Cardamom Quick Bread (Tasty Easy Recipe) - Heavenly Home Cooking (2024)

FAQs

What are the 7 basic ingredients in quick bread? ›

The possibilities are endless, but the common factor is the basic ingredients of fat, sugar, eggs, flour, liquid, leavening agent, and a flavoring ingredient.

Quick breads are typically mixed by hand, and it's important not to overmix the batter. Overmixing can cause the gluten in the flour to develop, resulting in a tough and chewy bread. Mix the batter just until the ingredients are combined, and then stop. If there are a few lumps in the batter, that's okay.

Fats are added for richness and flavor, and when creamed with sugar, they trap air creating lightness in the batter. Sugar, in addition to its interaction with fats, adds flavor, color, and aids in the tenderization of the batter.

Three common mixing methods are the muffin mixing method, the creaming method and the biscuit mixing method. The muffin method suits muffins, loaf breads, pancakes, and waffles. Biscuits and scones benefit from the biscuit method, while the creaming method offers an alternative for muffins and certain bread types.

As with baking soda, the purpose of baking powder is to create air bubbles that give your baked goods their light, airy texture. There are two types of baking powder: single action and double action. Single action baking powder creates the carbon dioxide bubbles upon contact with moisture, similar to baking soda.

Quick Bread Basics

Overmixing your batter will cause a tough batter and an equally tough finished product. You do not want to develop the flour's gluten (protein). You want what is known as a tender crumb that will be achieved if you just combine ingredients without overmixing.

For baking, eggs are particularly important as binding agents and leavening agents. The fat in egg yolks also soften gluten strands, creating a soft crumb in breads. Binding agents hold all the ingredients together.

The two main quick-acting leavening agents are baking powder and baking soda Salt: Used as a seasoning Liquid: Helps in the blending of dry ingredients and the formation of gluten. It triggers the leavening action of baking powder or baking soda. Sugar: Makes quick breads tender and adds flavor.

If you're looking to ramp up the taste of your favorite bread recipe, we recommend adding a bit of fat. A fat like butter, olive oil or coconut oil in small quantities will help your bread achieve a higher rise and it will also boost its flavor by tenfold.

Sweeteners such as malt and honey are used to add flavor to bread dough. Malt, which is available in powder and liquid form, can be added to almost any bread. It's important to use a nondiastatic version, though, as diastatic malt has active enzymes, which, in excess, will make dough extremely sticky.

What is the most common liquid used in quick breads? ›

The most common liquid ingredients in quick breads are milk and water. The liquid moistens the batter, helps activate the gluten in the flour, and dissolves the sugar in the recipe.

Almost all quick breads have the same basic ingredients: flour, leavening, eggs, fat (butter, margarine, shortening, or oil), and liquid such as milk. Ingredients beyond these basic constituents are added for variations in flavor and texture.

With quick breads, fat adds flavor and moisture, and butter is usually the choice for this. Many bakers favor using unsalted butter in their recipes because the amount of salt varies among different brands of salted butter.

Bake quick breads in the center of a preheated oven. Quick bread loaves and coffeecakes require a moderate oven. Most bake at 350°F to 375°F, but follow recipe directions.

Basic ingredients are bread flour (or any higher protein flour between 12–14%), yeast, salt, sugar and water around 25–27c (78–80 degrees Fahrenheit).

Mixing; Sift together the bread flour, rye flour, barley flour, and cornmeal; add the oats, flax seeds, and millet and mix well. This ensures even distribution of the flour. Mix the ingredients in a dough mixer or with hands for 15 - 20 mins, ensure you add the yeast and salt. You can add sugar and eggs if you wish.