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Hot
Breads
Closely
related to yeast breads, or those in which yeast
is used as
the leavening agent, are breads known as HOT BREADS, or QUICK BREADS.
As
these names indicate, such breads are prepared in a very short time and
are intended to be served while they are fresh and hot.
Hot breads, to
call such breads by the name in common use, are made by baking a batter
or a dough mixture formed by mixing flour, liquid, salt, and a
leavening
agent. The nature of the mixture, however, is governed by the
proportion
of flour and liquid, the two ingredients that form the basis of all
hot bread mixtures; and by incorporating with them such ingredients as
eggs,
sugar, shortening, flavouring, fruits, nuts, etc. there may be produced
an almost endless variety of appetising hot breads, which include
popovers, griddle cakes, waffles, muffins, soft gingerbreads, corn
cakes, nut loafs, beaten
biscuits,
baking-powder breads, etc. Because of the great variety of these hot
breads, they
help considerably to relieve the monotony of our meals.
In
fact, we depend so much on breads of this kind that their
use has become almost universal. As is well known, however, certain
kinds are typical of certain localities; for instance, beaten biscuit
and hoe cake are characteristic of the Southern States of the United
States, while Boston brown bread is used most extensively in the New
England States and throughout the East.
The popular opinion of great
number of
people is that hot breads are injurious. It is perhaps true that they
may be injurious to individuals afflicted with some digestive
disturbance or some other health problems (alergy, diabetes, weight
problems, etc.), but, at any rate, the harmful effect may be reduced to
a
minimum by the correct selection of ingredients, preparation and baking
of these foods.
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Did You Know?
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breads are quickly and easily made, but in this part
of cooking,
as in every other phase of it, certain principles must be understood
and
applied if the most satisfactory results are desired. These principles
pertain chiefly to the ingredients used, the way in which they are
measured and handled, the proportions in which they are combined, the
necessary utensils, and the proper baking of the mixtures that
are formed. |
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