Pat said:
"For bread dough to develop well, it is important that it be left to rise
in an area that is not only fairly warm but also draft-free and moist."
I used to think this too, and I would turn my oven on for a few minutes and
then off again and use it as a proof box.
Peter Reinhart has changed my opinion on this, and I now prefer long cool
rises to fast warm rises. The reason is that the longer the dough takes to
rise, the more the other flora naturally present in the flour contribute to
the flavour of the bread. Some years ago, the best bread that I had ever
made to that time was by scrupulously following Julia Child's recipe in
"Mastering the Art of French Cooking". This recipe uses only flour, water,
salt and yeast and takes all day to prepare since it uses very long, cool
rises with (I think) a relatively small amount of yeast.
Interestingly enough, Peter cites that same recipe of Julia's as a
significant event at the beginning of his own investigation into bread.
The bread that has the most complex "bread" flavour I have ever tasted is
Peter's "Pain a L'Ancienne" which, once again, uses only flour, water, salt
and yeast but starts with ice water! This recipe has only one rise, and
the first part of that is done in the fridge.
Dave Barrett