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To make bread you need a few basic ingredients:
•    Flour (wheat, white wheat, rye, barley, rice, a mixture)
•    Yeast (dry, moist, freeze dried, cubed)
•    Liquid (water, milk, whey from rice, beans, cheese)
•    Sweetener (sugar, honey, artificial)
•    Salt (optional)
•    Oil/Shortening/Butter/Margarine (optional)
Secrets to making good whole wheat bread can be applied to good bread of any kind.
1.    Fresh Flour – once wheat or any other grain is milled it begins to loose vitamin potency.  Store all flour in tightly sealed containers.
2.    Fresh Yeast – freeze dried yeast will keep indefinitely.  Once opened store in air tight container in refrigerator or freezer.
3.    Comfortably Warm Water – about 120 to 130 o.  Too warm and you may kill or hamper the growth of the yeast.  Too cold and you will retard it’s growth.
4.    Sponging – letting the flour, yeast, water and sugar sit, undisturbed 10 to 15 minutes.
5.    Right Amount of Flour – the amount is determined by the moisture in the air, the fineness of the flour, and the gluten content of the flour.  If the right amount of flour is used the dough pulls together, holds it’s shape and feels a little tacky.  Too much flour in your dough?  Drizzle a little water over the dough as you knead it.
Dough too moist?  A little white flour can be kneaded in to “glue” if back together.
6.    Develop the gluten.
What is gluten?  The protein in wheat, gives the dough structure, elasticity.  Gluten is unique to wheat, it is not present in rice, barley, rye or other flours.  Remember all “white” flour is wheat flour, made from a light wheat.  Bleached means it has been chemically treated to be white, unbleached means it was bleached naturally.
7.    Oil on your hands as you mold your loaves and oil on the counter will help keep it from sticking.
*Don’t add more flour to wheat bread as you knead it into loaves.
8.    Let the Dough Proof.  This is done in a warm room or in a warmed oven.  A warm room can be unreliable and unconstant. A warmed oven is recommended for proofing the loaves in pans, especially for wheat bread.
To warm the oven turn it on to 150 o or the lowest temp for the oven.  Turn off the oven before putting the bread in to rise.  To keep the dough from drying out, mist with water or lightly coat top of dough with oil or shortening.
*Watch carefully.  When the dough is almost doubled in bulk, it is ready bake.  Test by touching it lightly near the edge.  If a slight indentation remains the dough is proofed.  If the complete indentation remains it is over proofed.  You can reshape the loaves and start again or go ahead and bake, knowing the loaves will be too light, coarse and the texture will be crumbly.
If you proof in the room, turn on the oven so you can put the loaves in as soon as they are proofed.  Oven proofing, leave loaves in oven and turn temperature on to 350 o to bake for required time.
How to Shape Breads:
Regular Loaves: A loaf of bread may be formed in many ways, and most bakers have their favorite.  Here are two simple methods that produce good, consistent results.
1.    Slightly flatten a ball of dough with your hands, and then corss-grain the dough by folding in each of the four sides, directly across from each other.  Using the palms of your hands or a rolling pin, flatten the dough into a rectangle, 7 x 15 inches for a large 4 x 8½ inch loaf, or 5 x 8 inches for a small 3 x 5 3/4 inch loaf.  Roll up, starting at the narrow side, sealing each turn tightly with the edge of your hand.  Tuck the strips under the loaf, and roll the loaf back and forth to make it even.  Place in a lightly greased loaf pan.  If the loaf is a bit too long for the pan, lift up the center, allowing the ends to fit, and then lay the center down.  The dough will fit without remolding.
2.    Hold a ball of dough in your hands and keep tucking the edges of the dough underneath, turning the ball as you go until you have a smooth turtle’s back shape.  Gently elongate the ends until the dough resembles a football.  Seal the edges underneath with you fingers.  Place in a lightly greased bread pan.
Round Loaves: Form dough into a ball.  Holding the dough in your hands, tuck the edges of the dough underneath, turning the dough until you have a smooth ball.  Seal the underneath edges with you fingers.  Place in a lightly greased 8 inch pie or cake pan and let rise until almost double.
French Loaves: Roll dough into a rectangle, about 12 x 15 inches.  Beginning at the long edge, roll up tightly.  Pinch the edge to seal, and taper the ends.  Place seam side down on a lightly greased baking sheet which has been sprinkled with cornmeal, or place in a French bread pan.  Using a sharp knide, make 1/4 inch diagonal slashes every 2 ½ inches across the top.  Brush with an egg water mix.  Let rise until double.
Braids: Form dough into three ropes, each about ½ inch in diameter.  Starting in the center, braid the ropes together.  Pinch the ends together to seal.  Turn the braid over, and braid the other half.  Again pinch the ends to seal.  Pull the braid slightly to lengthen, if necessary.  Place on a lightly greased baking sheet or place in a bread pan to rise.
You Can Freeze Dough
Frozen Bread: Shape your bread dough as directed in the recipe.  Place it on a baking sheet or in a bread pan.  Freeze immediately.  As soon as the dough is frozen solid, remove it from the pan and place it in a heavy plastic bag and seal.  Use the dough within six to eight weeks.  To bake, lightly grease bread pan with shortening.  Put the frozen dough into the pan, and cover it loosing with waxed paper.  Let the dough rise until double, four to six hours, depending on room temperature.  If your dough dries out while rising, mist it lightly with water from a spray bottle.  Bake 350o, and bake 30 to 35 minutes.
Quick Rise Method: Transfer your frozen bread dough to a lightly greased bread pan as directed.  Preheat your oven to 150o.  Turn off the oven.  Place the frozen dough in the oven, and put a pan of hot water on the rack immediately below the dough.  Let the dough rise from one to three hours.  When dough is light, remove the pan of water.  Turn oven to 350 o, and bake 30 to 35 minutes.
Tip: if your dough should get too light, remove from the pan, reshape it,
and let dough rise again until double.