Once rested dough; oil poured around the edge

Sprinkle on the salt and pour on the oil. Stir around the side of the bowl working carefully your way towards the center. Rotate your bowl a little with every stroke you do. Repeat until all of the salt and oil is incorporated.

Add remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time

Sprinkle the flax seed and the flour 1/2 a cup at a time onto the dough. Again fold it in while rotating your bowl.

When you can no longer continue to mix in the flour, the dough is ready to give it a good knead!
Plop your dough on your kneading board and scrap all remaining from the bowl onto the dough.  Keep in mind that your surface should be floured enough to prevent the dough from sticking to much on the board.

Flour your hands and the top of the dough. From the middle of your down stretch it away from you and then fold it back onto the remaining part of the dough. Continue to push down and forward.

Turn the dough a quarter turn. Again continue with the pushing and folding.

Turn, fold, push. Rock forward. Twist and fold as you rock back. Be careful not to stretch the dough too much and tear it. Add flour to the boards as needed.

How not to add too much flour: just dust your hands

Be mindful that you may not need that entire last cup of whole wheat or white whole wheat flour for kneading.  Don’t add more flour than needed.

While you continue with the kneading the dough will become more and more elastic, smooth and shiny.
When you are finished, place the dough in your lightly oiled bowl smooth side down, then turn it over so the dough ball is covered lightly with oil. This will prevent the dough from forming a crust on the top while rising.
Cover the bowl with a damp towel again and set aside to rise in a warm place. (50-60 minutes until doubled in size)

Start of the rise

Punch down your dough with your fists steadily and firmly about 15-20 times.
Let rise again 40-50 minutes until doubled in size again.

Preheat your oven to 350°F.

End of rise: popping my top

Turn your dough onto the board again.
Form the dough into a ball. Cut the dough into two even pieces and form smaller balls again. Let rest for 5 minutes.

Two dough balls will be two loaves

Knead the dough and fold it about 5 times, this gives the dough added spring. After the final push turn the dough a quarter turn.

Roll up the dough into a log shape. Seam at the bottom, flatten the top of the dough. Square the sides and ends. Turn the dough over and pinch the seams all the way.
Put the dough seam side down into your pan.

Push the dough to the edges of the pan

Press it down into the pan with your fingers; try to square it into the corners.
Cover and let rise again. This will take 20-25 minutes.

Rise, egg wash

Cut the top with 1/2 inch deep slits to allow the steam to escape.
You can brush with egg wash and sprinkle with poppy seeds or sesame.
Bake for about 50-60 minutes.  (My long skinny triple loaf pan took 50 minutes to reach 206° internal temp; the regular loaf pan took 65 minutes to reach 204°).

Take my temperature, let me cool to room temperature

I am a firm believer that bread baking is not rocket science but I do find an instant read thermometer an invaluable tool in determining when a loaf is done.

That phrase:  cool completely.  That’s really super significant when baking rye bread.  Cool completely means let it cool to room temperature.  I just leave my thermometer in a loaf and check it IF I don’t just leave it over night to cool.  It takes way longer to cool when you’re smelling gorgeous hot bread baking and itching to cut into it.  Slice into a warm loaf of rye and you’ll be disappointed with a gummy interior.