In a large mixing bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer, add the warm water and the yeast. Stir to dissolve and let it sit for a few minutes.

Once it has started to bubble, add all the whole wheat flour (1 ½ cups), the 1 ½ Tbsp sea salt, and 3 ½ cups of the all purpose flour. Beat that all together until well mixed.

Start adding more of the all purpose flour a little at a time until the dough comes together.

If you are using a mixer, switch to the dough hook, or turn out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead the dough for 8 to 10 minutes, adding just enough flour to keep it from sticking to your hands. This is a sticky dough, so pay attention and don’t add too much flour.

Form the dough into a ball and place in a greased bowl, turning to grease the top. Cover the bowl with a damp bread cloth or plastic wrap.

Allow the dough to rise until it’s doubled in bulk, about 1 to 1 ½ hours.

After doubling in bulk, punch the dough down and form into 2 loaves. The dough will still be sticky, so flour your hands well.

Place the loaves in greased loaf pans and cover again. Let rise another 30 to 45 minutes until doubled and the dough is a little over the lip of the pan.

Preheat the oven to 350°F about 20 minutes before baking.

When the dough has doubled, brush the tops of the loaves with the melted butter if you're using it.

Bake in the pre heated oven for 30 to 40 minutes or until the loaves are golden brown, and bread sounds hollow when thumped on the bottom.

If the bottom of the loaves isn;t as brown as you’d like, pop it back into the oven without the pan for an additional 5 minutes.

After baking, turn those beautiful loaves out of the pans and put them on a wire rack to cool. If you have any melted butter left, why not brush that over the tops as well?