SnitchSeeker.com - View Single Post - Muggle Studies Lesson One {into the Kitchens!}

SlytherinSistah · 06-10-2014, 01:42 AM

Text Cut: Hadley <3

Quote:

Originally Posted by PhoenixRising

Hadley was listening to the student replies as she willed time to move faster ... wasn't there a way to make dough rise faster? She was pretty sure there was a spell for that. Of course it probably had side effects but you know. Uh what was the question she'd asked again? Ah right, about salt.

"Salt as you may or may not know is a mineral substance composed of sodium and chloride; now the chemical history behind the substance isn't so important for this class, at least," other classed they took it might be, but she wasn't interested in it. "Salt, like sugar, can be omitted from the dough recipe yet it often is utilized as its not much. The main role of salt is for flavor, as many of you said, though it also plays a role in the dough's elasticity and texture. It ultimately creates a stronger dough that feels less sticky so it is extremely helpful in the stretching of the dough when forming the crust."

"Just as sugar is food for the yeast, salt regulates the consumption rate, creating a more consistent fermentation. It allows for the gluten to become more fully hydrated and prevents the dough from over fermenting quickly." Yes, this probably seemed unimportant and boring, but it was quite the contrary, especially considering how many were interested in actually EATING decent pizza. "If the dough ferments too much or too quickly, then there will be less sugar left over to caramelize the dough when baking, thus lacking that golden brown crust we all love. So in essence, salt is critical to the end result of a tasty crust."

"A crust without salt will seem bland and takes away from the overall experience of the toppings. Not to mention that one of salts principles is that it holds water. Holding water is critical to keeping a moist and fresh dough. Without salt, the bread becomes dry and stale within a few hours of baking; effects that cannot be slowed or reversed."

Glancing around at their dough, she nodded in approval. "It seems, we're just about there for the next part - the rolling of the dough." She paused, waiting... "There's two options for this; if you like thinner crusts, then you should use the rolling pin to roll out your dough onto the round pizza stone. However, if you prefer a thicker crust, then kneading it with your hands is best. Yes, if you're daring, you may try tossing it into the air. But if you drop it on the floor, then we're not trying yours..." That was a joke. Maybe. "The ovens are preheating now to 425, while we knead our dough. Once your dough is kneaded or hand-tossed into a round circle, prick it with a fork in various locations a few times throughout the dough. This process will help to oxidize the dough and keep it fresh. Drizzle your dough with olive oil and garlic salt. Why do we do that?"

Salt could do all that? Cutty imagined that it had even more uses outside of Muggle Food Transfiguration. Wouldn't hurt to start keeping some on his immediate self if going into an experimental zone. He lifted his quill and dirtied it with a bit of flour as he took the time to write: Research, Magical Properties of Salt.

Cutty searched for a rolling pin. It was his personal preference that dough and breadly items be of the flatter, thinner sort. Not that he would object to a roll, he just liked thin crust. He pulled out one pin, took one look at it, rejected it, then pulled out another which appeared to be exactly like the one before. Only this one he kept for use when they'd rolled out their dough. Raising his hand then, he offered an answer to Professor Hadley's question, "Maybe it helps with even cooking. If it's cooked in the oven then we obviously can't interfere once the cooking process has begun as we could with something cooked over a stove, so those things probably help ensure one side of the pizza doosen't coom out all black whilst the rest is almost uncooked."

06-10-2014, 01:42 AM	#205 (permalink)
SlytherinSistah DoM Ramora Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Merlin Foresaken PST Posts: 5,432 x9 x3	C.R.E.A.M \| Haitian Sensation \| Shark Patronus \| Your Huckleberry \| T's ClayBaby Text Cut: Hadley <3 Quote: Originally Posted by PhoenixRising Hadley was listening to the student replies as she willed time to move faster ... wasn't there a way to make dough rise faster? She was pretty sure there was a spell for that. Of course it probably had side effects but you know. Uh what was the question she'd asked again? Ah right, about salt. "Salt as you may or may not know is a mineral substance composed of sodium and chloride; now the chemical history behind the substance isn't so important for this class, at least," other classed they took it might be, but she wasn't interested in it. "Salt, like sugar, can be omitted from the dough recipe yet it often is utilized as its not much. The main role of salt is for flavor, as many of you said, though it also plays a role in the dough's elasticity and texture. It ultimately creates a stronger dough that feels less sticky so it is extremely helpful in the stretching of the dough when forming the crust." "Just as sugar is food for the yeast, salt regulates the consumption rate, creating a more consistent fermentation. It allows for the gluten to become more fully hydrated and prevents the dough from over fermenting quickly." Yes, this probably seemed unimportant and boring, but it was quite the contrary, especially considering how many were interested in actually EATING decent pizza. "If the dough ferments too much or too quickly, then there will be less sugar left over to caramelize the dough when baking, thus lacking that golden brown crust we all love. So in essence, salt is critical to the end result of a tasty crust." "A crust without salt will seem bland and takes away from the overall experience of the toppings. Not to mention that one of salts principles is that it holds water. Holding water is critical to keeping a moist and fresh dough. Without salt, the bread becomes dry and stale within a few hours of baking; effects that cannot be slowed or reversed." Glancing around at their dough, she nodded in approval. "It seems, we're just about there for the next part - the rolling of the dough." She paused, waiting... "There's two options for this; if you like thinner crusts, then you should use the rolling pin to roll out your dough onto the round pizza stone. However, if you prefer a thicker crust, then kneading it with your hands is best. Yes, if you're daring, you may try tossing it into the air. But if you drop it on the floor, then we're not trying yours..." That was a joke. Maybe. "The ovens are preheating now to 425, while we knead our dough. Once your dough is kneaded or hand-tossed into a round circle, prick it with a fork in various locations a few times throughout the dough. This process will help to oxidize the dough and keep it fresh. Drizzle your dough with olive oil and garlic salt. Why do we do that?" Salt could do all that? Cutty imagined that it had even more uses outside of Muggle Food Transfiguration. Wouldn't hurt to start keeping some on his immediate self if going into an experimental zone. He lifted his quill and dirtied it with a bit of flour as he took the time to write: Research, Magical Properties of Salt. Cutty searched for a rolling pin. It was his personal preference that dough and breadly items be of the flatter, thinner sort. Not that he would object to a roll, he just liked thin crust. He pulled out one pin, took one look at it, rejected it, then pulled out another which appeared to be exactly like the one before. Only this one he kept for use when they'd rolled out their dough. Raising his hand then, he offered an answer to Professor Hadley's question, "Maybe it helps with even cooking. If it's cooked in the oven then we obviously can't interfere once the cooking process has begun as we could with something cooked over a stove, so those things probably help ensure one side of the pizza doosen't coom out all black whilst the rest is almost uncooked." __________________