CHAPTER 8 BREADS AND DESSERTS This chapter deals with basic baking terminology, ingredients, and the procedures used to produce breads and desserts. To bake a satisfactory product, you must have  a  thorough  knowledge  of  these  terms,  ingredients, and  baking  procedures. BREADS The term  bread  has  been  used  for  centuries  to describe a mixture of flour, sugar, shortening, salt, and liquid. This mixture is made into dough, then yeast is added to the mixture to make the dough rise. Two kinds of bread are used in the general mess (GM).  One  kind  includes  yeast  breads  such  as yeast-raised  breads  and  rolls,  sweet-dough  rolls  of various  kinds,  coffee  cakes,  doughnuts,  pizza,  and  quick breads.  The  other  kind  includes  products  leavened  by chemical  leavening  agents  such  as  baking  powder. Some of these products are biscuits, muffins, pancakes, cake doughnuts, quick coffee cake, and corn bread. Bread is the most important food produced by the baker. It is prepared in greater quantities than any other baked product. High quality and excellent taste should be maintained regardless of the amount of bread baked. YEAST-RAISED  BREADS The  production  of  yeast-raised  products,  especially bread and sweet doughs, is considerably more involved than the production of other bakery products. If the ingredients   are   of   good   quality,   used   in   specific amounts,   and   are   properly   mixed,   using   proper temperatures,  the  doughs  will  yield  good  quality products. Ingredients The  baker  must  understand  the  functions  of  each basic baking and breadmaking ingredient used in bakery products. He or she should then use the ingredients properly (manner of mixing and amount used). The functions  of  these  ingredients  are  explained  next. FLOUR.— Flour is a mixture of starch, protein, and other  materials.  The  kinds  of  flour  used  are  described as  follows: 8-1 . General-purpose flour is a mixture of hard and soft wheat flours. It is used to make cakes, cookies, quick breads, pastries, and pies. It does not have enough gluten strength to make satisfactory yeast bread and rolls. . Bread flour is a blend of hard wheat flours. It contains  more  protein  than  general-purpose  flour  and has  a  slight  granular  texture.  Good  quality  bread  and other yeast-raised products can be made only with bread flour. . Wheat base is prepared from the wheat germ, bran, and other fragments of wheat kernels. It has a whole wheat flavor and may be combined with flour to produce whole wheat bread. In addition to the protein, flour contains various food elements such as carbohydrates, water, minerals, vitamins,  enzymes,  and  fat.  The  amount  of  these elements contained in the flour varies with the type, grade, and storage period of the flour. Protein.— The  two  principal  proteins  present  in wheat  flour  (gliadin  and  glutenin),  when  combined  with moisture, form gluten that gives structure to batters and doughs.   Gluten   also   gives   the   dough   expansion qualities. Carbohydrates. — Carbohydrates   in   flour   are usually in the form of starch that absorbs water and helps give bulk to dough. Flour that is especially made for cakes and pastries is rich in carbohydrates. Water.— Wheat  flour  usually  contains  from  9-  to 15-percent  moisture.  Flour  absorbs  or  loses  moisture  in storage, depending on the atmospheric conditions. Minerals.— Minerals are contained in the bran coat and the germ of wheat, and most of the minerals are lost when  wheat  is  made  into  white  flour.  These  minerals are returned to flours that are enriched. Vitamins.—   To  replace  the  food  value  lost  in milling,  vitamins  and  minerals  such  as  thiamin,  niacin, iron,  and  riboflavin  are  frequently  added  to  flour.  Flour treated in this manner is known as enriched flour. Enzymes.— An enzyme is a very minute substance produced by a living plant. The mere presence of an enzyme brings about certain changes in the composition