Homemade bread - do I need a proving basket?

[FlukeSkyeRunner]

Or will a mixing bowl do the job well enough? I frequently make bread in my bread maker, and make naan by hand. I'm looking at a recipe for ale bread which looks fab, but don't have a proving basket.

I just make ordinary bread by hand, have never used a proving basket.

Before I had a proving basket I used a mixing bowl lined with a floured tea towel. Or just prove and bake it in a tin.

use a mixing bowl for the first prove and a baking tin for the second, or you could make a cottage loaf shape for the second straight onto a baking sheet. Incidentally you don't need to keep it warm/use a warming drawer. I have proved bread overnight in the fridge before now.

Proving baskets are a bit of a con! A bowl works just as well.