Baked bread leavened by chemical leavening agents are often called quick breads because they can be baked immediately, without waiting for fermentation to take place. Doughnut, biscuits, muffin, are among the quick breads leavened by baking powder.
The amount of baking powder used in muffins varies between 2% and 6% based on flour at 100% with lower amounts in muffins with ingredients that increase acid.
Every chemical leavening agents created and leaven the batter before and/or drying baking. Leaveners cause a dough or batter to rise by producing carbon dioxide, which rises throughout the batter and results in the tenderizing of the product, providing a pleasurable mouthfeel.
The process also make muffin light and easy to chew. During baking, heat increases gas volume and pressure to expand cell size until proteins are coagulated.
Stretching of the cell walls during baking improves texture and promotes tenderness. The products that are leavened have open or more porous grains so that the digestive juices come in contact with the food more readily.
There are two types of leaveners: chemical and yeast. The most common leavening agents used for muffin are baking soda and baking powder.
Leavening agents in muffin
