Making dough

Making a yeast dough? Take 5 minutes to proof the yeast, even if that step isn’t in the recipe. Here’s how: Put the yeast in a cup and add ¼ cup of warm water (and use ¼ cup less liquid elsewhere in the recipe). Stir to dissolve, then wait 5 minutes or so. If the yeast isn’t foaming, discard it and buy new yeast. That’s annoying but not nearly as annoying as finding out much later that the dough didn’t rise.