I hope my reply only appears once - it got zapped after I hit submit -- anyway, I ended up doubling the vanilla and almond and thought it turned out fine - it had so much fattening stuff in it, how could it not have? It's my MIL's recipe and I'm not sure she would have approved of the taste, but everyone ate it! Thanks for your help.

cynic- We should all be able to make a great loaf of bread using flour, water, salt and yeast, but the commercial bakers have all kinds of things they add, and then along came the Automatic Bread Maker and we couldn't make a loaf unless we loaded the Bread Machine with gluten, dough enhancers, flavor enhancers, dough relaxers, etc...... There are a number of dough enhancers (dough developers or dough conditioners) used commercially that can also be used at home. They tend to fall in these categories - mold inhibitors, antistaling agents and dough improvers. You can find recipes on-line for homemade dough enhancers that include a number of ingredients and might save money over commercial "dough enhancer" products. Here's one example: How to make Homemade Dough Enhancer: 1 cup wheat gluten 2 tablespoons lecithin granules 1 teaspoon ascorbic acid crystals 2 tablespoons powdered pectin 2 tablespoons unflavored gelatin 1/2 cup nonfat dry milk 1 teaspoon powdered ginger Mix together and store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. For 100% whole grain breads, use 3 tablespoons per loaf. Add to your recipe along with the flour. \-Vitamin C (aka ascorbic acid) aids in better gluten development, especially if there is any wheat germ/whole wheat flour in the recipe. There is a substance in wheat germ (glutathione) that breaks the gluten bonds \- and as a result we get those squatty loaves of 100% whole wheat bread. When you add vitamin C it repairs the gluten and counteracts the negative effects of Glutathione. Add 1/8 t. ascorbic acid powder per loaf if there is wheat germ or whole wheat flour (which contains wheat germ) in a recipe. Ascorbic acid promotes yeast growth and helps yeast work longer and faster. It also helps produce the acidic atmosphere in which yeast grows best. Don't add ascorbic acid to naturally\-leavened breads (aka sourdough) because it is naturally acidic. You'll notice ascorbic acid is often an ingredient in yeast products. \-Egg yolk \- for antistaling and better gluten development \-1/4 t. ground fenugreek, rosemary, ginger, or cinnamon for enhanced yeast activity and better keeping qualities \-If you plan on freezing the bread use honey instead of sugar in the recipe. \-Add raisin juice or raisin pulp to a recipe to extend the shelf\-life of bread. \-My personal favorite trio \- chia seeds (or chia seed gel), agave nectar and coconut oil. Chia seeds or chia seed gel will help maintain the moisture in the crumb and keep it from migrating from the crumb to the crust. Coconut oil will help prevent mold and slow staling. Agave nectar, due to it's high content of monosaccharides has a high osmotic pressure. This characteristic in this sweetener helps to inhibit the growth of microorganisms (mold). Agave nectar increases the water retention properties. \-Salt \- use a quality high\-mineral sea salt. Minerals \= better gluten development. Yeast needs minerals and certain amino acids. \-Bean Flour \- French flour is fortified with 2% fava bean flour and it is supposed to improve dough performance and enhance flavor, nutrition and yeast growth. Chickpea flour is another add\-in choice. \-Barley Malt Syrup, Malt, Diastatic Malt Powder \- adds enzymes to supply sugars for better yeast growth. It also improves the nutrition, texture and keeping quality. Too much will make the bread gummy, dense and either too sweet or bitter. \-Lecithin \- Which is naturally occurring in egg yolks, but is yet one more add\-in that helps bread remain soft and moist because it slows down oxidation. \-Vital Wheat Gluten \- If you use a large percentage of low\-gluten or gluten\-free flour in a recipe, it can benefit from additional gluten. The problem using vital wheat gluten is that too much will cause the bread to be tough. It can also take much longer to develop the gluten if there is a high percentage in the dough. \-Mashed potatoes, potato flakes, potato water \- Acts as a dough enhancer and adds moistness. When it comes to refrigerating bread dough \- or choosing a refrigerator dough recipe \- mashed potatoes (or other pureed vegetable) is important because it preserves moisture in the dough in the dry climate of the refrigerator. Adding cooked rice to a recipe will do the same thing. And that's just a partial list..... \-Grainlady

Ingredients from Bacos: Defatted soy flour, partially hydrogenated soybean oil, water, salt, sugar, natural and artificial flavor (some type of glutamate no doubt, but not MSG because I'm allergic to that and it would give me a stomache ache), artificial color, and red 40, maltodextrin, dextrose, tocopherol, (preservative). I am allergic to nitrates, they give me headaches, so I buy natural bacon and keep it in the freezer. I slice off some bits to fry for flavor, but not for the broccoli slaw style salad. I don't mind a dash of the soy product stuff to add some bacon flavor to something like soups and salads or braised greens, if it's just a dash for flavor. It absolutely is full of sugar and salt so that's why I said use judiciously. In a BLT where bacon is a key ingredient rather than a flavoring, I want real bacon, I tried the soy stuff for BLTs and it didn't cut it for me. Also, some of my friends are vegans and others are observant Jews and Muslims, so the Baco bits work for when I am cooking for a mixed crowd, which is what my gang tends to be. I'm liking the idea of smoked almonds for salads though. I have been avoiding them due to the salt content, but a few might be interesting in salads.

I'm sensitive to many scents and try very hard to use only products that are cruelty-free. I've recently been using the Lemon scented J. R. Watkins foaming hand soap in the kitchen and bath, and I'm very happy with it. My hands are in pretty good shape lately. They claim their products are 95% naturally derived, (from their website) "free from Parabens, Petrolatum, Chemical Sunscreens, Glycols, Phthalates, Ethanoloamines, Synthetic polymers, Formaldehyde Donors, Synthetic Dyes, Silicones, Talc, and Mineral Oil". JR Watkins foaming lemon soap