Shelley, thank you. But you know you really didn't have to go to all this trouble. That said, I will look forward to making something special using your gift. Is it the chickpea flat bread that you want to try? It is very much like a flour tortilla and easy to make. Chickpea Flatbread Source: Souvlaki for the Soul 1 cup of all-purpose flour 1 cup of wholewheat flour 1/2 of a 540mL/18oz can of chickpeas (garbanzos) along with some of the liquid from the can 1/2 to 3/4 cup of warm water 1/4 cup of olive oil 1 teaspoon of cumin 1 teaspoon of turmeric 1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper (Omitted) 1/2 a teaspoon of salt Edited: Note: This recipe can be cut in half, by leaving out the Wholewheat flour and using just one cup of all-purpose flour, and reducing other ingredients by half. Place the flour and spices in the bowl of a food processor. Add the chickpeas and some of their juice from the can, the olive oil along with some of the warm water. Process until the dough comes together and a ball forms. The dough should be soft. Add more water if necessary. Process for approximately 60 seconds. Wrap dough in plastic wrap and set a side to rest for at least 30 minutes. Divide dough into balls about the size of a golf ball. Roll each ball into a circle approximately 6 to 8 inches. Cook the on a cast iron griddle or skillet. When the bread starts to get little brown spots and puff up ( 15 to 20 seconds), turn over and cook on the other side. Wrap in a towel or a tortilla warmer to keep warm while remaining flatbreads are baked.

Linda, If you want to convert a bread machine recipe to a made by hand recipe, try this: in a bowl - put in the water or other liquid called for add in the yeast, whisk to dissolve, let sit 5-10 minutes to "proof" the yeast and made sure it is viable add any sugar, honey, maple syrup or other sweetener called for in the recipe, stir well add half of the flour called for in recipe, add salt and mix well, stirring with a strong spoon or heavy duty whisk also add in any dry herbs or spices now add in any butter, oil, or other fat called for - if melted butter, make sure it is only just warm, not hot - add in any egg(s) listed in recipe add in rest of flour and any other ingredients, chopped herbs, nuts, dried fruits, cheese, etc. stir well with spoon or mix with your hands until dough is a rather shaggy mass turn out dough onto a clean, floured flat surface and knead for 8-10 minutes adding only small sprinkles of flour if the dough sticks to your hands and the kneading surface [if you forgot those nuts, cheese, or raisins, you can knead them in now] when dough has been kneaded sufficiently it will come together into a nice firm ball (rather than a shaggy mass) and spring back when poked with a finger grease or oil a large bowl (or use the one you mixed in), put dough in, turn it around in the oil to grease the top of the dough and turn it oiled side up in the bowl; cover with a bowl cover (shower cap type), plastic wrap, or wax paper, then cover with a clean kitchen "tea" towel (dampened with hot water if you are making whole wheat bread) and set the dough to rise until doubled in bulk turn out dough, knead 2 minutes, divide into portions according to recipe or not - form loaves and put in greased loaf pans or not - cover again with wrap, and let rise until doubled in bulk preheat oven, bake bread until done, let cool at least a few minutes before cutting - and enjoy!

Trudy, I would use the recipe that Linda linked to. You can make the baguettes, long or short, or make short fat loaves if that will work better for you. I often do double or triple batches of the dough and bake loaves of different sizes and shapes. French Baguette Julia Child 1 package dry active yeast (2 1/2 teaspoons) 3 1/2 cups unbleached flour (bread flour) 2 1/4 tsp salt 1 1/3 cups cold water plus 1/3 or so additional water Using Food Processor Place the flour, yeast and salt in the bowl of the food process. Pulse to mix. Add 1 1/3 cups of water and process until the dough comes together. If the dough doesn't form a ball, add a little of the extra water. Process for about 60 seconds, turn off machine and let dough rest for 5 minutes. Turn on the machine again and rotate the dough about 30 times under the cover, and then remove it to a lightly floured work surface. it should be fairly smooth and quite firm. Let the dough rest for 2 minutes and then knead roughly and vigorously. The final dough should not stick to your hands as you knead (although it will stick if you pinch and hold a piece); it should be smooth and elastic and, when you hold it up between your hands and stretch it down, it should hold together smoothly. Preliminary rise - 40 to 60 minutes at around 75�F. Place the dough into a clean dry bowl, (do not grease the bowl), cover with plastic wrap, and set in a warm place free from drafts. (note the French do not grease the bowl because they believe the dough needs a seat to push up from). This first rise is sufficient when the dough has definitely started to rise and is about 1 1/2 times its original volume. Deflating: Turn the dough onto your lightly floured work surface roughly and firmly pat and push it out into a 14 inch rectangle. Fold one of the long sides over toward the middle, and the other long side over to cover it, making a 3 layer cushion. Repeat the operation. This important step redistributes the yeast throughout the dough, for a strong second rise. Return the dough smooth side up the bowl; cover with plastic wrap and again set to rise. Final rise in the bowl - about 1 to 1 1/2 hours or longer. The bread should be 2 1/2 to 3 times its original bulk. It is the amount of rise that is important here, not the timing. To Shape, Cut the dough in half. Set one piece aside and cover with a towel. On a lightly floured work surface pat the dough into a 14 inch rectangle, squaring it u p as evenly as you can. Fold the rectangle of dough in half lengthwise and using the heel of your hand, firmly press the edges together whether they meet. Seat well. Pound the dough flat. Now repeat - patting the dough out again and folding it over and sealing the edges. Pinch the edges well and Rotate the dough so that the sealed edge in on the bottom. Repeat with second piece of dough. Cover with plastic wrap or loosely with a towel and let rise to more than double again at about 75�f. Place stone in oven and Preheat oven to 450�F. Slash three long cuts into the loaves and place on the hot stone. Immediately toss a number of ice cubes on to the bottom on the oven to create steam. Bake until bread is golden and has an interior temp of 200�F. Takes about 30 minutes. Making Dough in a Mixer or by Hand When you are making dough in an electric mixer with a dough hook, proceed in the same general way with the rests indicated, and finish by hand. or mix the dough by hand in a bowl, turn out on a work surface, and start the kneading by lifting it up with a scraper and slapping it down roughly for several minutes until it has body. Let it rest several minutes and then proceed to knead. MY NOTES: I use a Magic Mill to do most of the kneading. The Magic Mill can handle over 20 cups of flour at one time. I use 4 cups for a single batch and 8 cups for a double batch Plus the addition of a Biga. I prefer a wet dough so I add more water. I usually start this bread with a Biga (Italian)/Poolish (French) a pre-fermentation. Made the night before. Contributes to a more complex flavour and a better texture. 1 1/2 cups flour 1/2 teaspoon yeast 1 cup of water. Mix well. Cover and set aside. Other changes: I mix the Biga, Flour, Yeast and water together,without the salt, and let sit for 20 to 30 minutes to allow the flour to absorb some of the water. I add the salt after this rest, and then finish by kneading. This dough makes for a wonderful pizza crust. Place dough in fridge and leave it for two to four, even five days. Take it out early (three hours) to give it time to come to room temperature. Allowing the dough to have a long cold fermentation really develops the flavour and the texture of the bread.

I should be posting my crappy dinner on the WFD thread, but more important stuff going on here. "The inhaler was useless, the albuterol helped slightly at the time of treatment." Yep, lpink. I've found that with my Dad and my son. Both have nebulizers now (saga with my Dad) With this last go round with my Dad, he was on different courses of antibiotics/prednisone and albuterol breathing treatments over about 8 weeks still (coughing, coughing, coughing). Finally sent to a pulmonologist who added budesonide 2x a day to breathing treatments. Also breathing exercises (pickle, etc.) and changed his antibiotic to azythromycin because he had pneumonia. This is just some add'l info for you -- you know you and hopefully your immune system is going to kick butt here soon:) That's what I'm hoping. I'm sure you're exhausted both physically AND mentally! mamapinky0 -- wow! That's tough! Let's see ... activity and stress in a nine-year old? Um, yep. My goodness. I'm sure you've had your work cut out for you helping this little one recognize symptoms, triggers, etc. plus missing school, activities too, plus just being 9:) DS (25 now) came home from first grade basically coughing every 30 seconds (teacher kept sending him for water) Ended up in ER doing either 3 - 5 back-to-back breathing treatments, kid's eyes were all pupil. Went to Rite-Aid to get albuterol/meds. He was literally running laps up and down the aisles with my daughter trying to watch him. As the clerk told me it would be 30 minutes, I reached across, held her arm as he flew by and said "We don't have 30 minutes." DS always had trouble in fall but has been better in recent years, if that's any consolation. Agreed, 2Many! with your description of good doc! I don't want to get started (I mean look how long I've gone on) but I've said I gird myself for battle. I've actually watched a gastro back up out of the room while we were still asking questions -- sigh. I followed:) Wanted to add how difficult those years of caretaking must have been for you too, on so many levels. I'm glad that you were able to be with her. lpink -- I hope your next post says you're feeling better! CathyinSWPA