The Secret to Making the Best Bread

"Proofing" can mean several things in bread baking: ensuring that the yeast is active, setting the dough to rise, and letting the shaped loaves rise before baking.

To proof the yeast and make sure it's active, add the yeast required for the recipe 1 cup of warm water (between 110 and 115 degrees F) and stir to dissolve. Since the yeast tends to clump you may have to rub the clumps with your fingers to get them separated.(The water should feel like a pleasantly warm shower, or about the temperature you'd use for a baby's bottle. If it feels uncomfortably hot, it will probably kill the yeast.) Add one teaspoon of sugar and let the yeast sit for five minutes. If the yeast is foamy and smells like bread, it's active.