Laboratory 11 - Shortened Cakes, Pastries, and Cookies (25 points)

Name: _Jacob

Baranowski___________________________

Directions: Conduct the assigned laboratory exercises, post treatment data on tables at the
front display table, record group data in tables, and answer questions that follow the laboratory
exercises.
Reading Assignment: 438-452, www.splenda.com
I.
Objectives:
A.

II.

To demonstrate the effect of type of sweetener, mixing method, depth of batter,

flour type, and baking temperature on shortened cake flavor, volume, texture,
tenderness, crust color, and cell structure.
B. To demonstrate the effect of excess water, mixing method, type of flour, and type of
fat on pastry texture, flavor, color, and height.
C. To demonstrate the effect of type of sweetener, type of flour, and type of fat on
cookie texture, diameter, color, flavor, and height.
D. To demonstrate an understanding of concepts involved in the above described
activities by answering post laboratory questions.

Varying methodologies and ingredients in shortened cake preparation

A.

Ingredients in the basic formula (control):

Flour, cake
sugar
baking powder
salt
shortening
milk, skim
vanilla extract
whole egg

B.

308.0
300.0

g
g
13.8
6.0 g
102.0 g
237.0 mL

7.0 mL
96.0

Directions for basic formula

1.
2.

3.
4.
5.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Lightly spray and flour sides of 2, 8 inch round baking pans with vegetable
cooking spray. Cut circle of wax paper to fit bottom.
Sift together all dry ingredients except sugar.
Cream together shortening, sugar, and vanilla using electric mixer. Add eggs
to this mixture and blend until light and fluffy.
Add 1/3 of sifted dry ingredients to the egg mixture and blend mixture using
50 strokes with a wooden spoon. Add 1/2 of the milk and stir using 25 strokes. Again
add 1/3 of sifted dry ingredients and stir 50 strokes. Add the rest of the milk and stir
25 strokes. Finally, add the last of the sifted dry ingredients and stir 75 strokes
(grand total of 225 strokes.)
6.
Measure 400 g of batter into each round pan.
7.
Bake approximately 28-32 minutes until metal skewer inserted into cake
center comes out clean.
8.
Place pans on cooling racks. When completely cooled, remove cakes from

pan.
9.

Wrap 1 cooled cake in plastic wrap and determine volume using rapeseed
displacement. Record volume in Table 11-1.

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10.

11.
C.
1.
2.

Unwrap cake and cut two 3x3 inch pieces from the center of the cake (use
ruler to determine this width).One piece will be used for color analysis (top
crust) and the other for texture analysis. Record color and texture data in
Table 11-1 and 11-2.
Cut the remaining cake into pieces and place on a labeled plate for sensory
evaluation.

Treatments

Control - (conventional method) Prepare as described in basic formula.

Control (single stage method) Sift all of the dry ingredients together three
times. Mix all other ingredients into a separate bowl. Add dry ingredients all at once. Beat for 30
seconds on low speed with an electric mixer. Mix for 90 seconds on high speed. Return to low
speed and mix 30 seconds. Bake as directed for basic formula.
3.
Use all-purpose flour instead of cake flour.
4.
1.5X sugar - Prepare the basic formula except add 600 g sugar instead of 300
g sugar.
5.
Substitute canola oil for shortening.
6.
Use 150 g Splenda Sugar Blend instead of all the table sugar.
7.
Use 36.2g of Splenda Granulated instead of all of the table sugar. NOTE:
for this treatment baking time may be shorter, be sure to monitor baking
time.
8.
Gluten-free/milk free (use 308 g flour from flour mix below instead of cake
flour, and substitute almond milk for skim milk, and add 4.2 g xanthan gum, and 2.4
g gelatin)
Gluten-free bread flour mix A from lab 10: TAs will mix this up.
Millet flour
Sorghum flour
Cornstarch
Potato starch
Tapioca flour

2
1
1
1
1

cups
cup
cup
cup
cup

232
105
124
175
110

SPH N325 Food Chemistry Laboratory/Spring 2015/A.D. Fly

g
g
g
g
g

Page 2

Table 11-1 Shortened cakes made with varying ingredients and mixing methodologies.
Treatments

Baked
Volume
(mL)

1. Control conventional

Texture
(g at 5 mm)

Crust contour1

3. Allpurpose
flour

Large crumb
and cell gaps

Sweet and bland

Curved top; dark

brown

Tender; fine
crumb

Tough/crisp
outer but
smooth
center

Small cells

Tastes like Nilla

wafers

Smooth, even;
golden top

Tough crust,
but soft
interior.
Medium
crumb

Moist and
firm; good
structure/bo
dy

Small/medium
cell structure

Sweet like corn

bread; held
together but not
overly sweet

Brown and caved

in; cracks

Very tender

Moist and
chewy

Large cells;
small holes

Very sweet

157.2

Flat and even;

golden

Coarse and
large crumb

Dry, heavy,
and tough

Medium/large
cell structure

Cake-like and sweet

with a hint of
lemon. Very light

Tough and
crumbly
exterior;
coarse and
dry interior

Dry and
crumbly;
large
structure

Medium cells
with a few
large holes

Sweet; light and

delicate

350.8

Smooth top;
darker brown
than others

900

298.6

Curved with
cracks; bright
white

Very
tender/fluffy

Light, airy,
fluffy, dry

Medium cell
structure

Light and sweet but

not much flavor
other than flour

850

185.7

Large and
crumbly; no
structure

Very tender;
lot of crumb

Moist and
dense

Medium cells
but very
crumbly

Very rich and sweet

flavor. Cake batter

1180

73.3

1100

680

133.2

5. Canola oil
1230
6. Splenda
Sugar Blend
1200

Flavor5

Coarse and
dry; big
cells/crumb

4. 2X sugar

8. Glutenfree/cow
milk free

Cell Structure4

Tough exterior
with tender
interior; big
crumb

104.5

7.
Splenda
Granular

Mouthfeel3

Curved top,
golden tan

182.7
1000

2. Control
single stage

Apparent
Tenderness2

Crust contour and color - Determine if the outer top crust is flat, curved, peaked, or cracks are present.

Apparent tenderness - use words like coarse, tender, very tender, fine crumb.
Mouthfeel - use words like dry, moist, velvety, light.
4
Cell structure - determine the relative size and uniformity of the cells. Compare cakes to control to make this evaluation.
5
Flavor - Describe flavor and any after taste.
2
3

Table 11-2 Color Analysis of Shortened Cake Top Crust

Treatment

L*

a*

b*

1. Control - conventional

69.0

7.87

38.87

2. Control single stage

63.63

12.18

40.26

3. All-purpose flour

63.07

8.03

34.65

4. 2X sugar

69.82

2.49

23.34

5. Canola oil

46.97

18.68

32.97

6. Splenda Sugar Blend

75.63

3.21

28.12

74.6

2.88

27.03

62.49

6.75

33.15

7. Splenda Granular
8. Gluten-free, cow milk free

L* - relative darkness and lightness of the product using a scale ranging from 0 (darkest) to 100 (lightest)
a* - continuum of red (+) to green (-)
b* - continuum of orange (+) to blue (-)

III.

Varying methodologies and ingredients in pastry preparation

A.

Ingredients

flour, pastry

87.0 g

shortening
water
salt

47.0 g
30.0 mL
1.5 g

B.

Directions for basic formula

1.
Preheat oven to 425F.
2.
Set up pastry guides on wax paper at a distance of 10 cm.
3.
Add salt to flour and mix briefly with fork.
4.
Add fat to flour mixture and cut with pastry blender until the pieces of fat are the size of uncooked rice.
5.
Sprinkle part of the water into the mixture. Mix together by flipping lightly upward with fork. Continue until all of the
water has been added.
6.
Mash dough together into ball with fork using approximately 15 strokes. This should be done efficiently to minimize
manipulation of the dough.
7.
Place dough ball onto wax paper, cover with a second piece and roll level between pastry guides.
8.
Remove top piece of wax paper and slice strips of dough, every 3 cm.
9.
Remove each pastry from wax paper with metal spatula and place on aluminum foil-lined cookie sheet (Dont grease
cookie sheet).
10.
Prick the surface of each rectangle with a fork.
11.
Bake until light golden brown (about 20 min), then remove from oven and cool completely.
12.
Measure the height of 3 pastries stacked on top of each other and divide by 3 to get average height of a pastry. Record
data in table 11-3.
13.
Determine breaking force of one pastry using texture analyzer (rounded edge knife attachment set to penetrate the
pastry at the rate of 3 mm/sec to a distance of 5 mm. The platform attachment base should have the metal bars set 2.5
cm apart). Pastry should be cooled completely before texture analysis. Record data in table 11-3. Do not break up
remaining pastries in step 14 until your texture analysis is complete. Pastries can be fragile and they might break as you
are loading it to the machine.
14.
Break remaining pastries into small pieces after texture analysis is completed. Place on labeled plate for subjective
evaluation.

C.

Treatments

6.

1.
Control - Prepare as described for basic formula
2.
Bread flour - Prepare as described for basic formula but use 87 g bread flour instead of pastry flour.
3.
Whole wheat pastry flour use 87 g of whole wheat pastry flour instead of regular pastry flour.
4.
Over manipulated dough - Prepare the basic formula but roll and reshape the dough ten times prior to cutting the dough.
5.
Change in method: On step 4 instead of adding fat to flour, add water to flour and mix, then add fat
Substitute 37.6g canola oil (80%) for shortening.
7.
Gluten-free substitute white rice flour for pastry flour

Table 11-3: Varying pastry methods and ingredients.

Treatments

Breaking
force
(g)

Pastry
height
(cm)

Color

Flavor

Apparent
Tenderness2

1. Control pastry
flour

5.6

1.1

Dark brown
edge; golden
inside

Crispy; flaky

2. Bread Flour

1106.1

1.4

Even tan

Crumbly; light
flaky

3. whole wheat
pastry flour

214.6

1.3

Even white

Tender, flaky,
light, smooth

4. Over
manipulated

94.0

1.17

Even
tan/brown

2 (bland)

Flaky and tough

5. Added water
before fat

287.4

1.23

Pale; darker
brown

Flaky/crumbly

6. Canola Oil

66.6

Even brown,
no blister

2 (edamame
flavor)

Tough,
crumblylike a
crisp cracker

7. Gluten-free (rice
flour)

35.5

1.07

Bright white

Crisp, tough,
crunchy
grainy/mealy

Color should be pale and uniform.

Apparent tenderness - observe the consistency and texture. Use words like oily, crumbly, light, flaky,
tough, mealy or tender.
2

IV.

Varying methodologies and ingredients in cookie preparation

A.

Ingredients:
Flour, all purpose
Baking soda
Salt
Sugar, granulated
Brown sugar, light

200.2 g
2.7 g
0.85 g
190.6 g
72.0 g

Lemon zest, finely grated 3.2 g

Lemon juice, freshly squeezed
7.4 mL
Butter, unsalted and softened
114 g
egg, whole
50 g

B.

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 oF.
2. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt in a bowl.
3. Use a electric mixer on medium speed to beat sugars, butter, eggs, lemon zest,
and lemon juice in large bowl until creamy.

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4. Gradually stir in flour mixture, and mix until just combined.

5. Scoop dough using a 4.2 cm diameter cookie scoop; space cookies 2 inches
apart on parchment-lined baking sheets. Put only 6 cookies on each cookie
sheet. TAs should make sure that all groups are using the same size cookie
scoop.
6. Bake cookies until golden, about 15 minutes. Let cool on sheets on wire racks for
5 minutes. Transfer cookies to racks using a spatula; let cool completely.
7. Count number of cookies produced from batter and record in Table 11-4.
8. Measure diameter of 3 cookies, average and record in Table 11-4.
9. Bring one cooled cookie to the Texture Analyzer for evaluation and record data in
Table 11-4. Use rounded knife with adjustable platform to break cookies.
10.Use one cooled cookie for Color analysis (cookie top) and record results in Table
11-4.
11.Stack 6 cookies. Measure height and divide by 6 to determine average height of
a cookie. Record results in Table 11-4.
12.Leave one cookie whole for observation. Break each remaining cookie into 5
pieces. Place the whole cookie and pieces on plate, label, and place on
evaluation table.
C.

Treatments:
1.
Control use basic formula.
2. Use 262.6 g table sugar to replace all sugar.
3. Use 175 g cake flour instead of all-purpose flour.
4. Substitute 8.8 g (about cup) SPLENDA Granular for sugar. NOTE watch
baking time as it may be shorter for this treatment.
5. Substitute 96 g (about cup) SPLENDA Sugar Blend for Baking for all the
sugar.
6. Substitute shortening for butter.
7. Gluten free chocolate chip cookies use method and ingredients below
Gluten-free cookies:
Vegetable shortening
Granulated sugar
Dark brown sugar
Eggs, large
Vanilla extract
Brown rice flour mix (see
below)
Baking soda
Xanthan gum
salt
Mini chocolate chips
Pecans, finely chopped

1 cup
1 cup
cup
Quantity 2
1 Tablespoon
2 Cups + 2 T

152 g
215.5 g
80.4 g
110 g
10 mL
262 g

1 teaspoon
1 teaspoon
teaspoon
6 oz
1 cup

8.2
3.3
3.8
201
95

g
g
g
g
g

Brown rice flour mix for gluten free cookies: Your TAs will provide metric measures.

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Brown rice flour

Potato starch
Tapioca flour

2 cups
2/3 cup
1/3 cup

256 g
120 g
40 g

Method for gluten free cookies:

1. Preheat oven to 375 F. Rack should be positioned in center of oven.
2. Line baking pans with parchment paper (cut to fit cookie sheet).
3. Beat shortening and both sugars at medium speed in large bowl with electric

mixer

4. Add eggs, one at a time, then add vanilla and beat until fluffy.
5. In a separate bowl, whisk together flour mix, baking soda, xanthan gum and salt.
Gradually add this
speed.

mixture to the creamed shortening mixture beating at medium low

6. Mix in chocolate chips and chopped nuts.

7. Use cookie scoop to drop onto baking sheets (2 apart) and bake in center of
oven around 10 min.
Cookies should be light golden brown. Only put 1 tray/oven unless you are
using a convection
feature.

Table 11-4 Variations in flours, fats, and sweeteners in cookies

Treatment

# of
cookie
s

Mean
Cookie
diamete
r
(cm)

Breaki
ng
streng
th
(g)

Height
of
cookie
(cm)

12

8.5

2126

18

10

#3 cake
flour

18

#4
SPLENDA

Granular
#5
SPLENDA
Sugar
Blend
#6
Shortenin
g
#7
Gluten-

#1
Controlallpurpose
#2 all
white
sugar

Flavo
r4

Color of top

General
observations5

L*1

a*2

b*3

54.
9

4.57

25.65

27.66

0.8

63.
15

2.50

1151.
6

9.8

114.8

0.97

47.
64

13.53

26.72

14

5.8

665.5

54.
9

4.57

25.65

Soft and fluffy. Not

much flavor. Yellow
w/ browned edges

18

5.4

735.5

2.27

58.
61

5.94

29.27

18

7.6

1784.
3

1.8

61.
63

7.25

28.94

32

11

2147.
9

33.
08

5.19

16.02

Pale yellow brown.

Fluffy but dry.
Rounded from
leavening
Very crunchy and
brown. Cracked
surface w/ risen
structure
Darker brown;
large spread. Very

HPER N325 Food Chemistry Laboratory/ Spring 2014/A.D. Fly

Flat and cracked.

Pale tan. Crunchy
and good

3.5

Golden
brown/yellow with
cracked surface
and caved in
center
Dark brown;
crunchy w/ smooth
even top/cells

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Free

holy; soft and good

L* = darkness to lightness (ranging from 0 to 100)

a* = redness (+) to greenness (-)
3
b* = orangeness (+) to blueness (-)
4
Flavor: 1 being the least desirable, 5 being the most desirable
5
Record shininess, cracks or bubbles on surface; general surface structure
2

V.

Questions

1. Consider shortened cakes. Describe the objective differences in volume made by the control,
2X sugar and the oil treatment. Explain the reason for the differences in these properties.
(Table 11-1).
The control had a volume of 1000mL. This is standard for a shortened cake which
uses shortening as its fat source. The shortening will be cut into the recipe,
which allows for some leavening as the solid fat will not be completely dispersed
throughout the recipe. The cake made with 2X sugar had a volume of 680mL.
This is because the sugar acts as a tenderizer which inhibits gluten formation and
restricts structure. The sugar also competes with the gluten proteins for water
and will inhibit full hydration of the starches/proteins because it is more water
soluble. The canola oil treatment had a volume of 1230mL which I found odd.
Since oil is a liquid fat and can spread/coat proteins and starches more
completely, I would have figured that the volume would have been less than the
control as fat is a structure inhibitor and tenderizer.
2. Compare the color of the control to the Splenda treatments. Did the Splenda treatments
affect cake color? Explain a possible reason in your answer. You might want to read the
ingredient labels on the splenda products (Table 11-2).
The Splenda treatments (L* between 74-75) were both lighter in color than the
control (L* of 69). The control was also more red (a* of 7.87) than the Splenda
treatments (a* of 3.21 and 2.88). The control was also more orange than the
Splenda treatments (b* of 38.87 compared with 28.12 and 27.03). All in all,
Splenda products tended to be lighter in color than the control which could be
because it doesnt contain any sugar to contribute to maillard browning.
3. How did methods of preparation affect volume and texture of shortened cakes (Table 11-1)?
Texture was usually softer in the products made with more tenderizers (oil and 2X
sugar treatment). This is because the tenderizers inhibit gluten formation, and
gluten helps give body and structure to baked goods. The Splenda treatments
had the toughest/greatest texture values, which almost doubled the control. This
is because Splenda does not contain sugar to tenderize the product and inhibit
gluten formation, so there is more volume and structure formed. The gluten-free
recipe had a very low volume and a texture similar to the control. The reduced
volume is because there werent any gluten proteins to develop structure.
4. Which shortened cake treatment produced the best flavor? Justify your answer. (Table 11-1)
I thought the best shortened cake was the gluten-free cake (although my answer
stems from subjective data I collected while in the Wednesday lab section). The
gluten-free cake was dense and moist; Im not sure if this was just because they
didnt leave it in the oven long enough, but it had the best flavor. It wasnt
airy/fluffy/dry like the other cakes; it was moist and dense and tasted like cake
batter ice cream.
5.

How did the substitution of canola oil for shortening affect the outcome of the shortened
cake in terms of volume and texture? (Table 11-1). Did you expect to find these results?

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Explain.
The canola oil treatment increased the volume from that of the control by 230mL.
This is not what I would have expected, as shortening (control) is a solid fat that
is cut into the flour and still allows for some gluten formation/leavening because
it doesnt coat all proteins, whereas the liquid fat can spread more easily and coat
more proteins (thus preventing gluten formation and inhibiting leavening). The
texture was 157.2 which was less than the control. This is what I would have
expected as fat acts as a tenderizer, and since the oil is able to spread more
evenly throughout the product, it should be more tender.

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5.

Describe the objective differences and similarities between the control shortened cake and
the gluten free cake (Table 11-1, 11-2).
The control had more gluten formation for obvious reasons, which contributed to
a greater volume (gluten contributes to body and structure of the cake). The textures
were similar, which is because the xanthan gum and gelatin added help contribute to
the body/texture of the gluten-free recipe. The gluten-free cake was darker than the
control, which can be due to the different types of flour and starches used.
6.

Consider pastries. How did changing the method change the texture of the treatments?
Consider control (Treatment 1), over-manipulated dough (Treatment 4), adding water before
fat (Treatment 5). (Table 11-3)
The control had the most tender texture, with a breaking force of 5.6 while the
overmanipulated dough had a breaking force of 94.0 and the treatment where water was
added before adding fat had a breaking force of 287.4. Treatment 4 had an increased
breaking force and tougher texture because more gluten formed which increased structure of
the pastry. Treatment 5 had a very high breaking force because water was added before the
fat was added, which allowed for more of the gluten proteins and starches to hydrate and
develop structure as there was no fat source inhibiting development.
7.

How did changing the flour affect breaking force of pastry? Consider treatments 1,2,3 and 7.
Explain the results. (Table 11-3).
Changing the flour to flours with a higher gluten content was directly proportional
to an increase in breaking force of those pastries. The control and the gluten-free
treatments had a lower breaking force because there was not a high concentration
of gluten proteins. The pastry made with bread flour had the greatest breaking
force because of the greater structure development caused by the protein content.

8.

Consider cookies. How did changing the tenderizing ingredients (Treatments 1,2,4,5,6) affect
cookie tenderness, diameter, and height (Table 11-4)? Try to explain the results using
theory.

9.
Which cookie treatment did you prefer? Did other factors besides flavor play a role in your
decision? (consider texture, tenderness, etc.)
I preferred the gluten-free treatment. While it didnt have the most normal spread
(gathered from Wednesdays class data), it had the best flavor. It was warm,
chewy, and the chocolate chips just made it a more pleasing experience than the
other bland sugar cookies. As the cookie cooled, it became more crisp, but that
didnt deter me from choosing it over the othersflavor is a big component when
Im making food choices.
10.

11.

Go to the Splenda web site and click on Recipes and Cooking under Cooking and Baking
Tips. Then click on Splenda Sugar Blend . What can be done to enhance the spread of
cookies made with this ingredient?
Press/flatten the dough with your fingers or a fork before cooking.

At the same website, find and record how baking time is affected by Splenda granular.
The website only indicates a difference but does not give a reason. Next, speculate why
baking time will be different from your knowledge about ingredients that affect baking.
Splenda products will bake more quickly than recipes made with regular sugar.
Splenda does not contain sugar and contains fewer carbohydrates than regular sucrose.
Because of these facts, there is less structural degradation that will have to take place during
cooking. Sugar acts as a tenderizer and inhibiting agent which can lengthen the time of
hydration of starches and proteinssince Splenda does not do this, or does it to a lesser
extent, baking times will decrease. Since it doesnt contribute to maillard browning, there will
also be less time waiting for the product to brown.

Grading:
Lab Coat and Hairnet
(___/2)
Sanitation and Cleanup
(___/3)
Product Outcome
(___/5)
Laboratory Report
(___/15)
Total Points:

____/25

*Please submit this page with your lab report