BPA 102: The Baking Process

Baking Process and Leaveners

More liquid than dry= batter
More dry than liquid= dough

9 stages of baking process
-Gasses form- in cookies- cream butter and sugar + incorporate air
-Gasses are trapped- gluten protein network, starch traps
-Starches gelatinize- first to harden when baking
-Proteins coagulate- cook, structure of protein stays the same, meringues- when baked or coagulated
-Fats melt- at either 3 stages, depends on fat
-Water evaporates- see in breads a lot, steam rises in bread
- Sugars caramelize- sucrose
-Carry over baking- will continue cooking even when out of oven, take out a little sooner
-Staling- after baking done, best store baked good at room temp or in freezer, cooler sucks out moisture- increases staling

Leaven or Leaving Agent
-to raise (as bread) w/ a leaven
-substance used to produce fermentation in a dough or liquid;
-a material (as baking powder) used to produce a gas that lightens dough or batter
-leaving agent reacts

Three types leavening agents:
Physical or mechanical-
Air- whipping air into meringues
-churning ice cream (over run)
-creaming butter and sugar until get light and fluffy
Steam- breads, choux pastry, steam rises to surface + takes dough with it
Choux paste

Chemical
-baking powder, baking soda, ammonium bicarbonate

Microbiological
-yeast

Chemical leaveners- mixtures or compounds that typically release carbon dioxide when react w/ moisture, heat, + acidity
-baking powder, soda
-ammonium bicarbonate, potassium bicarbonate

Baking soda
-bicarbonate of soda
-soluble in water
-white solid that is crystalline but appears as fine powder
-has slight alkaline taste
-reacts w/ acids such as lime juice, buttermilk, cream of tartar
-starts reacting immediately after coming in contact w/ water – product cant be stored as long
-recipes must contain some acid to neutralize strong taste of sodium carbonate after baking- chocolate served as acid in choc chip cookies
-helps darken a product, such as devils food cake, choc chip cookies
-store in air tight container to avoid exposure to humidity

Baking Powder
-bicarbonate of soda + starch+ acid salts
Single Acting
-needs moisture to activate
-has only 1 acid salt for stability such as cream of tartar
Double Acting
-needs heat + moisture to activate= more stable

Biological Leaveners- yeast
-Micro organism that release carbon dioxide as part of life cycle, can be used to leaven products
-varieties of yeast are most often used; Saccharmocices Cerevisae- bakers yeast- targets sugar and cereals
- yeast leaves behind waste by products that contribute to flavor of yeast breads
-in sour dough breads, flavor enhanced by various lactic or acetic acid bacteria
-yeast east starch- broken down into carbon dioxide, by product is acid

Converts fermentable sugars such as starch and maltose present in dough into carbon dioxide

Also exists wild yeast

Yeast available to bakers in 3 forms
Compressed- mixture of yeast + starch w/ approx 70% moisture content, must be refrigerated, keep up to two weeks at most
Active dry- virtually no moisture, dormant, can be stored w/out refrigeration for months, put in warm water before use to wake up yeast
Instant dry- can be added directly to dry ingreds in a bread formula w/out rehydrating

-food for yeast- starches, sugars
-retardants- controls/ delays fermentation- acids+ salts
-yeast will die on baking- beyond 110-120F
-salt is enemy of yeast
-thermal death point 138F

Physical leaveners
Air- meringues, sabayon, soufflé
Steam- laminated dough- puff pastry, croissants, Choux pastry- éclairs, profiteroles