between the dough and the bread pan. This helps the bread to turn into a nice loaf shape without any misshapen edges. Make sure that the top of the pressed down dough is roughly level (so one side isn’t much higher than the other).
• Optional – Brush olive oil on top of the dough with a pastry brush. This prevents the crust from drying out as the dough rises.
• Loosely cover the top of the bread pan with plastic wrap. Set the covered bread pan aside for 60-90 minutes for the dough to rise into a loaf shape. Once the dough has risen 1 – 1.5 inches (2.5 – 3.8 cm) above the rim of the bread pan, the dough should be ready to be placed in the oven. FYI – You want the dough to fully rise during this stage. So don’t try to shorten this rising time. If the dough is still significantly rising while in the oven, you are more likely to see crust/seam cracks or “bursts” in the oven. In addition, the speed of the dough rise will vary in part based on the temperature of your kitchen (i.e. rise faster in the summer & slower in the winter).
• Preheat the oven to 350 F for about 20 minutes before you plan to put the dough in the oven. FYI – I like to set my timer to go off 40 minutes after I place the dough in the bread pan. Given variability in the dough rising time, this can be a little early sometimes (but better to be a little early versus being late!).
• Place the bread pan in the (preheated) oven to bake at 350 F for 37-42 minutes. Wear oven mitts when dealing with a hot oven. Place the bread pan in the middle of the oven.
• Rotate the bread pan in the oven after 15-20 minutes (in order to ensure an even browning of the bread).
• After the 37-42 minute baking period has finished, remove the bread pan from the oven. Wear oven mitts. Optional – Use a digital thermometer to confirm that the bread has been fully baked. See tips below.
• Remove the bread from the bread pan and place the bread on a wire cooling rack. Wear oven mitts.
• Optional (but Recommended) – Right after removing the bread from the bread pan (while the bread is still very hot), brush on 1 tablespoon of melted butter on the top crust of the bread. This creates a more buttery top to the bread. Use a pastry brush to brush on the butter.
• Allow the bread to cool down on the wire cooling rack for 1-2 hours before cutting the bread.
• Please read the tips section below for extra information on how to make this recipe successfully.

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Other Bread Dad Sections

• Bread Machines – My favorites
• Bread Machine Cookbooks
• Bread Mixes – Ingredient kits
• Bread Tools – Bread slicers, etc.

Tips for High Fiber Bread Recipe

• The tips below are designed to help baking & bread making “novices”. Intermediate and advanced bread makers probably know most of these bread making tips.
• Click on our “print recipe” link if you want to print out this recipe. It includes all of the recipe’s ingredients and instructions. However, the recipe print function does not include our tips section. Please read the tips section in order to avoid common recipe problems.
• As I said above – Always check with your doctor if you are making changes to your diet (such as switching from a low fiber diet to a high fiber diet). Also consult with your doctor before adding any new foods to your diet.
• This high fiber bread recipe is part of Bread Dad’s series on Easy Bread Recipes (such as recipes for extra soft white bread, multigrain bread and French bread).

• WARNING – Use FRESH whole wheat flour and ground flaxseed meal as these ingredients can go bad (rancid) quickly. The natural oils in these ingredients oxidize quickly and spoil.
• In my opinion, this is probably the biggest reason why some people do not like the taste of whole wheat breads. They do not like the weird funky taste associated with old whole wheat flour. Ground flaxseed can also taste strange when it is not fresh.
• FYI – After opening, I like to store my whole wheat flour and ground flaxseed in airtight containers in my refrigerator. Some people like to store them in their freezer for even longer storage.
• Visitors – How do you like to add more fiber to your homemade bread? And how do you store your whole wheat flour & ground flaxseed? Please leave your “fiber” thoughts, storage ideas & recipe variations in the comment section below.

• Whole wheat flour contains roughly 4 grams of fiber per 1/4 cup (or 16 grams of fiber per cup). See the picture of the whole wheat flour nutrition label below. Of course, the fiber amount can vary by manufacturer (so you need to read the nutrition label on your flour package for the exact fiber amount).
• Moreover, ground flaxseed meal contains roughly 6 grams of fiber per 1/4 cup (or 24 grams of fiber per cup). See the picture of the ground flaxseed meal nutrition label below. However, be aware that the fiber amount in ground flaxseed meal packages tends to vary a bit between manufacturers. I have seen some packages with more fiber and some with less (so you need to read the nutrition label on your flaxseed package for the exact fiber amount).
• In contrast, regular bread flour (and all purpose flour) generally only contain 1 gram of fiber (or less) per 1/4 cup (or 4 grams of fiber per cup). See the picture of the bread flour nutrition label below. Of course, the fiber amount can vary by manufacturer (so you need to read the nutrition label on the flour package for the exact fiber amount).
• Therefore, whole wheat & flaxseed breads tend to have more fiber than breads made from regular bread flour or all purpose flour.
• Based on the ingredients that I used and the fiber data above, my high fiber bread contained roughly 64 grams of fiber (calculated from the 2 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour at 4 grams per 1/4 cup and the 1 cup of golden flaxseed meal at 6 grams per 1/4 cup). Your bread may differ if you use different ingredients (check the nutrition labels on your ingredients).
• To make this high fiber bread recipe, I usually use a generic supermarket whole wheat flour and Bob’s Red Mill golden flaxseed meal. FYI – I am not sponsored by Bob’s Red Mill. I just like their products!
• Be aware the nutritional calculator estimate below may differ because it is based on one bread slice (out of the 18 slices contained in the oven-baked bread version), rounding issues and it uses generic nutrition information.

FYI – This “Tips” Section Continues Below The Pictures

Bread Flour – Only 1 Gram (Or Less) Of Fiber Per 1/4 Cup!!!

Whole Wheat Flour – 4 Grams Of Fiber Per 1/4 Cup

Flaxseed Meal (Ground Flaxseed) – 3 Grams Per 2 Tablespoons (Which Equals 6 Grams Per 1/4 Cup)

• According to Wikipedia, “Dietary fiber has two main components: soluble fiber and insoluble fiber, which are components of plant-based foods, such as legumes, whole grains and cereals, vegetables, fruits, and nuts or seeds. A diet high in regular fiber consumption is generally associated with supporting health and lowering the risk of several diseases”.
• A high fiber bread made with whole wheat flour and ground flaxseed meal contains primarily insoluble fiber. This type of fiber adds bulk and helps food pass more quickly through the stomach and intestines. For more information on the potential benefits of insoluble fiber, you should read this Wikipedia article on dietary fiber.

• What is whole wheat flour? Whole wheat flour is a powder derived from finely ground wheat grains. It is a darker-colored flour because it includes much of the grain seed’s natural bran, endosperm and germ. In contrast, according to Wikipedia, white flours (such as all purpose flour) have” had the germ and bran, containing much of the nutritional fibre and vitamins, removed”.
• What is flaxseed meal? Flaxseed meal is coarsely ground flaxseed (either golden or brown flaxseeds). For more on the potential benefits of flaxseed, you might like to read this WebMD article.
• I prefer to use golden flaxseed meal (versus brown flaxseed meal) when making this high fiber bread recipe. In my opinion, the bread looks better with golden flaxseed meal. Nevertheless, either one is fine to use. There is not a huge difference between the two flaxseeds. If you want to learn more about these two types of flaxseed, you might like to read the Bob’s Red Mill article Brown vs. Golden Flaxseed.

• For this high fiber bread recipe, you want to use flaxseed meal (ground flaxseed) and not whole flaxseeds. If you use unground flaxseeds, the hard shell of the seed will prevent it from being digested properly. Ground flaxseed gives your body better access to the insoluble fiber, soluble fiber and nutrients (as they are not encased in a hard seed shell).
• For more breads with fiber, check out my Bread Machine 100% Whole Wheat Bread recipe or Seed Bread Recipe.
• Optional – To add more “crunch” to your high fiber bread, you can replace 1/4 cup of the ground flaxseed with 1/4 cup of 7 or 10 grain cereal. 7 or 10 grain cereal consists of chopped grain seeds (i.e. wheat, rye and barley). These chopped seeds can add fiber & texture to bread recipes.

• The flattening & shaping of the dough and the press down of the dough in the bread pan is the “punch down” phase. This helps to squeeze out any large bubbles produced by the yeast in the dough.
• If you don’t do this punch down phase, your bread will have large air pockets. Large air pockets are fine for ciabatta-type breads but are not ideal for sandwich bread. The punch down & second rising helps to create a lighter & chewier bread. It also creates a more uniform & tighter bread texture which is better for sandwich breads.
• If you are having problems shaping your dough, you should watch the “how to” instructional videos below. These are links to bread dough shaping videos on Youtube.
• King Arthur Baking Video
• San Diego Artisan Bread School Video
• Father Dominic Video – a slightly different method versus the videos above
• Don’t worry if you are a beginner and the bread top comes out a little lopsided. The bread will still taste great. It takes a little while for new bakers to learn how to shape a bread consistently. 

• Try to keep your ingredients (i.e. sugar & flour) in airtight food containers in order to extend their shelf life. Airtight containers also help to prevent ingredients from absorbing moisture from the air. This extra moisture can throw off recipes (as it can disrupt the liquid-to-dry ingredient ratio in the recipe) and shorten an ingredient’s shelf life. They also help to prevent ingredient exposure to pests, dust, etc.
• How do you know when the dough has risen enough in the second rise (when the dough is in the bread pan)? After letting the dough rise for 60-90 minutes (and when it is roughly 1-1.1.5 inches above the 9×5 bread pan), you can try the “poke test“. Poke your finger into the dough (going in about an inch). If the poke hole rebounds immediately, you need to allow more time for the dough to rise further (it is “under proofed”). If the hole doesn’t come back at all, the dough has risen too much (it is “over proofed”). If the hole slowly fills over 2-3 seconds, the dough is at the right stage of proofing.
• FYI – Whole wheat & flaxseed doughs tend to rise slower than bread flour doughs (so your rise time might be at the back end of the 60-90 minutes – depending on your kitchen’s temp). Also be aware that the rise height of the whole wheat & flaxseed dough is also generally lower than the rise height experienced by bread flour doughs. The crown of the bread will be generally smaller.
• Unfortunately, the temperature of your kitchen can make the timing for the perfect poke result hard to predict (because there is a faster dough rise in hot kitchens and a slower rise in cold kitchens). Experience with “proofing” will make this easier (but it can be a problem for beginning bakers).

• If the dough is “underproofed” (hasn’t risen enough) when you place it in the oven, the bread is more likely to burst/crack when baked in the oven (as the still rising dough will push against the hardening crust and “burst” at the seams of the crust). Bakers try to get around this issue via testing for the right “proofing” level (i.e. use the poke test), “scoring” breads (slicing the top of the dough so the cracks occur where you want them), adding moisture inside the oven (so the dough doesn’t harden as quickly), using a dutch oven (in order to trap the dough moisture inside the dutch oven container & not spread out into the oven), etc.
• Don’t overproof the dough (let it rise too long). This occasionally happens when someone forgets about the rising dough and comes back hours later to check. Overproofed dough leads to deflated dough as well as flat and/or sunken bread tops. According to Wikipedia, “Overproofing occurs when a fermenting dough has rested too long. Its bubbles have grown so large that they have popped and tunneled, and dough baked at this point would result in a bread with poor structure.”
• If your dough is “over proofed”, you might like to read the King Arthur Baking article “How to save over-proofed dough” as it gives tips on how to save the dough.

• The oven-baked version of this bread recipe calls for the use of a 9 x 5 inch bread pan. You can also use a 8.5 x 4.5 inch bread pan but the “crown” of the bread might come out too tall (or overflow) if your yeast is very active.
• This bread recipe uses instant yeast or bread machine yeast. It is not focused on active dry yeast. This recipe is targeted towards instant yeast & bread machine yeast as many of our visitors are bread machine users.
• Active dry yeast is different from instant yeast & bread machine yeast. Instant yeast & bread machine yeast are added directly to the recipe’s ingredients. In contrast, active dry yeast must be activated in water before being added to a recipe’s ingredients. Many bakers find it quicker to use instant yeast because you just add it to the dry ingredients. With active dry yeast, you need to spend roughly 10 minutes “proofing” (activating) the yeast with a liquid & sugar.

• Cooler home temperatures in the winter can cause rising problems for bread dough. Ideally, your room temperature should be around 75-80 degrees F. Colder winter room temperatures can significantly delay the rise of the dough. You will need to raise the temperature of your kitchen (if you like a cold house in the winter) or find a warm spot for the dough to rise. I often put my dough (covered of course) next to a heating vent in the winter to make sure it is getting enough heat.
• Conversely, dough can rise faster than expected in a very hot kitchen.
• Kitchen humidity can also impact a recipe. A winter kitchen tends to be drier due to your heating system drying out the air. In contrast, a kitchen in the summer can be much more humid. This change in humidity impacts baking as flour can soak up humidity from the air. Therefore, you might have to add 1-2 teaspoons of liquid in the winter if the dough is looking too dry. Or you might have to add 1-2 teaspoons of flour in the summer if the dough is looking too wet. If your kitchen is very dry or humid, you might have to add even a little more (but start with 1 teaspoon at a time until you achieve the right consistency).
• Of course, excessive kitchen humidity or dryness can impact a recipe at any time during the year (not just in the summer & winter)!

• Other factors that can impact the rise of the dough include old or expired yeast, contaminated yeast (i.e. the yeast was left in an open jar & air moisture contaminated it), water that is too cold or too hot, using heavily chlorinated tap water, placing salt next to or on top of the yeast (salt can kill yeast or inhibit its growth), not covering the dough during the rising period (as the exterior of the dough can dry out & limit the ability to rise), etc.
• It takes roughly 15-20 minutes to preheat most ovens with some variability due to the size of the oven, planned baking temperature (hotter takes longer), etc.
• Optional – Use an oven thermometer as your expected oven temperature may be different than reality. Some ovens can be 25-50+ degrees F hotter or colder than the number you set with your oven dial. An oven thermometer (which usually costs less than $10) is an easy way to measure the actual temperature inside your oven.
• Optional – Use a digital bread thermometer to test if your bread is completely done. The interior temperature of the bread should be 190-200 degrees F. This inexpensive tool can save you from underbaked breads.

• You should let your bread cool down for 1-2 hours on the wire cooling rack before you cut any slices (or the slices will be “gummy” and not taste as good as expected). Excess interior moisture is released (via steam) during the cooldown period.
• If you have not made bread in a long time, please buy some NEW bread machine yeast or instant yeast before making your bread. Old yeast can die or lose its potency and this will lead to bread that does not rise properly. Yeast is not likely to be viable if it has been sitting in your pantry for years.
• Once you have opened the container that contains the yeast, the yeast will last longer if you store the bottle in the refrigerator or freezer. Just make sure the bottle is sealed tight (as yeast will deteriorate quickly if exposed to air, moisture and/or heat).

• My recipes are based on US ingredient measurements (i.e. US cups & tablespoons). However, as a courtesy to our European visitors, I have also included some very ROUGH European equivalents (i.e. grams & milliliters). Since I rarely use European measurements when baking, please let me know in the comment section below if any of the European ingredient measurements need to be changed (i.e. for XYZ ingredient, milliliters are more commonly used versus the grams information listed in the recipe).
• Always wear oven mitts/gloves when dealing with a bread machine and/or oven. Both can get very hot!
• For more easy bread ideas, please visit Bread Dad’s sections on Bread Machine Recipes and Homemade Bread Recipes.

If you liked this recipe, please leave a comment below & give us a 5 star rating. It is ALWAYS fantastic to hear from someone who has enjoyed our recipes!! Jump to comment section

Gourmet Bread Mixes – Packaged bread mixes are an easy way to make delicious homemade bread because the ingredients are already pre-measured. At no extra cost to you, we make a small commission if you buy products via the links below.

• Farmhouse Honey Wheat Bread Mix
• California Raisin Gourmet Bread Mix
• Black Russian (Pumpernickel) Bread Mix
• New York Rye Gourmet Bread Mix
• San Francisco Style Sourdough Bread Mix
• Other Popular Mixes such as Buttermilk White Bread, Cranberry Nut Bread, Italian Country Bread, Lumberjack Bread, etc.

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Reference Sources

• Wikipedia, Bread
• Wikipedia, Bread Machine
• Wikipedia, Dietary Fiber
• Wikipedia, Flax
• Wikipedia, Flour
• Wikipedia, Whole Wheat Flour

Related Recipes

• Bread Machine Whole Wheat Bread – A softer whole wheat bread
• Bread Machine 100% Whole Wheat Bread
• Multigrain Bread – An oven-baked recipe
• Soft Whole Wheat Bread – An oven-baked recipe

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