The History, Overview, and Types of Bread

Bread Overview


Bread is the staple food for the Middle East, Indian Cultures and Europe, which is usually prepared by baking, steaming or frying the dough. Bread is made up of flour, water and salt, usually there is a leavening agent such as yeast. Some bread contains sugar, spices, fruit (such as raisins, pumpkin or bananas), vegetables (like onions or zucchini) nuts and seeds. Most bread is either wrapped in paper or plastics, or stored in an airtight container such as a breadbox to keep fresh longer. If bread is kept in a warm moist environment it is prone to grow mold although keeping it in the refrigerator makes the bread go stale quicker but does not grow mold.

History

Bread is the one of the oldest prepared foods, dating back to the Neolithic era. The first bread produced were probably cooked versions of grain-paste, made from ground cereal grains and water and developed by accident. The development of leavened bread can probably be traced back to prehistoric times. Yeast spores occur everywhere, including on the surface of cereal grains, so any dough that is left to rest will become naturally leavened. Parts of the ancient world that would drink wine instead of beer would use a paste composed of grape juice and flour that was allowed to begin fermenting or wheat bran steeped in wine, as a source of yeast. The most common source of leavening was to retain a piece of dough from the previous day to utilize as a form of sourdough starter.

Even within antiquity there was a wide variety of breads available like griddle cakes, honey and oil breads, mushroom shaped loaves covered in poppy seeds, and the military specialty of rolls bakes on a spit. Breads that were made of wheat compared to the ones made of barley are more nourishing, and more digestible and in every way more superior.

Otto Rohwedder is considered to the father of sliced bread. In 1912 he started to work on inventing a machine that would slice bread but the bakeries were reluctant to use it since they thought that sliced bread would go stale quicker. In 1928 he invented a machine that both sliced and wrapped the bread.

In 1961, The Chorleywood Bread Process developed which used the intense mechanical working or dough to dramatically reduce the fermentation period and time taken to produce a loaf or bread. This process is now widely used around the world.

Composition and Chemistry

The amount of water and flour are the most significant measurements in bread making. Professional bakers use a system of percentages known as Bakers’ Percentage, and measure ingredients by weight instead of volume. Flour is always 100% and the rest of the ingredients are a percent of the mount by weight. The US Common table bread is approximately 50% water, resulting in a finely textured, lighter bread. Most artisan bread formulas contain anywhere from 60-75% water. In yeast breads the higher the water percentage results in more CO2 bubbles and a courser bread.

Wheat flour is the most commonly used in making bread. Wheat flour contains three water soluble proteins grouns, albumin, globulin and preteoses and two non-water proteins. When the flour is mixed with water the water soluble proteins dissolve, leaving the glutenin and gliadin to from the structure of the dough. When kneading the glutenins forms strands of ling thin chainlike molecules while shorter glidins forms bridges between the stands of glutenin. The resulting network of strands produced by these two proteins is called gluten.

You need some type of liquid to add to the flour to make a paste. Commonly used is water but you can also use dairy products, fruit juices or beer.

By adding gas to the dough is called leavening which makes the bread lighter and more easily chewed after baking. There are chemical leavening agents like buttermilk or baking soda or baker’s yeast.


Types of Bread

There are many types of the basic recipe of bread including pizza, chapaties, tortillas, baguettes, bruiche, pitas, lavash, biscuits, pretzels naan, bagels, puris and many many more.
-In Spain bread is called pan. There is a region in Spain called “Tierra del Pan” (land of the bread).
-In Britian and the US the mostly consumed type of bread is soft textured with a thin crust and sold already sliced.
-South Asia flat breads are commonly used. They use mustard flour instead of white flour. It is usually baked in a brick oven, rarely prepared at home.
-Morocco and West North Africa round bread which is about four inches tall is usually eating with Mediterranean’s watery cuisines. They also have a thick chewy fried bread which is smothered in oil before fried.
-Italy has Focaccia which is usually seasoned with herbs and olive oil and topped with cheese.
Germany and Chile are the two biggest consumers per capita of bread.

An Overview, History, and Types of Cheese

Overview of Cheese

Cheese by definition is a solid food made from the milk of mammals such as cows, sheep and goats. Cheese is made by curdling milk using a combination of acidification and rennet, an enzyme mixture obtained from the stomach lining of young cattle. Rennet can also be produce synthetically in the laboratory.

There are literally hundreds of types of cheese produces in various areas of the globe. The different styles and flavors of cheese result from a number of factors including:
Using the milk from various mammals
Butterfat contents
Using various species of mold or bacteria
The length of the aging process and processing treatments
Animal diet
The addition of herbs, spices, wood smoke and other flavoring agents
The use of pasteurized verses un-pasteurized milk

The yellow to red coloring of some cheeses results from the addition of annatto, a red or yellowish-red dyeing material prepared from the pulp surrounding the seeds of the Bixa orellana tree found in tropical regions of America.

Most cheeses are acidified by bacteria, which turn milk sugars into lactic acid, following the addition of rennet to complete the curdling.

History of Cheese

The origins of cheese predate recorded history as there is no conclusive evidence indicating where cheese making originated. The practice of cheese making had spread within Europe prior to Roman times and had become a sophisticated enterprise by the time the Roman Empire came into being.

Cheese is a good travel food and helped mitigate the risk of famine. It is a valuable staple due to its high content of fat, protein, calcium, and phosphorous. It is also easily portable and has a long shelf life.

Although the exact origins of cheese making are unknown, credit for the discovery most likely goes to nomadic Turkic tribes in Central Asia or to people in the Middle East. Folklore about the discovery of cheese tells of an Arab nomad carrying milk across the dessert in a container fashioned from the stomach of an animal. Upon reaching his destination he discovered that the mild had separated into curd and whey by the rennet from the animal’s stomach.

The earliest archeological evidence of cheese making has been found in Egyptian tomb murals the date back to approximately 2300 BC. The earliest of cheeses would have had a similar texture to cottage cheese or feta and have been sour and salty.

Types of Cheese

Cheese cannot be placed into exact categories however some common systems that are used are as follows:
Length of aging
Texture (hard or soft)
Methods of making
Fat content
Type of milk used

Fresh Cheese

The simplest of cheeses are made with little processing other than curdling and draining the milk. Examples of these cheeses include cottage cheese, Romanian Cas, Neufchatel and goat’s milk chevre. These cheeses are mild in taste, soft, and are easily spread.

Whey cheeses are made from the discarded whey that results from the processing. These cheeses include Provencal Brousse, Corsican Brocciu, Italian Ricotta, Romanian Urda and Norweigian Geitost.

Mozzarella is a fresh cheese that is made by stretching and kneading the curds in hot water to form a ball

Fresh cheeses without additional preservatives can spoil in a matter of days.

Texture Categories of Cheese

The firmness of cheese results from the moisture content. The lower the moisture content the harder the cheese. Categories of cheese texture fall into soft, semi-soft, semi-hard, and hard although the delineation is an inexact science. Hard cheeses are generally packed into molds under more pressure and are aged for a longer period of time.

Cheddar is an example of a semi-hard to hard cheese whose curd is cut, heated, piled, and stirred before being pressed into forms. Colby and Monterey Jack are similar but milder cheeses whose curd is rinsed before being pressed into forms. The rinsing process washes away some acidity and calcium. The process for making cheeses such as Edam and Gouda include a similar curd washing technique.

Swiss-style cheeses like Emmental and Gruyere are usually firm and are made with bacteria. The bacteria give Emmental its holes and contribute to the aromatic and sharp flavor. The hardest cheeses such as Parmesan, Pecorino, and Romano are packed firmly into forms and aged for months to years.



Nutritional Benefits and Health Risk of Cheese

Cheese supplies large amounts of calcium, protein, and phosphorous. An ounce of cheddar cheese contains approximately seven grams of protein and 200 milligrams of calcium. While cheese is virtually concentrated milk it would take approximately seven ounces of milk to provide 200 milligrams of protein.

There are nutritional disadvantages to cheese similar to those of milk. Cheese is America’s number one source of saturated fat. A diet consisting of foods high in saturated fats, such as cheese, may lead to an increased risk of heart disease. However, levels of heart disease in France and Greece, the leading two cheese consumption countries, are relatively lower than other countries. This may be explained by the French Paradox where levels of the consumption of red wine is higher than average.

The consumption of raw-milk cheeses can cause listeriosis, brucellosis, salmonellosis, and tuberculosis. The US enacted a law in 1944 stating that all raw-milk cheeses must be aged at least 60 days. Some argue that concerns are unwarranted as the consumption of raw-milk cheeses remains legal in Europe and most cheese related illnesses were traced to pasteurized cheeses.

Pregnant women are warned against eating soft-ripened cheeses and blue veined cheeses due to the listeria risk to the unborn baby.

Some studies have indicated that the consumption of cheeses including Cheddar, Mozzarella, Swiss, and American may help prevent tooth decay. Evidence supporting the claim includes the following:
The calcium, protein, and phosphorous may protect tooth enamel
Increased saliva flow washes away acids and sugars
Cheese may have antibacterial properties for the mouth

Some people react negatively to the amines found in cheese, more specifically histamine and tyramine. Certain aged cheeses contain high concentrations of amines which can trigger headaches, rashes, and blood pressure elevation.

An additional concern for a diet consisting of high concentrations of cheese and other dairy products is obesity. Studies indicate that rates of obesity are higher in those whose dairy intake is higher than those whose diet consists of vegetable based fats.

The Positive Effects and Health Benefits of Caffeine

The Positive Effects and Health Benefits of Caffeine

Caffeine is the world’s most frequently used drug with some 80 percent of Americans regularly consuming it primarily in the form of coffee. People had previously attempted to link caffeine to a myriad of health ills but in fact it may provide benefits. Scientific studies over the last ten years have shown caffeine’s benefits can range from increased energy, mood improvement and reduced risk of some life threatening diseases.

Alertness and Mood

Scientists believe that blocks the action of a brain chemical that is known to cause tiredness called adenosine. Following consumption, caffeine quickly travels to the brain where it offsets adenosine’s depressant effects. Caffeine’s effect is greatest when one is tired. Researchers examined caffeine’s effects on a number of sleep-deprived men and found that small, frequent doses taken once an hour improved performance on cognitive tests when compared with a placebo. Caffeine’s stimulating effects can last anywhere between 4 and 6 hours.

Enhanced Athletic Performance

Caffeine has shown to improve endurance in such athletic areas as jogging, cycling, rowing and swimming. The strongest effect of caffeine is in those activities that last longer than one hour. Although researchers have proven that caffeine aids at stimulating muscle contraction, the enhanced performances are most likely due to its effects on counteracting adenosine. Caffeine stimulates the central nervous system enabling one to be more alert which eases the workout effort. This effect enables one to work out longer and harder. Caffeine has long been thought to be a diuretic but recent research has proven otherwise. Researchers have shown that the need to urinate is directly correlated to the amount of liquid intake regardless of whether the beverage was caffeinated or not.

Caffeine and Headaches

Tension headaches are the most common type of headache occurring in 88 percent of women and 69 percent of men. Tension headaches are the result from the swelling of blood vessels in your head pressing on nerves which causes pain or discomfort. Caffeine is a vasoconstrictor thus it eases pain by contracting the blood vessels. Studies have shown that 58 percent of people provided with small doses of caffeine were provided relief from chronic tension headache. Providing ibuprofen augmented the effects completely relieving 71 percent of headaches. Caffeine does work faster than ibuprofen because it enters the bloodstream faster however its vasoconstrictive effects only last for an hour and a half. For best results caffeine should be taken with ibuprofen as its effects last for an extended period of time.




Parkinson’s disease Prevention

Parkinson’s disease is a brain disorder in which nerve cells do not produce enough dopamine, the chemical responsible for aiding in consistent, coordinated movement. Researchers studied coffee and caffeine intake of a large group of men and found that men who didn’t drink coffee or consume caffeine were five times more likely to develop Parkinson’s than those who consumed the largest amounts. Men who drank 28 ounces of coffee or more per day had the lowest risk of Parkinson’s. Studies of women have been less conclusive possibly due to the fact that estrogen can inhibit caffeine metabolism. Caffeine may mitigate the chance of contracting Parkinson’s by heightening dopamine-producing neurons in the brain.

Daily Intake of Caffeine

The vast majority of experts define moderate intake of caffeine to be around 300 milligrams or less per day. Effects of a high intake vary per individual where some experience no effects and others respond negatively. In addition, certain medical conditions such as panic disorders, anxiety, insomnia, digestive problems, heart disease and pregnancy may force one to abstain.

Caffeine Addiction

Caffeine is mildly addictive. Around half of those who regularly consume caffeine have difficulty giving it up and experience mild withdrawal symptoms. This is due to the fact that caffeine primes receptors in the brain to anticipate regular doses, and when it does not arrive it leaves one feeling less alert.

Caffeine Content in Common Foods and Beverages

Coffee

Depending on the type of coffee and method of preparation the caffeine content of a 7 ounce cup can vary. Here are some averages.

Drip: 115-117 milligrams
Espresso: 100 milligrams/2 ounce serving
Brewed: 80-135 milligrams
Instant: 65-100 milligrams
Decaf: 2-4 milligrams

Tea

Green tea: 30 milligrams/8 ounces
Iced tea: 47 milligrams per 8 ounces


Chocolate

Dark: 31 milligrams/1.5 ounces
Milk: 10 milligrams/1.5 ounces
Hot chocolate: 3-32 milligrams per

Soft Drinks

Red Bull: 80 milligrams/8 ounces
Mountain Dew: 56 milligrams/12 ounces
Diet Coke: 47 milligrams/12 ounces
Sunkist Orange: 42 milligrams/12 ounces
Dr. Pepper: 42 milligrams/12 ounces
Pepsi: 38 milligrams/12 ounces
Coke: 35 milligrams/12 ounces
Barq’s Root Beer: 23 milligrams/12 ounces