Bread baking tips?

As usual, I'm making bread and waiting for it to rise, which is why I'm on the computer now. I was thinking of several handy tips that always serve me well when baking bread.

Here's a few of mine. What are yours?

1. I've found it handy and quick to use Saran Quickcovers to cover the bowls that dough is rising in.

2. Courtesy of Bernard Clayton, Jr.: Test whether dough is too sticky or not by forming it into a ball and slapping it on your palm. If it sticks after 10 seconds, it's too wet.

3. The best covering for second rising is wool because dough won't stick to it. I cut up an old army blanket into several rectangles and have used them for many years with great success. Wool is also handy when forming baguettes if you use the pleated cloth method.

4. I keep a small cast-iron skillet in the bottom of my oven and throw in several ice cubes to generate steam during the first part of baking.

3. The best covering for second rising is wool because dough won't stick to it. I cut up an old army blanket into several rectangles and have used them for many years with great success. Wool is also handy when forming baguettes if you use the pleated cloth method.

So I shouldn't be letting the cats sleep on hubby's old blanket, then?

Seriously, though, I've never heard that before. I have a blanket ready for retirement -- I won't be giving that one to the cats, now. Do the blanket squares still need to be floured? The army blankets were quite thin but tightly woven -- would a regular civilian type blanket work also?

No flour needed. They are, indeed, quite thin. I don't know what a woolen civilian blanket looks like so I can't answer that question but, in general, dough won't stick to wool.

Thanks. I'll give it a try -- what's to lose but some dough and a blanket I was going to give to the cats anyway?

And P.S. Happy birthday. As that corny 70's poster used to say: "Celebrate today is the first day of the rest of your life!"