Yeast is a fungus, and like all living things, it needs food, moisture and warmth to grow. Adding warm water and a little sugar and flour to the yeast is called making a "proof," said Hack, "because we are proving that the yeast is viable."

After mixing these together in a small bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set it aside 10-15 minutes, until the proof is bubbly and actively growing. If it's flat with no activity, the yeast is too old. Throw it out and start again with newer yeast. (Yeast will keep longer if stored in the freezer, Hack said.)

If you live at high altitudes such as Utah's, a general rule of thumb is to reduce the amount of yeast in a recipe by 25 percent, said Hack. But you may have to experiment with different amounts of yeast and other ingredients for best results.

Active dry yeast is freeze-dried; it has a coating of dead yeast cells. Putting the yeast in water dissolves the coating so it can start fermenting. Rapid-rise yeast is developed for commercial use for "people who want to get their dough made quickly. It won't work in our recipes, because you won't get a second rise on the dough," Hack said.

Measuring

A properly measured cup of all-purpose flour should weigh 4 1/4 ounces. Flour compacts during shipping, so scooping it right out of the bag could give you about 25 percent more flour, which results in heavy, crumbly, dry baked goods.

To get an accurate amount of flour, stir the flour in your container to fluff it up a little. Lightly fill a dry measuring cup until the cup is overflowing. Sweep the excess flour off the top with a straight edge, like a spatula.

In recipes calling for flexible amounts of flour, such as 4 to 5 cups, always start with the least amount and gradually add more to achieve the desired consistency.

Each ingredient plays a vital role

• Wheat flour, when mixed with liquid, forms stretchy protein strands, or gluten.

• Adding a fat, such as butter or shortening, will "shorten" the gluten strands so they can't stretch as far. This makes the crumb more tender. Yogurt, sour cream and buttermilk are other tenderizing ingredients.

• Besides adding flavor, salt draws water away from the yeast, slowing down the rising process. It also tightens the structure on your dough, said Hack.

If you want to incorporate whole grains, try substituting whole-wheat flour for up to half the all-purpose flour in your usual recipes. Or, you can mix in grains such as oats and millet, or sunflower, pumpkin and sesame seeds for texture and flavor. If you want to add whole flaked or cracked grains, soak them first so they're easier to chew and don't dry out the dough.

Kneading