italian whole wheat bread

this was a full-flavored, chewy italian loaf that was worth turning on the oven for. at least it was worth turning on the oven for if you're going to leave the house for a potluck directly afterward. the loaf went over extremely well, and since the recipe was requested, here it is. it's from beth hensberger's The Bread Lover's Bread Machine Cookbook, which i reccomend heartily to those out there with breadmakers. every recipe i've tried is kelley-proof, which means low-patience for accurate measurement-proof. Italian Whole Wheat Bread for the sponge starter: 1 1/3 cups water 1 1/8 cups bread flour 3/4 cup whole wheat flour 1/4 teaspoon yeast for the dough: 1 cup bread flour 1 tb sugar 1 tb gluten 1 1/2 tsp salt 2 1/4 tsp bread machine yeast yellow cornmeal, for sprinkling 1. place the starter ingredients in the bread pan. process on dough cycle 10 minutes. stop and unplug machine. let the sponge sit in the machine for4 hours, or as long as overnight. 2. place all the dough ingredients in the bread pan with the sponge. start dough cycle. dough will be very moist, tacky, and smooth. 3. line a baking sheet with parchment or silpat and sprinkle with cornmeal. with dough cycle is over, unplug machine. turn the dough onto a clean work surface (i lightly dusted it with flour; the dough is fairly loose) and shape into a tight round. place on baking sheet, cover loosely with plastic wrap, and let rise until almost tripled in bulk, about 1 to 1 1/2 hours. (oops; i let it double. it was still good - it rose really fast.) 4. twenty minutes before baking, place a baking stone on a rack in the lower third (mine was closer to the middle - see how this is kelley-proof?) of the oven and preheat to 450 degrees. 5. slash the surface of the loaf once down the center, no deeper than 1/2 inch. place the baking sheet directly on the hot stone in the oven. reduce the oven to 425. bake for 35-40 minutes, until golden brown and the top sounds hollow when tapped. it won't be very dark brown due to the wheat flour and small amount of sugar. cool the loaf on a rack 20 minutes before slicing and serving. delicious. this also works directly in the breadmaker on a dark setting, which i'll probably try later this week.