Qualitaly_111

JUN. JUL. 2019 XV Rose Water, by revisiting exactly the recipe of Leonardo da Vinci. In addition, a touch spicy, and taste more alcoholic: lime, turmeric, infused with rose, Bacardi Carta Blanca, Havana 7 and egg white. ______________________________ STREET FOOD... GENIUS! Among the notes of the hypothesized Code Romanoff, are some reflections on how to assemble and eat, strictly with the hands, bread and meat. “I wonder if it would be better to put the slice of bacon between two slices of bread rather than the opposite. This would really be a dish never seen in the table of my Sire Ludovico. [...] The content would not be immediately visible, so the guest would have a nice surprise [...]. What will I call it? Bread surprise.” ______________________________ AT PAGE 52 FEEL GOOD AT THE TABLE Yeast: instructions for use The second instalment on yeast: from the origins to use in the kitchen, with an attentive eye to the health aspect By Barbara Panterna Let’s do a quick recap of the previous issue. As already explained, yeast in biology are tiny single-cell organisms belonging to the fungi kingdom (fungi). Much used in the context of food, we can divide them into two categories: – Natural yeasts or yeast properly so called, like that of beer (which we talked about last time), sour dough or culture yeast, and kefir. – Chemical yeasts (that do not result in a real microbial fermentation), such as tartaric acid, cream of tartar, ammonium bicarbonate or sodium etc. Natural sourdough , also called sourdough or culture yeast , is a dough made from flour and water that is spontaneously contaminated by the microorganisms present in the ingredients, coming from the air, the environment, the operator, whose development creates within the mass a wild native microflora in which predominates the culture of lactic bacteria that compete in an artisan way to grab nutrient substrates. In the presence of water, heat, etc., they multiply by starting the metabolic processes and finally die. Unlike brewer’s yeast, in addition to the yeasts of which the dominant genus is the Saccharomyces , the sourdough also contains various species of bacteria of the Lactobacacillus genus, responsible for a particular type of fermentation called lactic with the production of substances such as lactic acid, acetic acid, water, carbon dioxide and secondary metabolites. This generates an acidic mass, in technical jargon called “yeast” only because it contributes to “raise” the mass in fermentation with the production of gas: this physical- chemical process brings to the finished product (bread, pizza, baked goods) a number of positive aspects including greater digestibility and shelf life. This method of baking is even older than the previous one in which brewer’s yeast was the protagonist. In the past, in fact, when the production of bread took place in the home, in Italian villages the sourdough was jealously guarded by the bakery that kept it alive with the appropriate refreshments and redistributed it to families who, on a weekly basis, made the bread at home. The use of the sourdough is required in the specification of traditional Italian dessets such as panettone, colomba pasquale, pandoro, etc., and for particular types of bread including, for example, the bread of Cerchiara and that of Altamura. Another method of production of sourdough is that of the ignition with starter cultures , i.e. selected micro- organisms coming from laboratories or from stable acid mixtures. They are marketed in liquid, frozen, dried or freeze-dried forms, but which are not always a guarantee of specificity and cell viability. Alternatively, it is possible to obtain sourdough by asking a part of it from those who already have it or from an artisan baker, in fact, once obtained, the sourdough is kept “alive” by means of the subsequent refreshments , i.e. periodic doughs with certain amounts of flour and water. The micro-organisms that compose it must be constantly nourished and, in a position, to operate their specific metabolism. The particular microbiological, organoleptic, rheological and fermentative characteristics of the sourdough vary according to the environment in which they are maintained and nourished, the geographical area of origin, the production mechanism and random factors. The internal microflora and the balances that are established are very unstable and subject to different growth factors (pH, temperature, nutrients, oxygen, water, nutritional competition, microbial species present, etc..) and change with each nourishment. BEYOND ‘NATURAL’ In general, however, the chemical yeast is a dry leavening agent composed from a weak base and a weak acid. It is used to increase the volume and to lighten the consistency of baked goods, thanks to an acid-base reaction that releases bubbles of carbon dioxide in the batter or dough which expand and rise. It is used instead of brewer’s yeast in those products where the aromas produced by fermentation would not be acceptable or in cases where the batter lacks the elastic structure able to retain the gas bubbles for more than a few minutes. Most baking powders consist of an alkaline component (usually sodium bicarbonate), one or more acid salts (such as cream of tartar, which is a salt of tartaric acid) and an inert starch (especially corn starch but also potato starch). The sodium bicarbonate is the source of the carbon dioxide. Inert starch in chemical yeast, on the other hand, is used to absorb moisture in order to extend the life of the product by keeping the alkaline and acid components dry and preventing them from reacting prematurely. Baking powder, being a mixture of sodium bicarbonate and an acid, can be recreated in a “homemade”