Just What is Leavening?
Leavening is an agent that produces fermentation. The leavening agent produces gas, air, or steam that expands when heated, making the resulting product light and altering grain textures.
Leavening agents include YEAST, BAKING POWDER, and BAKING SODA with a little food acid. YEAST is a small plant that, if mixed with sugar, will produce carbon dioxide whenever temperature and moisture are right. BAKING POWDER produces a chemical reaction that releases some of it's gas when mixed with a liquid and the rest of the gas whenever it is heated. The following are descriptions of products and their category:
BAKING SODA is an important ingredient of baking powder. To be used as leaven it must be mixed with a food acid like buttermilk, sour milk, molasses, vinegar, lemon juice, or cream of tartar.
CREAM OF TARTAR by itself does not leaven anything any more than does sour milk or buttermilk. It is often used as a flavoring in foods and beverages.
BREWER'S YEAST is a by-product of the fermentation of beer and is a rich source of vitamins, especially the B-complex. It has no leavening properties.
YEAST EXTRACT is an ingredient used in canned or in dehydrated soups. It is only an extract and cannot leaven anything.
EGG WHITES: While egg whites are not considered leavening agents, the egg whites, when beaten, can leaven by expansion of the air and by steam when heated. They are the only leavening in many angel food cakes.
7-UP can also be used as a leavening agent for cakes.
Hain's sea salt has baking soda in it. Yellow prussiate of soda in Morton sea salt is used as an anti-caking agent, but is not a leavening.
Also, other leavening ingredients include: sodium acid phosphate, sodium aluminum sulfate, monocalcium phosphate, and of course Bicarbonate of Soda or Sodium Bicarbonate is baking soda.
Personally I am going to throw away the leavening agents (Yeast, Baking Powder and Baking Soda). But, I am not going to throw away the egg whites, buttermilk, 7-up, or cream of tartar, however I am not going to use the egg whites (or 7-up) to try to leaven or puff up breads or cakes.
Leavening agents include YEAST, BAKING POWDER, and BAKING SODA with a little food acid. YEAST is a small plant that, if mixed with sugar, will produce carbon dioxide whenever temperature and moisture are right. BAKING POWDER produces a chemical reaction that releases some of it's gas when mixed with a liquid and the rest of the gas whenever it is heated. The following are descriptions of products and their category:
BAKING SODA is an important ingredient of baking powder. To be used as leaven it must be mixed with a food acid like buttermilk, sour milk, molasses, vinegar, lemon juice, or cream of tartar.
CREAM OF TARTAR by itself does not leaven anything any more than does sour milk or buttermilk. It is often used as a flavoring in foods and beverages.
BREWER'S YEAST is a by-product of the fermentation of beer and is a rich source of vitamins, especially the B-complex. It has no leavening properties.
YEAST EXTRACT is an ingredient used in canned or in dehydrated soups. It is only an extract and cannot leaven anything.
EGG WHITES: While egg whites are not considered leavening agents, the egg whites, when beaten, can leaven by expansion of the air and by steam when heated. They are the only leavening in many angel food cakes.
7-UP can also be used as a leavening agent for cakes.
Hain's sea salt has baking soda in it. Yellow prussiate of soda in Morton sea salt is used as an anti-caking agent, but is not a leavening.
Also, other leavening ingredients include: sodium acid phosphate, sodium aluminum sulfate, monocalcium phosphate, and of course Bicarbonate of Soda or Sodium Bicarbonate is baking soda.
Personally I am going to throw away the leavening agents (Yeast, Baking Powder and Baking Soda). But, I am not going to throw away the egg whites, buttermilk, 7-up, or cream of tartar, however I am not going to use the egg whites (or 7-up) to try to leaven or puff up breads or cakes.
