no need to really get a book - it's really hard to screw up bread. First thing you should do, if you're really interested, is make some w/out the instant yeast. Just set some water and flour out (I use stone ground whole wheat), and you'll have something bubbling in a few days. You can throw in some fresh apple peel or something - not a supermarket apple, something from a green market. The idea is to get some yeast growing in there. It settles on everything, so you'll have some in the flour, some on the apple, and some hanging around in the air. Once you see some bubbles, which can take 4-5 days, you have a yeast. Whether it's good or not, you won't know until you use it. I have 3 of them right now - one tastes really good but one works much faster. Then you can make bread with those - it's "sourdough" bread, meaning it wasn't made with a commercial yeast. Remember - bread yeast is like anything else - it has been developed to have certain characteristics. So you get something that is reliable and relatively quick, but lacks flavor. The wild, or feral, yeasts provide much more complex flavors. In part that is because they work in harmony with bacteria, which are also floating around. Those bacteria, which are similar to those in yogurt, also eat the sugars in the flour and help to develop those really nice complex flavors in the bread. Just keep a little of the flour/water mix aside, add more of both, and keep the starter dough going. As far as time - this is why your commercial yeast was developed. With one of my yeasts, if I knead the dough in the morning, it won't rise until the next day. So basically, I put it in the fridge for rising. Those long, slow, rises do help the flavoring. Then, when you're done messing around with that, you can start adding different things. Fats, whether they be in the form of oils or something else like butter, will make your bread have a more tender crumb and will also help with the shelf-life. The bread will not be as dry and will last a few days longer. You can incorporate seasonings - be careful with salts because they'll kill your yeast, but you can add any kind of herb you like, or a combination. Ditto spices. Or fruits. Or you can use fruit juice for part of your liquid. Or something like ricotta cheese. Or eggs. Or different flours and/or grains - rye, spelt, rice, oats, etc. Just be aware that the texture of your bread will be VERY different - nothing has the gluten that wheat does. You're already having fun - so just have some more. Incidentally, this is a good thing to do in the winter when you really can't work in the garden. I don't know how any of these will work in a machine - I've never used one. But I've been making bread and doughs pretty much once or twice a week for about 30 years, and it's quite therapeutic. Have fun!

There's pannetone and then there's pannetone LOL. We went to Boston at the end of November and stayed in the North End (swoon...Little Italy). One of the outings we took was a culinary walking tour (Michelle Topor) which included stopping at a salumeria, bakery, coffee purveyor, liquor store and produce market. At one of the stops we were introduced to an imported pannetone that cost a small fortune, but mama mia! Heaven! Although I admit my pannetone is excellent, it wasn't as good as this one. I think the difference is in the raisins. I use golden raisins because that's what is readily available. "Authentic" pannetone uses sultanas, which are raisins that are the product of the Sultana grape, which grows in Turkey. The package was small and cost around $23.00. (She who is on the hunt for sultanas...I will make a pannetone to rival the one in Boston)

bizzylizzy at the harvest forum posted this recipe and since I tire easily I have been using the dough cycle on my bread machine to make it. I usually take my bread out of the machine and bake it in traditional pans but not always. I halved this recipe and it was perfect for a 1 1/2 pound loaf...and it was sooooo good. Remember if you make it in the bread machine...halve the recipe. Grammy Mabel's Oatmeal Bread Recipe 2 Cups Scalded Milk 2 Cups Rolled Oats (NOT Quick Oats) 2 Cakes Yeast, or 2 Tbsps Superyeast 4 Large Spoons Sugar (Tbsp) 3 Small Spoons Salt (tsp) 1/2 Cup Water Water 4 Large spoons Melted Lard or Butter ( Tbsp) 5 Cups Bread Flour Method: Add Scaled milk to rolled oats, mix well, let cool. Small bowl, combine yeast, sugar water and melted lard, add a 1/2 Cup flour to the yeast mix, let stand 5 minutes. Large Bowl, combine remaing flour and salt, adding the yeast mixture, then the cooled oats. Toss on board, knead and shape into ball, place in greased bowl,brush top with melted butter, cover in warm place and let rise to double in size, about 1 1/2 hours. Next, place on floured board, knead 1 minute, shape into 2 loaves- Put into small greased bread pans, brush tops with melted butter, cover in warm place till double in size. Bake in hot oven 400 degrees for 15 minutes, cool over to 350 degrees bake for 45 minutes or till hollow sound. Variation: Multigrain Rolled Hot Cereal for the Oatmeal, I get 7 Grain at the Mennonite store to make 7 grain bread. Here is a link that might be useful: Oatmeal Bread/Harvest Forum

Here's a few I like. You can use more whole grain flour in them. Country White Bread Large loaf 1 1/3c water 1 1/2t salt 1 1/2T sugar (I used 1 T of blackberry Raw honey) 1/2c barley or oat flour (I used oat this time.) 3 1/2 c bread flour 2t yeast To mix in mixer Heat the water until warm, between 105F-115F; pour into warmed bowl, and add the yeast. Let stand 5 minutes, until the yeast begins to bubble. Add the salt, sugar, barley flour, and half the bread flour. Beat with paddle until smooth. Cover, and let stand 15 minutes. Slowly add the remaining flour, and beat until soft dough forms. Knead the dough in the mixer with the hook, on medium to high speed, adding flour as necessary, until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and is smooth and springy but still soft to the touch. Remove the dough hook, cover the bowl and let dough rise until doubled, about 1 hour. ~I then shaped into 9 large burger size rolls and let rise on cornmeal dusted baking sheets until the size I wanted. Baked at 350F until golden brown. However the instructions contiune: To Shape and bake in the oven Lightly grease a baking sheet, or cover with parchment paper. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured board or lightly oiled surface. Punch the dough down and shape into a round loaf, dusting in on all sides with flour. Place the loaf, with the smooth side up, onto the baking sheet. Cover and let rise until doubled, 45 minutes or so. Preheat oven to 375F. Using a sharp knife or razon slash a 3" circle on the very top of the loaf. Bake 30-35 minutes, until the loaf is golden and a wooden skewer comes out clean and dry. Remove from the pan and cool on a wire rack. Light Wheat Brioche Large Loaf 4 large eggs plus water to equal 1 1/3c 2 t salt 2 T sugar 1 c whole wheat 3 c bread flour 3/4c butter, softened 1 1/2 t yeast To mix in mixer Warm the eggs under hot tap water, and crack into measuring cup. Heat the water to 105-115F, and add it to the eggs. Pour the mixture into the warmed mixing bowl, and add the yeast. Let stand 5 minutes, until yeast begins to bubble. Add the salt, sugar, whole wheat, and half the bread flour. Beat well. Cover, and let stand 15 minutes. Slowly add the remaining flour, and beat until soft dough forms.~change to dough hook~ Cut the butter into pieces and add it to the dough. Knead the dough in the mixer with the hook, on medium to high speed, adding flour as necessary, until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and is smooth and springy but still soft to the touch. Remove the dough hook, cover the bowl and let dough rise until doubled, about 1 hour. To shape and bake in the oven: Lightly grease a fluted brioche pan, a 9" round cake pan or 9x5 loaf pan. Turn the dough out on a lightly floured or oiled surface. For traditional brioche shape, punch the dough down and pinch off one-quarter of the dough. Shape the remaining dough into a round loaf. Place the loaf, smooth side up, in the brioche or cake pan. Make an indentation in the center of the loaf. Form the pinched-off portion into a teardrop shape, and place, pointed side down, into the hole in the loaf. Or press the dough inot the loaf pan. Cover and let rise until doubled about 1- 1 1/2 hours. Preheat oven to 350F. Brush or spray loaf with water. Bake 45-50 minutes, until wooden skewer inserted through the loaf comes out clean. Remove from the pan and cool on wire rack. Here is a link that might be useful: see if something appeals to you here