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A simple, delicious Norwegian brown bread that is perfect for toast, sandwiches, and slathering with Whipped Honey Cinnamon Butter! You can either make it into 2 large sandwich bread loaves or into 4 smaller loaves (kinda like what you would receive for an appetizer at a steakhouse).
Back when I was 15, my family took a trip out West for my mom’s birthday. While we were in Wyoming, my mom found a little Scandinavian shop run by a Norwegian woman who still ate Lutefisk (if you know you know).
My mom bought a little cardstock cookbook there called Aunt Hildur’s Excellent Norwegian Recipes. Well, last Christmas, we finally pulled that little cookbook out and tried Aunt Hildur’s “Norwegian Mother’s Brown Bread” for the first time…and it was absolutely delicious!
It earned a place on our Norwegian Christmas table alongside other Scandinavian favorites like Almond Skillet Cake and Evelyn’s Buttery Oatmeal Cookies.
Since it’s an older recipe, I’ve had to tweak it and figure out the correct modern measurement equivalents for today’s baker. I think it’s a keeper! 😉
Why You’ll Love this Brown Bread Recipe
- Simply Delicious and Homey – This bread is slightly sweet and just super tasty. It’s a great all-purpose brown bread recipe that suits both everyday use and also feels special served on a wooden cutting board with whipped honey cinnamon butter or jam.
- Not Complicated – This brown bread recipe is simple and straightforward. You can play around with your whole wheat flour to all-purpose flour ratio to find the flavor that you like best.
Tips for Making Norwegian Brown Bread
- My favorite place to rise dough is inside my oven with the oven light turned on. Just don’t accidentally pre-heat the oven while it’s in there!
- For sandwich bread, shape the dough into 2 loaves. For small, appetizer-size loaves, shape into 4 loaves. If making 4 small loaves, bake for half the time.
- For an oat or seed topping, just before baking, brush the unbaked risen loaves with water or an egg wash and press the oats or seeds onto the top of the dough. An egg wash will provide a stronger “glue” and will result in a glossy looking bread.
Ingredients
- 2 pkgs. active dry yeast
- 4 cups warm water (100 deg F.)
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 1/2 tsp. sea salt
- 4 tbsp. Melted butter
- 4 1/2 c. All-purpose flour
- 2 1/2 c. Whole wheat flour
Ways to Enjoy Norwegian Brown Bread
Norwegian Brown Bread can be enjoyed just like any other bread! The whole wheat flour gives this brown bread a hearty depth of flavor and the honey gives it a light sweetness.
It is delicious with Whipped Honey Cinnamon Butter!
Try it for breakfast with eggs, or for lunch as a sandwich with turkey, roast beef, or a refreshing egg salad.
How to Make Norwegian Brown Bread
Warm 4 cups of water to 100 degrees F. You want to use a thermometer here to make sure your water is not too hot so you don’t kill the yeast.
Add the 2 pkgs of active dry yeast to the warm water, and let it sit for 15 minutes until frothy.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the melted butter, honey, molasses, sea salt, and yeast + water mixture. Beat with an electric mixer until incorporated. Add in approximately 3 cups of the flour to make a batter.
Beat with an electric mixer for 10 minutes. It will be like the consistency of pancake batter.
After beating for 10 minutes, stir in as much of the remaining flour as you can.
Then turn out the dough onto a clean surface (such as a pastry mat), and knead in the rest of the flour for several minutes until you arrive at a stiff smooth ball of dough that looks slightly glossy and hydrated but is not sticky.
Place the dough in a large bowl that has been lightly greased with oil ( I use olive oil). Cover and let rise in a fairly warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
Once risen, punch down the dough to get the air pockets out.
Knead for another minute or so, and shape into a ball. Place back into the greased bowl, cover, and let rise again for another hour until doubled in size.
Divide the dough into 2 parts. Shape into loaves and place into greased 1.5 qt. bread pans (I use softened butter).
Cover and let rise for 30 minutes.
If desired, brush the unbaked loaves with water or an egg wash and top with oats or seeds (you can also use an egg wash instead of water if you want the bread to have a glossy appearance). You can also leave the loaves plain.
Note* – to make an egg wash, beat 1 egg with 1-2 tbsp. water until fully incorporated. Then, brush some of this evenly on top of the loaf with a pastry brush.
Bake at 350 degrees F. for 45 minutes until brown and sounding hollow when tapped.
Let cool on a cooling rack. Then slice with a bread knife, and enjoy!
Want More Simple and Delicious Breads?
- Cinnamon Raisin Bread
- Buttery Biscuits -Easy Homemade Biscuit Recipe
- Healthy Blueberry Muffins with Whipped Lemon Honey Butter
- Dairy Free Banana Bread
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- bread pans
- bread knife
- silicone pastry mat
- bench scraper
- thermometer
- pastry brush
- electric hand mixer with storage compartment (this is the one I’ve been using for several years now)
Simple Norwegian Brown Bread
Equipment
- electric mixer
- 2 1.5 qt. bread pans
Ingredients
- 2 pkgs active dry yeast
- 4 cups warm water 100 deg F.
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 1/2 tsp. Sea salt
- 4 tbsp. Melted butter
- 4 1/2 c. All-purpose flour
- 2 1/2 c. Whole wheat flour
Instructions
- Add the 2 pkgs of active dry yeast to 4 cups of warm water (100 deg F.), and let it sit for 15 minutes until frothy.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine the melted butter, honey, molasses, sea salt, and yeast + water). Beat until incorporated with an electric mixer. Add in approximately 3 cups of the flour to make a batter.
- Beat with an electric mixer for 10 minutes.
- After beating for 10 minutes, the batter will look like pancake batter. Stir in as much of the remaining flour as you can to make a dough. Then turn out the dough onto a clean surface, and knead in the rest of the flour for several minutes until you arrive at a stiff, smooth dough that looks slightly glossy and hydrated but is not sticky.
- Place the dough into a lightly greased bowl (I use olive oil). Cover, and let rise in a fairly warm place for 1 hour or until doubled in size.
- Punch down dough to get all the air pockets out. Knead for another minute and shape into a ball. Place back into the greased bowl, cover, and let rise again for another hour until doubled in size.
- Divide the dough into 2 parts. Shape into loaves and place into 2 greased 1.5 qt. bread pans (I grease these with softened butter). Cover, and let rise for 30 minutes.
- To top with oats or seeds, brush the tops of the unbaked loaves with water or an egg wash. Then press the oats or seeds onto the top of the loaf. Bake at 350 degrees F. for 45 minutes until the loaves are brown and sound hollow when tapped.
- Cool on a cooling rack. Then slice, and enjoy!
Notes
- To make smaller, appetizer-size loaves, divide the dough into 4 parts and bake for half the time.
- To make an egg wash, beat 1 egg with 1 tbsp of water until fully incorporated. Then, brush some of the egg wash onto the top of the loaf. The egg wash will be like a glue to hold the oats or seeds on top of the loaf. It will also give the top of the loaf a glossy appearance.
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