Pain de Mie

Weigh your flour; or measure it by gently spooning it into a cup, then sweeping off any excess. Combine all of the ingredients, and mix and knead — using your hands, a mixer, or a bread machine set on the dough cycle — to form a smooth, soft dough.

Transfer the dough to a lightly greased bowl or dough-rising bucket, cover the bowl or bucket, and allow the dough to rise until puffy though not necessarily doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours, depending on the warmth of your kitchen.

Lightly grease a 13" pain de mie pan. Gently deflate the dough, transfer it to a lightly greased work surface, shape it into a 13" log, and fit it into the pan. Cover the pan with lightly greased plastic wrap, and allow the dough to rise until it's just below the lip of the pan, 45 minutes to 1 hour, depending on the warmth of your kitchen (it may rise even more slowly in a cool kitchen; don't worry, this long rise will give it great flavor).

Towards the end of the rising time, preheat the oven to 350°F.

Remove the plastic, and place the cover on the pan. Bake the bread for 25 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven, carefully remove the lid, and return the bread to the oven to bake for an additional 10 to 20 minutes, or until it tests done; a digital thermometer inserted into the center will register 190°F.

Remove the bread from the oven, and turn it out of the pan onto a rack to cool completely.

Store, wrapped, at room temperature for 4 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.