Puff pastries

A good compilation of the functions of fats in various food products is available (26). Some functions are quite subtle, eg, fats lend sheen, color, color development, and crystallinity. One of the principal roles is that of texture modification which includes viscosity, tenderness (shortening), control of ice crystals, elasticity, and flakiness, as in puff pastry. Fats also contribute to moisture retention, flavor in cultured dairy products, and heat transfer in deep fried foods. For the new technology of microwave cooking, fats assist in the distribution of the heating patterns of microwave cooking. 

Butter is used in some, usually more expensive, bakery foods, and is prized for its flavor contribution. Fats are used in some products such as pie cmst, croissants, or puff pastry, up to 60%, based on flour. StabiHty of fats and oils in perishable items such as breads, cakes, or pastries is of no consequence because shelf life is so limited that rancidity does not occur. In cookies and crackers, however, stable fats must be used in the formula since prolonged shelf life could lead to product deterioration with fats that develop rancidity. 

Eggs. Eggs are not used much in breadmaking, except for specialty egg breads. Egg whites are occasionally used on the surface of hard roUs to impart a crispy cmst. Yeast-leavened sweet doughs or danish doughs often contain egg, up to 20%, based on flour, to achieve richness and to influence color and flavor. Some bakery foods, eg, sweet goods, croissants, and puff pastry, are often washed with egg wash (a mixture of egg and water or milk)... 

Question 5.19 What Causes Puff Pastry to Expand ... 

Who hasn t been tantalized and impressed by the delectable, eyecatching specialities prepared with puff pastry Chocolate napoleans, Beef Wellington, baked brie, pate en croute, etc. While the secret of these culinary delights may seem more of an art than a science, professional pastry chefs know the chemistry necessary to create the flaky, tender pastry for these delicacies. 

Steam produced by heating water-containing materials can also be used, e.g. Scandinavian flat breads and puff pastry. 

Margarine has always had the advantage over butter in that the properties of the product can be tailored to give the best performance in a particular system. For puff pastry, specialised margarines are easier to work with than butter. 

This is the flour that would go into the Chorleywood bread plants. It would be based on all EU wheat (in most years all English). The protein content would probably be 10.6 11.5%. This flour could also be used for making puff pastry. 

A system in which water expansion is vital is puff pastry. The water content of the butter or margarine used as a fat is in just the right place to flash into steam and expand the product. 

In the example a plant bakery was making puff pastry from the sort of all-EU bread flour normally used in a CBP bread plant. The puff pastry was used to make pies and sausage rolls. When the pie casings had been cut the scraps were re-rolled and recycled. 

Puff pastry is one of the more difficult types of pastry to make. Good puff pastry should rise well and be crisp. Puff pastry is an example of a laminated product. The uncooked dough consists of layers of dough separated by fat. When the pastry is baked the water in the pastry turns to steam that pushes the layers of pastry apart (Figure 1). The heat gelatinises the starch, causing it to set on cooling. 

The methods of making puff pastry can be divided into the Scotch method and the English or French method. 

The fat present pays an important role in puff pastry since it has to separate the layers of pastry. To produce the most effective barrier a fat with the highest possible solid fat index is required, i.e. a very hard fat. Fat suppliers have developed special very hard margarines expressly for... 

An unknown area is the possibility of new domestic appliances equivalent to the breadmaker. Perhaps an appliance manufacturer is considering a home puff pastry maker. 

Some bakery products ( puff pastries, phyllo) consist of flaky layers, made by rolling... 

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