First off, thanks for all the amazing posts and replies! You folks at KAF define what super helpful! Secondly, what is the key difference between these recipes (this and the baguette you link to above) and the very open texture of a typical artisan baked baguette? Is it the use of live yeast versus dry/instant? I'm an avid homebrewer with a small yeast lab in my garage, so I have lots of live yeast and bacteria in the fridge and the equipment to propagate lots of live yeast that are ready to pitch into my dough... but before I sacrifice my beloved fungi, I'd like some insight from you folks. Andrew, it's not the type of yeast that determines the texture of the bread; it's mainly the liquid/flour ratio, with a softer dough generally yielding larger holes. Also, letting the dough rest in the fridge for awhile can help create those larger holes. If you're hesitant to "sacrifice" your live yeast, go ahead and use instant; it works just fine. PJH

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