Flour as a basic staple in your pantry or cellar is a must if you homestead , or are on VERY limited budget, or if you are a survivalist.Consider all the things that are made from flour.....BREADS, ROLLS, DONUGHTS,(how do you spell donoughts?) pancakes,waffles,cookies,pies,cakes,soooo many kinds of munchie deserts,pastas(manicotti, lasagna,shells,macaroni )egg rolls,pierogies , spaghetti........add to what I have just listed if you think of some other yummie things.
  I save flour in glass pickle jars, which my very fine friend at work saves for me.Stored flour tends to draw those moths that make webs in your storage containers and they throw great parties that overtake and make the original flour composition unrecognizable.Another way to store larger quantities of flour is in the freezer. We had missionary friends that lived in Papua,  New Guinea that needed to keep all that in the  freezer to keep the buggie population out.Worked just fine.
   I have severasl different kinds of flour~ All Purpose (cookies,pies,pastas), bread flour (higher in gluten and needed to rise), semolina (added to all purpose flour to make pastas), rye and whole wheat (low in gluten and poor risers. They need white bread flour added to make it rise well. You can also use wheat gluten to help rising but I have found it still remains dense. Add bread flour also.)

I make bread every 2 weeks. Then I make multiple loaves, cut them in half and freeze them. They stay crispy when thawed, especially if you like hot bread, heat it up a few minutes before dinner.
    I found 2 especially EXCELLENT recipes for Italian bread and NY Deli Rye bread.  Here are the sites.
http://smittenkitchen.com/blog/2010/01/new-york-deli-rye-bread/    Here is what I learned about this recipe. The dough will come out sticky. I use my mixer's dough hook to knead it. LEAVE it sticky!! Plop it out on a bread floured board and knead a minute or two. Do NOT cook the first few minutes on 450F. Cook the entire length on 400 F.  Follow the rest of the tips.  Also~  for the glaze...you MUST make the glaze !!! But use this... I found it on a Jewish Baker's site, what they used and it's great!   " While bringing 1 cup of water to a boil, dissolve 2 TB. cornstarch in 1/4 cup cold water and stir to mix well. Mix this into the boiling water till thick & becomes clear.Brush upon the risen loaves then make 3 slices across the length of the loaf. For a high sheen brush with a 2nd time AS SOON as the bread emerges from the oven.

ITALIAN BREAD:  It is SUPER !   Request this recipe from me   @ turkeyfether@aol.com


I am still perfecting Bayonne rolls (  No town has EVER dupicated them) and whole wheat bread. I'll let you know when these come out great.

Challah bread...Beautiful, beautiful, wonderful recipe.   Email me for it.It requires braiding.