The Ashland union. [volume] (Ashland, Ashland County, Ohio) 1854-1868, 1857-04-08
FOOD.

r. AAGAO IL III AAAo VI NOSGbobAO AOON
more palatable, healthy, and nutritious
than coed bread, made Of fermenteG
wheat flour. And although it is MOI
the most common bread used in every
country, yet we believe it is the most
highly esteemed by all. Where or by
whom leavenod bread was discovered, is
unknown. The earliest history informs
Ms that the most ancient matrons of Is
rael were acquainted with it, but the
name of the good housewife who made
the first leaven loaf has not been ham
ded down In the olden chronicles. If
her name were known, she certainly
would deserve the first toast at all pub
lie dinners, land private ones too j but
since this is unknown, we conjecture
the discovery was made by accident !;
undoubtedly it never resulted from rea.
soning a prieri, as no one, naturally,
would suppose, that the fermentation
of four was anything but a rotting pro-
cess, rendering it not only useless, but
positively Injurious for human food in
any form.
A certain quantity of flour is put into a
vessel, and mixed with a certain quantity
of mill. warm water and a little yeast,
then kneaded to proper consistency, ex-
posed to o heat of about 65 degrees Fab
renheit for a few hours, when it rises,
as it is termed, and is afterwards knead-
ed again with some fresh -four, then
put into an oven and baked; it is then
taken out in the forms of ~loaves, called
" baked wheaten bread" This is about
all that is known, generally, of the phi
losophy of ~bread-making.
Chemists differ in opinion regarding
the primary cause of fermentation : but
it is known that leaven induces this &C.
tion in dough, and that alcohol and car
bonic acid are formed thereby, and -four
being decomposed, and passing off in
the form of these substances. This is
the reason why sone have decried the
use ofleavened bread, because they said,
it was formed by wasting /" some of the
nutriment of the -four" But as non
of the nutritious part of the -four is dri-
ven off in fermentation, only carbon and
hydrogen-respiratory substances-be-
ing dispersed, their loss is compensated
by the improved healthful quality and
pleasant taste of such bread.
Raised bread made efferveseing salts,
such as saleratus, is not SO palatable, so
healthy, nor will it keep SO long, as
bread raised by fermentation. The
public has oftentimes been cajoled by
persons pretending to make bread which
contained all the aliment of the -four
that passes off as spirit in fermented
bread. A moments reflection will con
vince any person that, weight, for
weight, fermented bread must contain
the greatest amount of nutriment, be-
cause unfermented bread contains a
greatest amount of respiratory substance
and as a consequence, less of the nutri-
tieus.
One part of the philosophy of bread
making-and it is to this feature we
wish more particularly to invite gener-
al attentions the maintaining of tho
heat constantly above boiling point of
water. -Fho-eI~-ahafA1u is insolable
m water at a temperature below 2I2 de-
grees it has to be we'll boiled before it
becomes soluble, but when moistened
with water, and exposed for a short
time in an oven to a heat of about 800
degrees Fahrenheit, (never below 2l2
degrees at least,) its nature is changed;
it becomes dextrine, which is soluble in
cold water. Therefore every loaf of
bread placed in an oven must be expos
ed to &12 degrees Fahrenheit at least,
or it will not be properly baked, and
cannot be SO easily digested,-heavy,
imperfectly baked bread is therefore
not only u~npalatable, but also unheal-
thy.
The bakers of Paris have a world
wide celebrity for making beautiful fer
mented bread. Their skill and science
are mostly displayed in managing the
temperature of their ovens; they en-
ploy thermometers to indicate their
heat, and watch them with %unceasing
attention ; their baking heat is main
tanned from 2l2 to 800 degrees Fab
renheit-Scient5fc American.