I agree with Ann T, I keep my yeast in a quart jar in the refrigerator because I buy it two pounds at a time at Sam's Club. I seldom measure, I just dump it in. If you add more yeast than the recipe calls for you might get a slighty more "yeasty" flavor which most people wouldn't notice. Too little? If you're even close, your bread will still rise. Heck, sourdough bread is made without any yeast at all. I've run out and made batches with whatever I have left and it still rises. Plus, if you bake a lot of bread, your kitchen will have "wild" yeasts which can help out when you're baking bread. Don't worry about it, bread is not an exact science. Ratios of wet to dry depend on the humidity, the brand of flour, how long you've stored that flour, lots of things. The rate of rising for your dough depends on temperature, on the yeast, on the type of flour used. Every day and every loaf will be a bit different, and it'll all be good! Annie

Oops, it's Butterscotch, not Vanilla pudding. Natal, I just have this fear of the loaves falling over without a baking sheet, even though I've done it before but not the amount I plan to bake. Okay, no baking sheet then. Bumble, they're quick breads. Here's the recipe for the Pumpkin Bread courtesy of Kraft Magazine. I bet the texture of this is dreamy! Pumpkin Bread 2 1/2 c. Flour 2 t. Baking Soda 1/2 t. Salt 1 t. Cinnamon 1 t. Nutmeg 1 sm. box Instant Lemon Pudding Mix 1 sm. box Instant Butterscotch Pudding Mix 1 c. chopped Pecans 1 15oz. can Solid Pack Pumpkin 2 c. Sugar 1 1/2 c. Vegetable Oil 5 Eggs In large bowl mix first 8 ingredients and set aside. In separate bowl, mix Pumpkin and remaining 3 ingredients until smooth. Combine both mixtures and pour into greased loaf pans. (Makes 16 mini pans) Preheat oven to 350 and bake for approximately (mini pans) 20-25 min. Larger loaf pans will take longer to bake.

Teresa, when I use my sourdough starter I only use a couple of ounces to make a biga and the biga is left overnight to develop and in the morning it is added to the flour with additional water and salt. I don't measure the water because it varies every time depending on the flour, the weather, etc... I go by feel and whether I'm looking for a more hydrated dough or not. Depending on how active your starter is, I don't see a problem with using substantially less than one cup. Ann

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