Honey Oatmeal Bread has a soft crumb and hearty oatmeal flavor. The hint of honey is delicious and it helps keep the loaf fresh for several days.

a sliced loaf of oatmeal bread on a cutting board

Honey Oatmeal Bread is a fantastic sandwich loaf, but it also makes killer french toast and an awesome grill cheese sandwich. Seriously, this bread with cheddar cheese and thin slices of apple is the grilled cheese of your dreams.

I love the subtle sweetness added by the honey and the chewy, slightly nutty flavor from the rolled oats.

I prefer to use old fashioned rolled oats for this bread, not quick oats or instant oats. First of all, that’s the kind of oatmeal I always have in the pantry. Also, old fashioned oats are thicker than quick oats, so the bread has a hearty texture that I really love.

If you only have quick oats, they will work too. The texture of the bread will be slightly smoother but it will still be delicious.

Scroll through the step by step photos to see how to make Honey Oatmeal Bread:

before and after photos of a bread sponge rising — Create a sponge and set it aside for 30-60 minutes. This will give the yeast a head-start and begin forming a good gluten network in the dough.

closeup shot of bread sponge with rolled oats mixed in — Add the oats and remaining flour before kneading. Use the dough hook of a stand mixer or knead by hand

an unbaked loaf of oatmeal bread in a pan — The dough should double in size and almost fill the pan.

a baked loaf of honey oat bread with a thermometer at 190 degrees F. — The interior of the loaf should be 190 ° -200 ° F.

A timeline for making Honey Oatmeal Bread:

If you plan to bake the same day, start the sponge early in the morning.
By the early afternoon your bread should be ready to bake.
To start your bread the day before, start mixing the dough late in the afternoon or early evening.
Make the dough up until the point that it goes into the pan.
Cover the pan with plastic wrap and allow the bread to rise slowly in the refrigerator overnight.
The next morning, take the loaf out of the refrigerator. It should have risen to fill the pan over night.
Leave the loaf at room temperature while the oven preheats. If the loaf hasn’t almost doubled in size, give it a little extra time at room temperature to finish rising.
You’ll have fresh bread by lunch time.
If you find at any point the dough has over-risen, you can knead the dough, reshape and let it rise again.

a loaf of honey oatmeal bread on a cutting board

two slices of honey oatmeal bread on a plate

I always mix bread dough in my Kitchen Aid Mixer, but the dough can certainly be made by hand. Start mixing with a wooden spoon and switch to to kneading when the dough gets too thick to stir.

Bread dough is much more forgiving and less scary than it seems. And of course nothing smells or tastes as good as a freshly baked loaf of bread.

Hey bread lover, you might also want to try these other great sandwich breads; White Sandwich Bread, Milk & Honey Whole Wheat Bread, Sourdough Sandwich Bread, Overnight Rye Bread, Sourdough Rye Bread, Low Knead Whole Grain Bread.

If you love this recipe as much as I do, I’d really appreciate a 5-star review.

Honey Oatmeal Bread

Name: Honey Oatmeal Bread
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 3 h 15 min
Yield: 1
Ingredients: 1/2 cup (4 oz, 120ml) warm water; 1 packet (2 1/4 teaspoons, 7g) dry yeast; 2 1/2 cups (12.5 oz, 350g) bread flour; 1 cup (8 oz, 240ml) whole milk; 2 tablespoons honey; 1 1/2 teaspoons salt; 1 1/2 cups (4.75 oz, 133g) old fashioned rolled oats; 1 egg for egg wash

Yield: 1 loaf

Prep Time: 40 minutes

Rising Time: 2 hours

Bake Time: 35 minutes

Total Time: 3 hours 15 minutes

With it's soft texture, hint of honey and hearty oatmeal flavor, Honey Oatmeal Bread tastes fantastic and will keep fresh for several days. You can start the dough the night before and finish the bread in the morning to have fresh bread for lunch.

Ingredients

1/2 cup (4 oz, 120ml) warm water
1 packet (2 1/4 teaspoons, 7g) dry yeast
2 1/2 cups (12.5 oz, 350g) bread flour
1 cup (8 oz, 240ml) whole milk
2 tablespoons honey
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/2 cups (4.75 oz, 133g) old fashioned rolled oats
1 egg for egg wash

Instructions

In the bowl of a stand mixer or a large mixing bowl combine the warm water, yeast and 1/2 cup of the bread flour to form a smooth batter. Cover the bowl and allow the mixture to rise for 30-60 minutes.
Warm the milk in the microwave to about 100°F, a little warmer than body temp. Add the milk, honey and salt to the mixing bowl. Add the rolled oats. Add another cup of the bread flour and stir until the batter looks like thick pancake batter. If using a stand mixer, switch to the dough hook.
With the mixer running, slowly add the remaining bread flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough gathers on the hook and clears the sides of the bowl. Knead the dough for 4-5 minutes. If mixing by hand, add as much of the flour by hand as you can then finish kneading in the remaining flour. If the dough is very sticky, sprinkle in a few more tablespoons of flour as needed.
Dump the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead to form a smooth ball.
Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, turning once to coat the dough. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm spot to rise for about 1-1.5 hours until doubled in size.
Grease a 9"x 5" loaf pan with a light film of vegetable oil or cooking spray.
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface. Without kneading out the air, gently push the dough to a 9" rectangle. Tightly roll the dough to form a log. As you roll pinch the ends of the dough to seal.
Set the dough into the pan and cover with oiled plastic wrap. Set in a warm place and rise until the dough is almost doubled in size, about 1-1.5 hours. If you press the dough and it springs right back it's not ready. If you press the dough and the dimple slowly fills in it's ready to bake. In the meantime, preheat the oven to 350°F.
Use a sharp knife or razor to cut a 1/2" deep slash down the center of the loaf. Brush the dough with egg wash and sprinkle with rolled oats.
Bake about 30-35 minutes until golden brown and and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. The interior temp should be about 190°-200°F.
Cool in the pan for 5 minutes before turning out onto a cooling rack. Cool to room temperature before slicing.

Notes

To work ahead, make the dough up to the point that you put it into the pan then refrigerate over night. The next day, take the pan out of the refrigerator and allow the loaf to come to room temperature and finish rising while the oven preheats.

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AnG

Saturday 20th of June 2020

Are you able to provide a recipe for this without yeast and with a sourdough starter instead?

Eileen Gray

Sunday 21st of June 2020

I wouldn't do it off the cuff since I couldn't be sure of the results. It would require some recipe testing.

sarah

Monday 8th of June 2020

Can I use all-purpose flour instead of Bread flour?

Yes, but the dough will be wetter since lower protein ap flour won't absorb as much moisture. You may need to add a little extra flour.

Bonnie

Saturday 9th of May 2020

I don’t understand why in step 6 it says to preheat the oven, but in step 8 you are supposed to wait 1-1.5 hours before baking ?

Because I made a mistake. It's been fixed.

Linda Stovall

Friday 20th of September 2019

This has the right amount of dry ingredients to work in my bread machine. I am going to try it. I love breads and would love to see some of your recipes that could work in a machine.

Peggy biggs

Tuesday 30th of June 2020

Can is use whole wheat flour in this recipe?

Saturday 21st of September 2019

I have never worked with a bread machine so, unfortunately, I can't tell you which recipes would work in your machine.