Whole Wheat Bread

My neighbor gave me this recipe & I have been slightly altering it every time I make it, just because we have a really funky oven, & it hasn't been all that great when I've made it in the past. I'll be honest... I'm not exactly the most scientific person, so when "I" (actually, John) researched that the water should be exactly a certain temp or that you should make sure you mix the yeast in & then the flour & salt (in that order) or else the salt will "kill" the yeast... it just made me want to go to the store & buy some bread! But I was bound & determined to be able to make good bread at home-- not just the thick & hearty soup bread, but the light & fluffy sandwich stuff. Thanks to John, Ruby & Hartley for putting up with many weeks (months?) of not so great bread. I love you guys. And I (now) love this bread.

Original recipe from my neighbor:
3 cups warm water
1 tbsp yeast
2 tsp salt
6 1/2 cups gold'n white flour (found in the bulk section at our co-op)

Directions
Mix water & yeast & let it sit for 5 minutes. Mix in salt & flour & let it rise for 2 hours (make sure it's warm in your house!) Punch it down & knead 5 or 6 times (dough will be very sticky). Place the dough in 2 well-oiled loaf pans. Let it rise again. Bake at 450 for 33 minutes.

My altered recipe
3 cups warm water
1 tbsp yeast
2 tsp salt
3 1/2 cups bread flour (I like the King Arthur brand)
3 cups white whole wheat flour (I've tried to do all whole wheat & it just comes out too dense for our liking)

*I've also tried adding 1/2 cup of ground flax (& then using 1/2 cup less of the bread flour) &/or sprinkling the top with oatmeal, just to give it a bit of a different flavor)

Directions
Mix water & yeast & let it sit for 5 minutes. Mix in salt & flour & let it rise for 2 hours (make sure it's warm in your house!). Punch it down & knead 5 or 6 times (dough will be very sticky). Place the dough in 2 well-oiled loaf pans. Let it rise again. Bake at 400 for 20 minutes (I know that temp & time is way less that the previous directions, but that's what works for us... experiment with your oven). I also have found that the dough freezes very well, so if you don't want to eat 2 loaves of bread (you should) you can freeze one in a bag & then let it thaw/rise overnight in a well-oiled pan.