“For culinary purposes, Baking Powder and Baking Soda
are classed as leavening agents, and can therefore be grouped in with
ingredients such as yeast. However, it should be noted that these are chemicals
or chemical compounds and as such, should be considered as chemical additives.
It is also important to remember that in most recipes, you cannot use baking
soda if the recipe calls for baking powder due to the different way in which
they chemically react in order to produce the rise required and it's safer by
far not to try to substitute either one for the other.
For this reason, we are going to start this section, not
with the history as in most of the Ingredient of the Month sections, but with
an explanation of exactly what they are and how they work.
What is Baking Powder and Baking
Soda?
Baking Soda is pure Sodium Bicarbonate, also called
Bicarbonate of Soda (NaHCO3). It is a white crystalline alkali which reacts by
effervescing (fizzing) when it comes into contact with acids, thus producing
gasses, namely carbon dioxide. Because of this chemical reaction, it is often
used in fizzy drinks and antacid remedies and it's precisely this reaction
which facilitates the rising action in baked goods.
Baking Powder is more complex. It is composite of Sodium Bicarbonate
(baking soda), one or more acid salts such as Cream of Tartar (Tartaric Acid),
Sodium Aluminium Sulphate,
Calcium Acid Phosphate plus a drying agent such as cornflour
and the exact mix determines whether it is "Single" or
"Double" acting. The difference between baking soda, single and
double acting baking powders, is when the chemical reactions actually take
place, and is explained below. However, the rising principal is the same in
that a chemical reaction produces carbon dioxide bubbles which expand through
the cooking mixture.
What's the difference?
When using baking soda, the mixture to which it is being
added must contain some sort of acid, often in the form of honey, molasses,
brown sugar, sour cream, yoghurt, cocoa, citrus juice or fruits. The chemical
reaction takes place as soon as it is added to the acid ingredient in the
mixing bowl. This means you have to work swiftly and get the mixture into the
oven as soon as possible before the carbon dioxide starts to dissipate, which
they will quite quickly. (Think back to those fizzy drinks once they've been
poured into a glass - that initial burst of fizz soon dies down to a little
murmur).
When using "Single Acting" baking powder,
the chemical reaction, once again, takes place in the bowl at the mixing stage,
with the catalyst being any liquid as opposed to an acid, so the same applies
as to the speed at which you get the mixture into the oven. Remember, the acid
is already present in the baking powder usually in the form of Cream of Tartar:
it just needs to be triggered off by the addition of moisture (water, milk
etc).
"Double Acting" baking powder adds another dimension. Not only
does it start reacting in the bowl as with baking soda and "single
acting" baking powder, but it also reacts a second time when it is cooked.
This is achieved by the addition of slower reacting acids to the single acting
baking powder, which hardly react at room temperature. These only become active
once they achieve higher temperatures. So it has a double action - once when
subjected to moisture in the bowl and once when subjected to heat in the oven.
This quality means that the rush to mix and get it into the oven is avoided,
which is especially useful if there are many ingredients which need thorough
blending.
History
Food historians believe the use of baking soda dates back to
ancient civilization and it is perhaps this age-old use of it which has
prevented its demise as a chemical additive.
Until the late 1700's, yeast was the main leavening
ingredient used. However once it became widely accepted that bicarbonate of
soda would create carbon dioxide gas in the presence of certain acids,
housewives began making their own chemical leavening. Although the rising
process was faster, it was a little hit and miss due
to the majority of the leavening gases being released in the bowl (at the bench
stage).
By 1835 the first baking powder compound had been
created with the addition of Cream of Tartar. It was found that it gave more
consistent results although it was more expensive than bicarbonate of soda and
had a shorter shelf life. Experimentation continued and by the 1850s the
Cream of Tartar was replaced with calcium phosphate which, whilst cheaper than
Cream of Tartar, still produced most of the gas at the bench stage. The first
Modern day, commercially prepared baking powder was born.
However, it wasn't until 1885 when sodium aluminium sulphate was
discovered. This acid reacted only when heat was applied. The combination of
Bicarbonate of Soda, different acids plus cornflour
to keep the mixture more viable in storage, revolutionised
baking powder.
Of course, that wasn't the end of it. Not only was baking
powder added to flour to create Self Raising Flour, but also further
refinements and experimentation have taken place over the years and today, we
are left with a stable and dependable product.
Baking Soda and Baking Powder in
cooking
One of the oldest usages of baking
powder/soda is in the making of Soda Bread which is widely associated with
Another old use is the addition of baking soda when cooking
green vegetables in order to keep them greener. However this is no longer
encouraged as it has been found that vitamins B1 and C are lost through this
practice.
By far the most popular use of these ingredients is in cakes
and baked goods as a leavening agent, however
another, lesser known use is to lighten certain batters, in particular tempura
batters which are required to be ultra light, crisp and thin.
General tips
Do not be tempted to add more
baking powder or soda than a recipe suggests as not only can too much cause the
mixture to taste bitter but it can also cause the mixture to rise too rapidly
so that the air bubbles grow too large and burst causing the mixture to fall. Having said that, too little baking powder or soda results in a
tough end product that has a poor close grained texture.”
“Baking powder is a leavening agent composed of baking soda and one or more acidic salts, such
as tartaric acid (cream of tartar) or dicalcium
phosphate dihydrate. As the baking powder disolves, the baking soda reacts with the acids to produce
carbon dioxide gas bubbles, which are trapped by the dough around them. Baking
powder is used in recipes where the pH is 7, or neutral, and pure baking soda
would fail to produce bubbles.
Most baking powders are double action baking powder, which means they have
two or more acids in them, one to react and create the carbon dioxide at room
temperature, and one that will not react to create the bubbles until the
temperature is elevated, in the oven.
Retrieved from "http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cookbook:Baking_Powder"
”
On examination it will be seen that we still may have an
aspect of reform to achieve. We had
better accept our position and call to be reformers and set ourselves in a
position to do all that the Lord requires of us as we should desire the best
results for our personal health, and that of our children etc – physically,
mentally and spiritually.
We should want to set a proper example in all things and to
teach such that will teach all, leaving nothing out.
“Poor cookery is wearing
away the life energies of thousands. More souls are lost from this cause than
many realize. It deranges the system and produces disease. In the condition
thus induced, heavenly things cannot be readily discerned. {CTBH 48.3}
Some do not feel that it is a
religious duty to prepare food properly; hence they do not try to learn how.
They let the bread sour before baking, and the saleratus
added to remedy the cook's carelessness, makes it totally unfit for the human
stomach. It requires thought and care to make good bread. But there
is more religion in a good loaf of bread than many think. Food can be
prepared simply and healthfully, but it requires skill to make it both palatable
and nourishing. In order to learn how to cook, women should study,
and then patiently reduce what they learn to practice. People are
suffering because they will not take the trouble to do this. I
say to such, It is time for you to rouse
your dormant energies, and inform yourselves. Do not think the time wasted
which is devoted to obtaining a thorough knowledge and experience in the
preparation of healthful, palatable food. No matter how long an experience you
have had in cooking, if you still have the responsibilities of a family, it is
your duty to learn how to care for them properly. If necessary, go to
some good cook, and put yourself under her instruction until you are mistress
of the art. {CTBH 49.1}
A wrong course of
eating or drinking destroys health, and with it the sweetness of life. O, how
many times has a good meal, as it is called, been purchased at the expense of
sleep and quiet rest! Thousands, by indulging a perverted appetite, have
brought on fever or some other acute disease, which has resulted in death. That
was enjoyment purchased at an immense cost.
{CTBH 49.2}
Because it is wrong to eat
merely to gratify a perverted taste, it does not follow that we should be
indifferent in regard to our food. It is a matter of the highest
50
importance.”
“Use of Soda
in Bread
(1905)
M.H. 300-302
496. The use of soda or baking powder
in breadmaking is harmful and unnecessary.
Soda causes inflammation of the stomach and often poisons the entire
system. Many housewives think that they cannot make good bread without
soda, but this is an error. If they would take the trouble to learn
better methods, their bread would be more wholesome, and, to a natural taste,
it would be more palatable.
[USE OF SALERATUS
IN BREAD--SEE "SODA AND BAKING POWDER," 565, 569] {CD 316.2}
Using Milk in Yeast
Bread
In the making of raised or yeast bread,
milk should not be used in the place of water. The use of milk is an additional
expense, and it makes the bread much less wholesome. Milk bread does not keep
sweet so long after baking as does that made with water, and it ferments more
readily in the stomach. {CD 316.3}
Hot Yeast Bread
Bread should be light and sweet. Not the
least taint of sourness should be tolerated. The loaves should be small, and so
thoroughly baked that, as far as possible, the yeast germs shall be destroyed.
When hot, or new, raised bread of any kind is difficult of digestion. It should
never appear on the table. This rule does not, however, apply to
317
unleavened
bread. Fresh rolls made of wheaten meal, without yeast or leaven, and baked in
a well-heated oven, are both wholesome and palatable. . . . {CD 316.4}
Zwieback
Zwieback, or twice-baked bread, is one of
the most easily digested and most palatable of foods. Let ordinary raised bread
be cut in slices and dried in a warm oven till the last trace of moisture
disappears. Then let it be browned slightly all the way through. In a dry place
this bread can be kept much longer than ordinary bread, and if reheated before
using, it will be as fresh as when new.
[ZWIEBACK GOOD FOR THE EVENING MEAL--273]
[ZWIEBACK IN DIET OF E. G. WHITE--APPENDIX
1:22] {CD 317.1}
Old Bread Preferable
to Fresh
Letter
142, 1900
497. Bread which is two or three days old
is more healthful than new bread. Bread dried in the oven is one of the most
wholesome articles of diet. {CD 317.2}”
“Gems and
Rolls
R. &
H., May 8, 1883
503. Hot biscuit raised
with soda or baking powder should never appear upon our tables. Such compounds
are unfit to enter the stomach. Hot raised bread of any kind is difficult of
digestion. Graham gems, which are both wholesome and palatable, may be made
from the unbolted flour,
320
mixed
with pure cold water and milk. But it is difficult to teach our people
simplicity. When we recommend graham gems, our friends say, "Oh, yes, we
know how to make them." We are much disappointed when they appear raised
with baking powder or with sour milk and soda. These give no evidence of
reform. The unbolted flour, mixed with pure soft water and milk, makes the best
gems we have ever tasted. If the water is hard, use more sweet milk, or add an
egg to the batter. Gems should be thoroughly baked in a well-heated oven, with
a steady fire. {CD 319.5}
To make rolls, use soft water and milk, or
a little cream; make a stiff dough and knead it as for
crackers. Bake on the grate of the oven. These are sweet and delicious. They
require thorough mastication, which is a benefit to both the teeth and the
stomach. They make good blood, and impart strength. With such bread, and the
abundant fruits, vegetables, and grains with which our country abounds, no
greater luxuries should be desired. {CD
320.1}
Whole-Wheat Bread
Better Than White
(1868) 2T 68
504. Fine-flour bread cannot impart to the
system the nourishment that you will find in the unbolted-wheat bread. The
common use of bolted-wheat bread cannot keep the system in a healthy condition.
You both have inactive livers. The use of fine flour aggravates the
difficulties under which you are laboring.
{CD 320.2}
(1905) M.H. 300
505. For use in breadmaking,
the superfine white flour is not the best. Its use is neither healthful nor
economical. Fine-flour bread is lacking in nutritive elements to be found in
bread made from the whole wheat. It is a frequent cause of constipation and
other unhealthful conditions.
[UNBOLTED OR GRAHAM FLOUR THE BEST FOR THE
BODY--171, 495, 499,503]
[GRAINS TO BE USED IN
[GRAHAM BREAD IN CAMP MEETING DIET--124]
[A RELIGIOUS DUTY TO KNOW HOW TO MAKE GOOD
BREAD FROM UNBOLTED WHEAT FLOUR--392]
321
{CD 320.3}
Grains in Bread May
Be Varied
Letter 91, 1898
506. All wheat flour is not best for a
continuous diet. A mixture of wheat, oatmeal, and rye would be more nutritious
than the wheat with the nutrifying properties
separated from it. {CD 321.1}
Sweet Breads
Letter 363, 1907
507. Sweet breads and cookies we seldom
have on our table. The less of sweet foods that are eaten, the better; these
cause disturbances in the stomach, and produce impatience and irritability in
those who accustom themselves to their use.
{CD 321.2}
Letter 37, 1901
508. It is well to leave sugar out of the
crackers that are made. Some enjoy best the sweetest crackers, but these are an
injury to the digestive organs.
[SWEETENED CRACKERS--410]
[BREAD NOT RELISHED BY THOSE ACCUSTOMED TO
RICH AND HIGHLY SEASONED FOOD--563] {CD
321.3}”
“ Letter 37, 1901
572. At one time
Doctor ----- tried to teach our family to cook according to health reform, as
he viewed it, without salt or anything else to season the food. Well, I
determined to try it, but I became so reduced in strength that I had to make a
change; and a different policy was entered upon with great success. I tell you
this because I know that you are in positive danger. Food should be prepared in
such a way that it will be nourishing. It should not be robbed of that which
the system needs. . . . {CD 344.3}
I use some salt, and always have, because
from the light given me by God, this article, in the place of being
deleterious, is actually essential for the blood. The whys and wherefores of
this I know not, but I give you the instruction as it is given me.
[SOME SALT SHOULD BE USED--548]
[AVOID AN UNDUE AMOUNT OF SALT--558]
[SOME SALT USED BY E. G. WHITE-APPENDIX
1:4]”