That might come in the form of a sourdough mother, a poolish, or a biga.
But if all you want is a casual, small loaf of bread, less is more.
(More bubbles make for a faster proof time.)
Would some bread-heads say this is bad bread?
I have had bad bread, and this is not it.
If you dont have bread flour, you might use all-purpose flour.
These arent bad things.
In fact, this is the perfect white sandwich bread.
Five ounces of flour (about one cup)instead of 35 ouncessounds much more approachable.
Make the dough
Start by pouring the water into a medium bowl and sprinkling the yeast on top.
Allow the yeast to bloom; it only takes about 30 seconds.
Use a rubber spatula or a bowl scraper to mix the dough.
The dough should come together into a slightly tacky mass.
Continue to stir and work the dough for a couple minutes to build up some gluten strength.
Lightly flour a work surface and dump the dough on top.
Repeat this five or six times then round off the mass of dough to make a ball.
Cover this bowl with plastic wrap or a damp tea towel to proof.
This takes an hour or two, depending on the environment your dough is resting in.
Check on it after an hour, to see if bubbles have developed and if its doubled in size.
Now you have a choice.
I used a Dutch oven.
Shape the dough
Flour your work surface once again, and place the dough ball onto the flour.
This time do letter folds to tighten up the dough.
To do that, fold the dough in half to make an oblong shape.
Press to seal it.
Take the opposite end and fold it over that.
Squeezing the seam to seal it, making it oblong once again.
If your dough is shapeless, repeat the letter folds until the dough feels more perky.
Cover the dough loosely in plastic wrap or in a plastic bag.
Let it proof for another 40 minutes in a warm place.
This allows you to control where the bread breaks open as it rises in the oven.
Put the loaf pan in the oven.
For the Dutch oven, uncover the pot for the last 10 minutes so the bread browns well.
Cool the loaf on a wire rack completely before slicing.
This loaf will be about six inches long, fluffy, and slightly chewy, with a thin crust.
Give the water a swirl.
Add the flour and salt to a separate small bowl and mix in the salt.
Pour the flour mixture over the water mixture.
Stir the dough thoroughly for about two minutes.
Flour the countertop and scoop the dough out onto the flour.
Knead the dough for another minute or so.
Shape it into a ball.
Flour the countertop again and scrape the dough onto it.
Letter fold the dough a few times to tighten the skin.
Shape the dough into a ball.
Place the dough on a parchment-lined baking sheet and cover loosely.
Allow the dough to proof for about 40 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 425F.
Preheat the Dutch oven inside of the oven for the last 15 minutes.
Cover it with the lid and bake for 25 minutes.
Uncover the bread and bake for another 10 minutes until well-browned on top.
Cool completely on a wire rack before slicing.
