Q 01/05

What common leavening agent requires an acid to activate and produce carbon dioxide gas?

A) Baking soda

B) Baking powder

C) Yeast

D) Cream of tartar

Answer · why

A) Baking soda

Baking soda is plain sodium bicarbonate, an alkali, so it needs a sour partner such as yogurt or lemon juice to fizz; with no acid in the mix it leave...

Q 02/05

What do bakers call the final rest and rise of shaped bread dough, the yeast's last job before the oven?

A) Kneading

B) Scoring

C) Proofing

D) Docking

Answer · why

C) Proofing

Proofing is the yeast's last shift: the shaped loaf rests while fermentation pumps out carbon dioxide, and that final swell is what the oven then sets...

Q 03/05

The croissant's crescent shape was inspired by which Austrian pastry?

A) Kipferl

B) Strudel

C) Krapfen

D) Sachertorte

Answer · why

A) Kipferl

Kipferl, a crescent roll baked in Austria since at least the 13th century, reached Paris in the late 1830s, when Austrian officer August Zang opened a...

Q 04/05

Which solid baking fat is named for the crumbly texture it gives pastry?

A) Butter

B) Coconut oil

C) Shortening

D) Margarine

Answer · why

C) Shortening

Shortening is named for 'short', an old baker's word for crumbly: the fat coats the flour so long, stretchy strands cannot form. Lard was the original...

Q 05/05

Which process between amino acids and sugars gives bread crust its colour and flavour?

A) Caramelization

B) Oxidation

C) Fermentation

D) Maillard reaction

Answer · why

D) Maillard reaction

The Maillard reaction is why crust tastes better than crumb: heat drives amino acids and sugars into melanoidins, the compounds behind browned food's ...