Today I used a new recipe.  On one hand it was a failure, but on the other hand it had some redeeming qualities.  There were three ingredients which I normally don't use in bread:  egg, maple syrup and milk.  The crust burned before the internal temperature of the bread reached 200°F..  I don't know which of the ingredients caused the crust to burn.  The loaf itself reached an excellent height.

A closer look at the burnt crust follows:

The interior had a lovely, light, golden-brown color.  The texture was excellent as was the structure, but then there was the crust...grrr...

I cut off a slice, cut off the crust, and toasted it.  It toasts lovely (no photo - but can make one if you'd like to see), but then there's still that maple syrup flavor that I just can't get used to in bread.  Dunno, it must be a psychological thing, but it's just not bread to me with that flavor.  Perhaps I could use a cookie cutter, make a cookie from it, and then may be I'd love it...lol...

The very unfortunate thing about this whole experiment is that I used the first of my Wheat Montana's Prairie Gold grain/flour for this loaf.  I should have stuck with my standard recipe. 

If you have some thoughts as to why the crust burned on me as it did, please comment.

Cliff.