HOME MAKERS' CORNER

White Ribbon, Volume 21, Issue 7, 1 August 1949, Page 7

HOME MAKERS' CORNER

Last month we discussed breadmaking with particular reference to the leavening agent, while this month it is the flour. There arc many cereals, all of which M ay he ground to make flour, ami some of them are more nutritious than wheat. Oats have the highest food \alue; next comes barley; rye and maize are aliout as rich in vitamins and minerals as wheat, while rice, sago, etc., do not rate so high. Rye is extensively used in Europe, and at one time barley was the most important food in Britain; in fact, less than a hundred years ago it was the common fotxl of the mountainous districts of Scotland. Yet gradually, wheat has replaced other cereals almost exclusively. Why should this he ? It is because wheat is the best for making leavened bread; in tact, rye is the only other cereal from which bread can be made, and then usually has wheat flour added. Only certain areas will grow' wheat, and of course people grew the other cereals where wheat would not grow’. Not until modern methods of transport evolved did wheat become the staple food of almost the entire world. Since mankind has come to the conclusion that bread is the most convenient form in which to eat the cereal foods so necessary to life, let us see why it is that wheat is the best for this purpose. It is known that wheat contains not only starch, hut proteins, fats, minerals and vitamins, though not in the necessary proportion to be a perfect food. The proteins of wheat

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WHEAT

give it the bread-making qualities. 'Two of the proteins, Glutenim and Gliadin, with water, form what is known as Gluten, and this substance gi\es strength, tenacity and elasticity to the dough, so that when a leavening agent, such as baking-powder or yeast forms gas in the mixture, the dough stretches round each little bubble, and the whole mixture rises and is leavened. Rye contains a little gluten.

There are two main types of wheat, spring and winter wheats. Spring wheat, planted in autumn and reaped in spring, is what is known as “hard” wheat, and has the strength necessary for good bread-making. This is grown in warmer climates, while the colder climates, such as our own South Island, grow winter wheat which is planted in spring and reaped in autumn. This is usually a “ soft ” wheat, more starchy and better suited to scone and cakemaking. In an endeavour to make New Zealand self-supporting as regards food supplies, the Government cut down imports of wheat and flour, and set up the Wheat Research Council to improve the types of wheat grown. For a few years, the local wheat was not entirely satisfactory, but now its “strength” has been much improved, .so that bread-making difficulties have been greatly lessened. However, this means that it is not so good for cakemaking, but, by taking two tablespoonfills of flour from each cupful required, and substituting two tablespoonfuls of cornflour, a better cake can he baked.