Asorbic Acid

[KyleW]

Yesterday I used asorbic acid (aka vitamin C) for the first time. I found it in powdered form at a local vitamin store. I used it in a french bread from The Taste of Bread. The results were very good. The crumb was moist with lots of large irregular holes. I'm not sure if it was the result of the asorbic acid, Calvel's attention to mixing method detail....

I knead to do some research on the effect of asorbic acid in bread so I thought I would start here. Anyone have any thoughts on the subject? What kinds of bread does it help? How does it help? What potency? Anyone? Beuller?

[kokopuffs]

Kyle, I'll checkout any references to VIT C in ARTISAN BAKING ACROSS AMERICA, just in case you don't have that book. I'd also like to hear more observations about it's use.

[thebighat]

I bought some at a wine making supply place, but haven't tried using it yet. There's some concern about how to measure it. What did Calvel do, a gram in a liter and then a ml was so many milligrams or something?
I had a wacky experience yesterday. The earthy crunch grocery store had me go to another store about 45 miles away to "train" making cupcakes and whoopie pies. Scooped 186 dozen altogether. I can do without that kind of training. But they had a complete bread thing going there, complete with a machine that made levain. It was about the size of two washing machines stacked up,. with a hatch on the top and a spigot on the bottom. It was temperature controlled and the Rasta Baker just opened the spigot and measured it out. This went into a big batch of sourdough, and I was a little disappointed to see him make several different flavors of bread out of it. He scaled it into loaves for it's bulk fermentation and then seemed to start shaping it right away, using another machine. That gives the baked loaves a telltale look. His bannetons were all full of blue mold, nobody was using gloves when they handled rte food, it was a little disappointing. Busy place though. The store I work at does nothing like that kind of business. I've got a biga for Reinhart's Italian bread rising right now. I'll be sliding that out of the oven around dinnertime.

[KyleW]

Maybe the blue mold was a secret flavor ingredient!

Calvel's formula was for 20 KG of flour and I think it called for 400MG of asorbic acid. I'll check when I get home. I use less than 1/8 tsp in 13.5 oz. of flour.

[Risa]

I seem to recall something about vitamin c in bread in Corriher's Cookwise. Unfortunately, I don't have a copy.

[kokopuffs]

Just an fyi on VIT C: it stimulates collagen production, the most ubiquitous tissue in the body. Women pay fortunes for collagen injections into their lips to achieve that thick, soft, sexy pout that men highly desire.

[KyleW]

I have her book. I'll give it a read when I get home. Thanks Risa.

[Athenaeus]

I am waiting to see how the discussion about this topic will develop.
Apart from experimenting ,I see no other reason to put such things in bread.

[kokopuffs]

A:

I've read that VIT C stimulates yeast activity. I may well give a better rise and more prominent crown in the shape of the loaf.

[thebighat]

Don't Meg Ryan's lips look like she's had collagen injections? Lately they've had this full pouty look. I'll bet she's had the needle.

[thebighat]

I'm too lazy to waddle around the house and find Calvel, but I'll bet the ascorbic acid is added on a percentage basis. I'm almost ready to make a dough. May have to drag out the grain scale and calculator.

[roon]

I'm kind of the same way, Athenaeus. I usually have an attitude of, if I can't grow it or raise it, I don't like to use it (more than absolutely necessary). Not that I think there's anything wrong with stuff I can't grow/raise, but I tend to think in a self-sufficient mindframe. I think- what if something happened and I dind't have access to this item? What do I use to substitute? (One of the reasons I'm so interested in starter cultures- I don't want to have to be dependent on storebought yeast!)

I wonder if there are some other ways to add vitamin C to the bread without using asorbic acid?

Oh, and a little note- no matter how much you add to the bread, the amount of vitamin C you would get back after you bake it is highly questionable. Vitamin C is heat sensitive and heat destroys it fairly easily.

I also did a google search and came up with these-
Vitamin C

more on vitamin c (you need adobe acrobat to read this)

[Athenaeus]

Originally posted by kokopuffs
A:

I've read that VIT C stimulates yeast activity. I may well give a better rise and more prominent crown in the shape of the loaf.

I just wonder if we just make our life more difficult.
If VIT C was that helpfull our grandmothers would use orange juice or lemon juice etc in their breads for years now.

TBH, waddle the house to find a book? I like those houses

[roon]

Originally posted by kokopuffs
A:

I've read that VIT C stimulates yeast activity. I may well give a better rise and more prominent crown in the shape of the loaf.

I hadn't considered that...

[kokopuffs]

Roon:

Sources of VIT C include all citrus fruits. Just squeeze a lemon into your primordial dough and allow it to rise up to its full glory! Report back to us soon.