Sweet Molasses Brown Bread (2025)

Delicious sliced warm and served with fresh butter, or used as sandwich bread the next day, this Sweet Molasses Brown Bread made with whole wheat, molasses and honey is one of our family favorites!

There is nothing like homemade bread coming fresh and hot out of the oven. Be sure not to miss our other bread recipes like,Homemade French Bread, andEasy Rosemary Focaccia Bread!

Sweet Molasses Brown Bread

Don’t get me wrong, when I say “sweet”, this isn’t a super sweet bread like a breakfast bread or dessert roll or something. It’s just a wonderful, mild sweetness from the molasses and a little honey. It’s noticeable, but not overpowering.

If you have ever been to the Outback restaurant, this recipe is very close to their mini-loaves of brown bread that they bring out. The ones which we always devour instantly before pushing the cutting board that it was brought out on to the front of the booth and fixing our server with sad puppy dog eyes until he takes pity and brings us more.

We are the same way with these loaves of sweet molasses brown bread, which is why it’s a good idea to shape it into 3 loaves that get baked on a baking sheet.

It usually means I have one loaf leftover for the freezer (this bread freezes beautifully), one loaf for sandwiches the next day, and one loaf for eating immediately while still warm!

How to Make Sweet Molasses Brown bread

1. First, combine the water, yeast, molasses, cocoa powder, oil, and honey in a large bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment along with 2 cups of the whole wheat flour and mix until combined. There is no need to proof the yeast if using instant yeast. If you only have active dry yeast, just proof it first in the warm water.
2. Add the remaining whole wheat and bread flour a cup at a time, until the dough starts to pull away from the bowl, then knead for 5-7 minutes using the dough hook attachment. You can knead by hand if you don’t have a mixer with a dough hook, but it will take a bit longer to develop the gluten, more like 10-12 minutes of hand kneading.

3. Let the dough rise for an hour or two before punching down and shaping into loaves, then placing the loaves on a parchment lined baking sheet, making sure they have room to rise and bake without touching.
4. Let the shaped loaves rise again for 45-60 minutes, then slash with a sharp knife or bread lame just before baking.
5. Bake the loaves at 375 degrees for 25 minutes until starting to brown, then brush them each with a melted butter and sprinkle with oats before baking the last 5-7 minutes, until cooked through and a nice brown on top.

Tips and Tricks for Making Homemade Brown Bread

• Yes there is cocoa powder in these loaves, but no, they do not taste at all like chocolate. It’s a small amount, but it add both color and depth of flavor to the bread without making it even remotely “chocolatey”.
• Use bread flour along with the whole wheat flour for the best texture.
• If you want a more steakhouse experience by making mini-loaves or rolls, shape the dough into smaller mini loaves (I probably wouldn’t go smaller than 9 mini-loves total) and bake for 18-22 minutes.
• To freeze a loaf of the bread, let it cool completely, then wrap it tightly in plastic wrap. This sweet molasses brown bread freezes well. Just pull it out of the freezer and allow it to thaw on the counter overnight before slicing and serving.

More Homemade Bread Recipes You’ll Love

• Easy Homemade Rye Bread
• Glazed Apple Fritter Yeast Bread
• Cheesy Garlic Mozzarella Swirl Rolls
• Best Challah Bread