ALL ABOUT LEAVENING | baking soda, baking powder, yeast, and steam

Summary

In this baking fundamentals lesson, the instructor delves into the concept of leavening, crucial for making baked goods rise and remain tender. The three types of leavening are explored: chemical (baking soda and powder), biological (yeast), and physical (air and steam). The lesson highlights how these methods create carbon dioxide gas, leading to the rise of baked goods. The homework assignment challenges students to make choux pastry, exemplifying the power of steam as a leavening agent.

Takeaways

• 🍞 Leavening is crucial for making baked goods rise, spread out, and remain tender and fluffy.
• 🧪 Chemical leavening agents like baking soda and baking powder create carbon dioxide gas through a chemical reaction.
• 🍋 Baking soda requires an acidic ingredient to react with, such as brown sugar, chocolate, buttermilk, molasses, or lemon juice.
• 📦 Baking powder already contains an acidic ingredient, making it versatile for any recipe.
• ⏱️ Chemical leavening agents work quickly and require immediate baking after being added to dough or batter.
• 🌿 Biological leavening involves yeast, a living organism that feeds on sugars and starches, producing carbon dioxide and alcohol.
• 🕒 Yeast fermentation is a slow process that requires a structured and elastic dough to hold the gas produced.
• 💨 Physical leavening uses air and steam to create volume in baked goods, such as when creaming butter and sugar or whipping egg whites.
• 💦 Steam leavening occurs when water in ingredients like milk, butter, and eggs evaporates, significantly increasing volume.
• 🥧 Choux pastry is an excellent example of steam's leavening power, as it rises significantly from the water evaporating during baking.
• 📝 The homework assignment is to make choux pastry, which can be used to create a variety of baked goods and demonstrates the importance of steam in leavening.

Q & A

What is leavening in baking?

Leavening refers to the gases that are trapped inside baked goods as they are baked, which makes them rise, spread out, and also keeps them tender and fluffy.

What are the three categories of leavening used in baking?

The three categories of leavening used in baking are chemical leavening, biological leavening, and physical leavening.

How do chemical leavening agents like baking soda and baking powder work?

Chemical leavening agents work by creating a chemical reaction that produces carbon dioxide gas when added to doughs and batters, which then gets trapped and causes the baked goods to rise.

What is the difference between baking soda and baking powder?

Baking soda is alkaline and needs an acidic ingredient to react with, while baking powder already contains an acidic ingredient and can be used in any recipe without additional acidic components.

What are some common acidic ingredients used in baking?

Common acidic ingredients used in baking include brown sugar, chocolate, buttermilk, molasses, and lemon juice.

How does yeast, a biological leavening agent, function in baking?

Yeast is a living organism that feeds on sugars and starches in the dough, producing carbon dioxide gas and alcohol through a process called fermentation, which makes the dough rise.

What is the difference between how yeast and chemical leavening agents produce gas?

Yeast produces gas slowly over a long period, requiring a structured and elastic dough to contain it, whereas chemical leavening agents like baking soda and baking powder work quickly and need to be baked soon after being added to a dough or batter.

What is physical leavening and how does it work?

Physical leavening occurs from air and steam. Air is trapped in baked goods through processes like creaming butter and sugar, and beating egg whites or cream. Steam is created when water in ingredients like milk, butter, and eggs evaporates in the oven, increasing in volume and causing the baked goods to rise.

Why is kneading important for yeast dough?

Kneading is important for yeast dough because it helps create a strong and elastic gluten structure that can contain the gases produced by the yeast during fermentation.

What is an example of physical leavening using steam?

An example of physical leavening using steam is puff pastry, where layers of dough and butter cause water to evaporate, creating volume and a puffed texture when baked.

What is the homework assignment mentioned in the script?

The homework assignment is to try making choux pastry, which is a great example of how powerful steam can be as a leavening agent in baking.

Outlines

00:00

🍞 Understanding Leavening in Baking

This paragraph introduces the concept of leavening in baking, which is essential for making baked goods rise, spread out, and remain tender and fluffy. It explains that there are three types of leavening: chemical, biological, and physical. Chemical leavening involves baking soda and baking powder, which create carbon dioxide gas when mixed with dough or batter. Baking soda requires an acidic ingredient to react, while baking powder already contains an acidic component. Both need to be baked immediately after being added to a recipe. Biological leavening is achieved through yeast, a living organism that feeds on sugars and starches, producing carbon dioxide and alcohol through fermentation. This process is slower and requires a structured dough to hold the gas produced. Physical leavening uses air and steam; air is incorporated by beating ingredients like butter and sugar, while steam is created when water in ingredients like milk, butter, and eggs evaporates in the oven.

05:01

🍳 Exploring Physical Leavening and Homework Assignment

This paragraph delves deeper into physical leavening, specifically using air and steam. It gives examples such as creaming butter and sugar together to trap air, which increases the volume of baked goods, and the use of beaten egg whites or whipped cream for additional air. Steam leavening is highlighted with the example of puff pastry, where layers of dough and butter create volume as the water in the butter evaporates. Another example is the Dutch baby pancake, which rises significantly due to the evaporation of liquid in the batter. The instructor assigns homework to make choux pastry, a task that exemplifies the power of steam as a leavening agent, as it rises from the water evaporating in the dough. The paragraph concludes with instructions on how to share the homework, either through a private Facebook group, social media with a specific hashtag, or by emailing directly to the instructor.

Keywords

💡Leavening

Leavening refers to the process of introducing gases into baked goods, causing them to rise and become light and fluffy. It is central to the video's theme as it discusses the different methods by which this can be achieved. The script mentions leavening as the primary focus of the lesson, explaining how gases trapped in baked goods contribute to their texture and volume.

💡Chemical Leavening

Chemical leavening involves the use of substances like baking soda and baking powder to create carbon dioxide gas through a chemical reaction. This gas is what causes the baked goods to rise. In the script, chemical leavening is one of the three categories discussed, with baking soda requiring an acidic ingredient to react with, while baking powder already contains this acid.

💡Baking Soda

Baking soda, also known as bicarbonate of soda or sodium bicarbonate, is an alkaline chemical leavening agent. It requires an acidic ingredient to react with and produce carbon dioxide gas. The script explains that baking soda needs to be used with acidic components like brown sugar or lemon juice to be effective.

💡Baking Powder

Baking powder is a chemical leavening agent that includes both an acid and a base, allowing it to react without needing additional acidic ingredients. It is mentioned in the script as a more versatile option than baking soda because it can be used in any recipe, starting to produce gas as soon as it is hydrated.

💡Biological Leavening

Biological leavening is achieved through the use of yeast, a living organism that feeds on sugars and starches, producing carbon dioxide and alcohol. This process, called fermentation, is slower than chemical leavening and requires a dough with a strong, elastic structure to hold the gas produced. The script describes yeast as a key component in doughs that rise over time.

💡Yeast

Yeast is a single-celled fungus used in baking to cause dough to rise through fermentation. The script explains that yeast is a biological leavening agent because it is a living organism that produces gas as it consumes sugars in the dough, leading to the rise of the dough.

💡Physical Leavening

Physical leavening involves the use of air and steam to create lift in baked goods. It is one of the three leavening categories discussed in the script and is exemplified by processes like creaming butter and sugar together, which traps air, and the evaporation of water in ingredients, which creates steam.

💡Fermentation

Fermentation is the process by which yeast feeds on sugars and starches, producing carbon dioxide and alcohol. This is a key concept in the script when discussing yeast as a leavening agent, as it is the slow production of gas over time that leads to the rise of the dough.

💡Steam

Steam is a form of physical leavening that occurs when water contained in ingredients like milk, butter, and eggs evaporates in the oven, creating volume. The script uses puff pastry and Dutch baby pancake as examples where steam plays a significant role in the leavening process.

💡Choux Pastry

Choux pastry is a type of dough used to make items like cream puffs and eclairs. It is highlighted in the script as an excellent example of physical leavening through steam, as it rises dramatically during baking due to the water content in the dough evaporating and creating air pockets.

💡Fermentation Process

The fermentation process is the slow production of carbon dioxide gas by yeast as it consumes sugars in the dough. This is a key part of the script's discussion on yeast as a leavening agent, as it illustrates how the dough rises over an extended period due to the gradual build-up of gas.

Highlights

Leavening is what makes baked goods rise and become tender and fluffy.

There are three categories of leavening: chemical, biological, and physical.

Chemical leavening agents like baking soda and baking powder create carbon dioxide gas through a chemical reaction.

Baking soda requires an acidic ingredient to react and produce gas.

Baking powder is pre-mixed with an acidic ingredient and can be used in any recipe.

Chemical leavening agents need to be baked immediately after being added to dough or batter.

Yeast is a biological leavening agent that produces carbon dioxide and alcohol through fermentation.

Yeast dough requires kneading to develop a strong gluten structure to hold gas.

Fermentation is a slow process that allows dough to rise over time.

Physical leavening involves air and steam to create volume in baked goods.

Creaming butter and sugar together traps air, which expands during baking.

Beating egg whites or cream incorporates air for leavening.

Steam leavening occurs when water in ingredients evaporates, increasing in volume by 1,500 times.

Puff pastry relies on steam leavening for its characteristic rise.

Dutch baby pancake is an example of steam leavening without chemical leavening agents.

Choux pastry is a great example of steam's power as a leavening agent.

Homework assignment: Try making choux pastry to understand the power of steam leavening.

Choux pastry can be used to make various baked goods like cream puffs and eclairs.

Share your homework in the Facebook group, on social media with #BBbakingschool, or by email.

Transcripts

Hi class, welcome back to baking school. Now we are currently on lesson 9 of the

baking fundamentals course and today we are going to talk all about leavening.

Now if you've ever baked anything before you're probably somewhat familiar with

the concept of leavening but today I want to dive in deep into what leavening

actually is and all of the different ways our baked goods can be leavened. So

leavening refers to the gases that are trapped inside of our baked goods as

they are baked. Now this is what makes our baked goods rise what makes them

spread out and also what keeps things tender and fluffy. Now there are three

different categories of leavening used in baking: there is chemical leavening,

there is biological leavening, and there is physical leavening so let's review

each type and how it functions in baking. So first let's talk about our chemical

leavening agents and these are baking soda and baking powder. Now the way these

two things work is when they are added into our dough sand batters a chemical

reaction occurs that creates carbon dioxide gas.

Now this gas gets trapped in our baked goods and what makes them rise. Now there

is some differences between baking soda and baking powder. Now baking soda which

is also known as bicarbonate of soda or sodium bicarbonate is alkaline on the pH

scale so in order for it to work and have that chemical reaction it needs an

acidic ingredient to react with. So a few common ingredients used in baking that

are acidic include brown sugar, chocolate, buttermilk, molasses, and lemon juice. Now

baking powder is actually baking soda already combined with another acidic

ingredient so when baking powder is hydrated it already will begin reacting

and it can be used in any recipe because it does already have that acidic

ingredient present in it. Now baking soda and baking powder work very quickly, they

will begin producing that carbon dioxide gas almost immediately when they are

hydrated and so they need to be baked much immediately after they go into a

dough or a batter. Now I actually have a very detailed article on my website all

about baking soda and baking powder and how they function in baking so I'll

leave the link for that for you in case you're interested. Now moving on to our

next form of leavening which is yeast and this is considered a biological

leavening. Now the reason why we call this a biological leavening is because

it is actually a living organism. It is actually a fungus now the way yeast

works is it feeds on sugars and starches present in the doughs or batters it's

in and as it feeds it also produces that carbon dioxide gas as well as alcohol.

Now this process of the yeast feeding and producing gases is called

fermentation and it is what makes yeast dough's rise so in contrast to baking

soda and baking powder working very quickly to produce the carbon dioxide

gas. Yeast produces this gas very slowly and over a long period of time. So in

order for the dough to contain that gas it needs to have a lot of structure and

elasticity so this is why yeast dough is kneaded over a long period of time to

create that really strong and elastic gluten structure so that it contain

the gases that the yeast is producing. Now you can actually see this in

progress in this time-lapse video of my yeast dough rising. So what is happening

is the yeast is feeding, it is creating those gases and the dough is gaining

volume which is leavening the dough. Now this is called the fermentation process.

So the last type of leavening is physical leavening now this is the type

of leavening that happens just from air and steam. So air is used really

frequently in baking as leavening and you can most commonly see this by when

you cream butter and sugar together so this process of beating together solid

fat with sugar traps tiny little pockets of air in between the ingredients. Now

this pocket of air adds volume to our baked goods.

Now you can also see air being used as leavening when you beat egg whites into

a meringue or when you beat cream into whipped cream. Now steam is the other

form of physical leavening used. Now the way this works is ingredients such as

milk, butter, and eggs all contain water and that is going to evaporate in the

oven causing steam. Now this might not seem

quite as exciting as the chemical reaction that happens with baking soda

and baking powder but actually when water turns to steam it increases in

volume by 1,500 times so it can really produce a great deal of volume in our

baked goods. Now one of the best examples of how steam is used as leavening and

baking is with puff pastry the way puff pastry is made is with many alternating

layers of dough and butter so when that dough is baked all of the water that is

present in the butter is going to evaporate off which creates a great deal

of volume and puff to the puff pastry. Now another example of this is when

making a Dutch baby pancake so if you've ever made one before there is no

chemical leavening in it, no baking powder no baking soda but there is a

great deal of liquid in the batter. So when this batter hits a very hot oven

it's going to quickly evaporate off and you can see here the great amount of

puff that happens when this Dutch baby is baked.

So now that you understand all about how leavening works in baking I want to give

you your homework assignment so I'd really like for you to try making choux

pastry for this assignment. So if you've never made choux pastry before it is a

staple in baking because it can be used to make so many different things like

cream puffs, profiteroles, eclairs, French cruller, doughnuts and even a

french-style gnocchi. Now choux pastry is such a great example

of how powerful steam can be as leavening. If you've never made choux

pastry before I think you're really going to be surprised at how much volume

you are going to gain just from the water evaporating out of the dough as it

bakes. Now as always you can share your homework in a few different ways you can

share it in our private Facebook group where we continue the conversation after

every lesson you can also share it on any of your social media using the

hashtag #BBbakingschool or you can email it to me directly at [email protected].

I'll see you guys next time.

Bye!