Lisa, bread baking is addictive although I don't do it as much anymore because we don't eat a ton of bread. Just wait until you decide you want to try a sourdough starter-I become completely obsessed and even asked my friend to "babysit" it when I went out of town. As far as baking it free form, I don't see any differences in instructions except scoring the loaf right before baking. There are instructions for hearth baking which include using a steam pan and baking stones/tiles. I don't have the patience for that so what I would probably do would be to place it on a baking stone covered with parchment and mist it lightly with water before baking. More experienced bakers will probably have better suggestions. Lisa, Instant yeast vs. regular yeast from the book: "instant yeast is recommended because it can be added directly to the dough. Active dry yeast will also work, but it must be hydrated in warm water before it is added." I believe instant yeast is the same thing as bread machine yeast. I buy my instant yeast in bulk packages from Sam's club. As for the water, I think the chlorine can be a factor so that's why they say to use spring or filtered water. Please let me know how yours turns out! It really was good bread-it's a little crumbly but not dry if that makes any sense and the flavor is awesome. No bitterness or heavy wheat taste. I don't know how much it affected the final flavor but I did use white wheat flour which is a lighter flour than traditional whole wheat. I really hope some of you guys try this and let us know how it turns out! Tracey

Sorry about the delay in getting back to you, we've been out of town for a week and I just got back late this afternoon and am playing catch-up. Glad you had good results with the recipe. I give credit to my friend Mildred in Missouri for sharing the recipe with me. 1. I would add the coarser flour to the sponge. Either will work (as you have discovered), but the sponge gives the sharp bits of bran time to soak up the liquid and soften in the coarse flour. Those sharp bits can cut gluten strands. 2. Bread Machine Yeast is a type of fast-acting yeast like SAF-Instant is. You made a good substitute. SAF-Instant is a "super" yeast, and somewhat different from the other brands of fast-acting yeast products (Bread Machine, Rapid-Rise and Quick-Rise). I consider SAF-Instant a superior choice over the other fast-rising yeast products, but that's a personal choice. I've used all of them at one time or another over the years. 3. Pan sizes... A 9x5-inch pan is actually designed for quick breads and holds about 2-pounds of dough. For over two pounds of dough you would need a Jumbo Pan - 10x4-1/2-inch. I personally don't like these over-size loaves, especially when trying to cut thin slices. Small loaves are easier to cut thin than large loaves. Another personal preference. Standard 8-1/2x4-1/2-inch pan holds up to around 1-1/2-pounds of dough. I have a pair of Norpro pans that are just slightly smaller at 7-3/4x4-1/4-inches that works very well for 2 loaves. 7-1/2x3-1/2-inch pans - up to 1-pound of dough. I often divide the dough equally into three of these small loaves. I will also divide the dough into one 1-1/2-pound loaf and the rest for something like an 8-inch pan of dinner rolls, 6 jumbo pecan cinnamon rolls, 6 hamburger or hot dog buns. The cultured milk products (dried or liquid buttermilk, kefir, yogurt) seem to aid in the sponge. My friend, Mildred, often uses up to 24-hours, with half the time in the refrigerator, similar to what you did. A very forgiving recipe, as you've just proven. I also like to add 1/2-cup of coarsely-ground multi-grain mixture, similar to multi-grain cereal (5-grain, 7-grain, 11-grain, etc.), except I mill my own. I add it towards the end of kneading to keep the sharp bits from cutting the gluten strands. I like the "tooth" it adds to the bread. -Grainlady

King Arthur whole wheat flour is higher in gluten and appropriate for yeast breads because of that. If you use it for making quick breads, cookies, pastry, etc. make sure you keep mixing to a bare minimum or you'll develop too much gluten and get a tough baked good. If you use it for pastry, add a little more fat to help coat the flour and shorten the gluten. Whole wheat PASTRY flour, milled from soft wheat varieties, is your best choice for whole wheat pastry. King Arthur whole wheat flour is milled from high-gluten hard wheat varieties and therefore not really the appropriate flour to use. Whole Wheat Pastry Flour is also a better choice for biscuits and cake. I'd never use King Arthur Whole Wheat Flour for cakes. You'll end up with a tough crumb. I mill my own whole grain flours, so I can choose the correct type of grain for each use. If you make quick breads, including muffins, using this flour, stir it in by hand rather than with an electric mixer to avoid developing too much gluten. King Arthur Whole Wheat flour will make wholegrain noodles or pasta, but once again, it's not the correct choice. Pasta and noodles are best made with flour milled from Durum Wheat, not hard wheat. -Grainlady WHEAT AND SESAME TORTILLAS (source: "Natural Meals in Minutes" by Rita Bingham) 2 c. whole wheat flour (you may also use 1/2 ww and 1/2 all-purpose) 3 T. dry milk powder 1/3 c. sesame seeds extra flour for board 2 T. butter or applesauce (I use coconut oil) 1/2 t. salt 2 T. yogurt (I use kefir) 1/2 c. lukewarm water Combine dry ingredients. Use hand or electric beaters to cut in butter or applesauce until mixture resembles fine crumbs (I used a pastry cutter). Slowly pour in water and yogurt, mixing lightly with a fork. On a floured board, knead dough until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Shape into a ball, cover and let stand for 10 minutes (I covered it with a damp towel). Divide and shape dough into 8 balls (I make at least 16 tortillas out of this dough). Remove one ball at a time and roll paper thin on floured board. Place on heavy, hot, ungreased skillet, over medium-high heat. Blisters should appear right away. Brown on one side and turn. Cook about 30 seconds. Makes eight 9-inch tortillas. ------------------- WHOLE WHEAT SUGAR COOKIES http://kansaswheat.org/general.asp?id=470 Found at the Kansas Wheat Commission Web site along with many other recipes using whole wheat. See link below. We love these cookies... 2 cups whole wheat flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg 1/2 cup butter or margarine 1 cup granulated sugar 1 egg 1 tablespoon grated orange peel 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 2 tablespoons low-fat milk topping 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon 2 tablespoons granulated sugar 1 In small bowl, stir together whole wheat flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg. Set aside. 2 In a large mixing bowl, beat butter or margarine with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 1 minute. Add the granulated sugar; beat mixture until combined. Stir in egg, orange peel and vanilla; beat mixture until well combined. 3 Stir in the flour mixture and milk just until combined. 4 Shape into 1-inch balls and place on ungreased cookie sheet 2 inches apart. Flatten slightly with bottom of a glass dipped in topping mixture. 5 Bake cookies in a preheated 375F oven 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer cookies to a wire rack to cool. nutrition information per serving (one cookie): 74 cal, 3 g fat, 13 mg chol, 59 mg sodium, 12 g carbo, 1 g fiber, 1 g pro, 1 mcg folate.

I made the bread this morning and had some for dinner. It was excellent...tasted even better than what I remember at the safari camp! It is a very easy recipe and definitely a keeper. Actually, half the loaf is already gone! The following shows the substitutions I made. Thanks for the tip about not using pastry flour. I didn't change any of the quantities and I think both taste and texture came out very well...except for the mess in my oven and a sunken middle from over proofing! Seeded whole wheat bread (&Beyond cookbook) 2 c cake flour [sub'd spelt] 2 c nutty wheat or whole wheat flour [sub'd white whole wheat flour] 1 c oats 1 c digestive bran [sub'd wheat bran] 1 Tbs instant dried yeast 1 tsp salt 1/4 c poppy seeds 1/4 c sunflower seeds or linseeds [used sunflower seeds] 1/4 c sesame seeds 1/4 c golden syrup [sub'd agave nectar] 1 Tbs olive oil 2 1/2 c lukewarm water Preheat oven to 160 C (320 F). Place all dry ingredients into a large mixing bowl. Mix together syrup, olive oil and water. Add liquids to dry ingredients and stir until well mixed. The mixture will be slightly wet. Spoon into a greased small loaf pan [I used a 9"x5" loaf pan] and allow dough to rise in a warm place in the pan. [I forgot and let it proof for too long...about an hour...made a mess in the oven!] Sprinkle with some extra seeds. Bake in the preheated oven for about 1 hour or until a skewer is inserted and comes out clean. Allow to cool in the tin for a few minutes and turn out on a cooling rack to cool completely.