Adventures in Bread Baking

So for some reason, I decided I wanted to bake some homemade bread on Sunday, from scratch, even went as far as to forgo the bread machine. The bread machine is fine when you just need to dump some ingredients and forget about them, but once you slice it, half the slices are mangled due to the mixing blade. Also the shape leaves something to be desired, the slices are two big to use two slices for a normal sized sandwich, but yet too small to cut in half for a serviceable one. Anyway, me not being a baker, I was a little surprised out how well it turned out. I followed the instructions at http://biology.clc.uc.edu/fankhauser/Cheese/Bread/BREAD_whole_wheat.htm and they were pretty clear cut and accurate. There were a few snags. First, due to Chandler being hot-natured and me being a cheap bastard, we keep the thermostat at a balmy 63 degrees. Not very friendly to the beasties that make bread rise. It only rose about half of what I the pics on the website suggested it should. Also, the taste is rather flat, Chandler says it needs salt and sugar and I agree. She thinks she can correct it, but only time will tell. Oh yeah, also, 3 out of the 4 loaves stuck to the pans. I brushed them with oil as suggested, but either that doesn't work or I misunderstood. The one non-stick pan I used (yes, Teflon is the spawn of Satan) made a pretty nice loaf if somewhat small. Despite all these minor imperfections, I am quite happy with how it turned out. Fankhauser's instructions on how to shape the loaves were perfect, each one came out with a nice, smooth top. The recipe as a whole came together quickly and easily, which is surprising due to my past record with baking. I am not a bad cook, I am just bad at following recipes. I preform a more freeform atmosphere where I can substitute at my whim. A big pot of chili is pretty forgiving, (I have yet to formulate a true recipe for it), but baking not so much. I ripped the bottom third off of one loaf trying to get it out of the pan. I think that loaf's destination may be croutons, something else I want to try at home. The other two that stuck are salvageable, but given that dull, lack-of-salt taste, they may end up also as croutons, or bread crumbs, or the ever-noble garlic toast.
I am actually eagerly awaiting my second go at this whole wheat bread recipe. All I am waiting on is an excuse to use up the first four loaves, and a recipe correction from Chandler. Other than her adding salt and sugar (that being in the form of honey and/or molasses) we will let the dough rise in the oven on its lowest setting next time. I will also be more careful about greasing up the pan, but whether I will resort to Baker's Joy or the old standby of Crisco, I think I will leave the decision to the heat of the moment.