Make the starter by mixing the yeast with the water (I used slightly warmer than cool water because I keep my yeast in the freezer), then mixing in the flour to make a soft dough. Cover & let rest at room temperature for 14 hours; overnight works well. The starter should have risen & become bubbly.

After your starter has sat for 14+ hours make the dough. In the bowl of a stand mixer, dissolve the yeast into the water. Then add the starter, flour & salt. Mix & knead everything till you've made a soft, somewhat smooth dough; it should be cohesive, but the surface may still be a bit rough. This takes approximately 5 minutes on speed 2 of a stand mixer.

Place the dough in a lightly greased medium-sized bowl. Cover the bowl & let the dough rise for 3 hours, gently deflating it & turning it over after 1 hour, then again at the 2 hour mark.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly greased work surface & divide it into three equal pieces. Shape each piece into a rough, slightly flattened oval. Cover with greased plastic wrap & let them rest for 15 minutes.

Working with one piece of dough at a time, fold the dough in half lengthwise, & seal the edges with the heel of your hand. Flatten in slightly & fold & seal again.

With the seam-side down, roll the dough back & forth with your hands from the center outwards until you create a 15" log. Place logs seam-side down into the wells of a baguette pan or onto a lightly greased OR parchment-lined sheet pan. Cover with lightly greased plastic wrap & allow the loaves to rise until they've become very puffy, about 1½ hours.

Using a sharp knife held at about a 45 degree angle, make several vertical slashes in each baguette. Spritz the baguettes heavily with warm water; this will help them develop a crackly-crisp crust.

Bake the baguettes until they're a very deep golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes. Remove them from the oven & cool on a rack. Or for the very crispiest baguettes, turn off the oven, crack it open about 2", & allow the baguettes to cool in the oven.