The flour I am using in All purpose - the book states it is ok to use in Canada. I also tried AP flour then tried a loaf with AP flour and added wheat gluten...still heavy.

NO, it is not like English flour which is self-raising.
Yeast makes it rise. you could also add an egg with the liquid. Our flour needs raising agents.
BUt a sourdough loaf is a bit heavier.
Plus my breadmaker entails a sourdough starter, (with the recipe) That's if you are using a breadmaker.
Are you baking it in the oven?

Could your yeast be stale? It gets stale very quickly once opened. i tend to use sachets to avoid this.
Could the yeast be coming into contct with the liquids too soon. Keep yeast away from fats and liquids. Put it in first for most Panasonic machines, then the flour which keeps it dry till machine starts to knead.
You also must use strong bread flour not all purpose. good luck

use 2 tablespoons less liquid in your next recipe and be sure you are using "bread flour" and not "all purpose" flour

You can always select a darker crust, but first tell me what kind of flour you are using. Are you using all purpose flour or bread flour?

please tell me what kind of flour you are using....in other words what does it say on the bag....does it say "all-purpose flour" or "bleached bread flour" etc..etc....let's start there.

If your loaf is also dense then you may not be getting the proper rise. Be sure you are using bread flour and not all purpose flour.

Unless you are making whole wheat bread be sure to use flour that says "bread flour" on the bag. NOT all purpose floure etc. only bread flour. My favorite is King Arthur brand of flour....

Here's a good basic white bread recipe that works great with a BD2550 (and usually doesn't even **** the mixing blade off of the bottom of the machine)

1 cup warm (not hot) water
1/3 cup milk
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 tablespoons butter/margarine
4 cups flour
1 teaspoon yeast

Heat the water and add the milk to it. Dissolve the sugar and salt into this mix and pour the liquid into the bottom of the bread maker bucket (make sure the mixing blade is already in). Melt and add the butter to this mix. Add the 4 cups of flour directly on top, but do not mix it in. The flour will float on top of the liquid. Make a small dimple in the top of the flour in the middle with your finger and add the yeast into that little crater (at no point while adding ingredients do you let the yeast touch the liquid). Set the bread maker for basic setting 1, light crust, 2lb loaf and let it do it's thing. 3 hours later, you'll have a nice loaf of white bread with good consistency and density, and it usually leaves the mixing blade in the bucket (rather than having to dig it out of the loaf after).

Hope this helps!

Try using more white flour with the whole wheat flour. Maybe increase the yeast and/or sugar.

Instead of more yeast, substitute 1 cup of white bread flour in place of the whole wheat flour. Whole wheat flour always makes a more dense loaf. Also, put a tent of aluminum foil over the loaf to radiate the heat back onto the top of the loaf to help brown it (as you would when baking a turkey).