CopycatSpices
Copycat Outback Steakhouse Honey Wheat Bread
Outback's famous dark honey wheat bread is sweet, molasses-rich, and impossibly soft — the bread basket item that people remember more than their steak.
copycat · outback-steakhouse · casual-dining · bread
🕑Prep20 min
🍳Cook30 min
⏱Total50 min
🍽Serves2
⭐DifficultyHard
Ingredients
- 1 cup warm water (110°F)
- 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 3 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons dark molasses
- 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
- 1 1/2 cups bread flour
- 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
- 1 tablespoon instant coffee granules
- 2 tablespoons butter, melted (for brushing)
Instructions
- 1.Bloom the yeast. In a large bowl, combine the warm water, yeast, and 1 tablespoon of the honey. Let sit for 5-7 minutes until foamy.
- 2.Mix the wet ingredients. Add the remaining honey, molasses, and 2 tablespoons melted butter to the yeast mixture. Stir to combine.
- 3.Add the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the bread flour, whole wheat flour, salt, cocoa powder, and instant coffee. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until a shaggy dough forms.
- 4.Knead the dough. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead for 8-10 minutes until smooth and elastic. The dough will be slightly darker than regular bread dough thanks to the molasses and cocoa.
- 5.First rise. Place in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise for 1 to 1.5 hours until doubled in size.
- 6.Shape the loaves. Punch down the dough and divide in half. Shape each half into a round or oblong loaf. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Cover and let rise for 30 minutes.
- 7.Bake the bread. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the loaves sound hollow when tapped on the bottom.
- 8.Brush with butter. Remove from the oven and immediately brush the tops with melted butter. Let cool for 10 minutes before slicing.
Copycat Outback Steakhouse Honey Wheat Bread
Prep time: 20 minutes (plus 1.5-2 hours rising)
Cook time: 30 minutes
Servings: 2 loaves
Outback Steakhouse’s dark honey wheat bread is the reason people fill up before their Bloomin’ Onion even arrives. It’s a sweet, dark, intensely flavored bread that’s unlike anything you’d find at a bakery. The color comes from a combination of whole wheat flour, dark molasses, cocoa powder, and instant coffee — four ingredients that work together to create that distinctive deep brown color and complex sweetness.
The bread is soft and almost cake-like in texture, with a honey-molasses sweetness that pairs perfectly with their whipped honey butter. It’s meant to be torn apart by hand, not sliced, and eaten warm.
The Dark Color Secret
- Cocoa and coffee aren’t for flavor. You won’t taste chocolate or coffee in the finished bread. They’re there purely for color — they darken the dough to that signature Outback brown without adding bitterness.
- Dark molasses, not regular. Dark molasses has a more intense flavor and deeper color than regular molasses. It’s what gives the bread its robust, almost malty sweetness.
- Brush with butter while hot. The butter melts into the warm crust, adding shine and keeping the surface soft instead of crusty.
Steakhouse Bread at Home
Outback’s bread is free with your meal, but meals start at $15-25. Two loaves of this bread cost about $3 in ingredients. Serve it warm with whipped honey butter — just beat softened butter with honey until fluffy — and your dinner guests will think you’re a professional baker.
