I used to think baking powder was an oddity. Being a small child and having very little knowledge of kitchen chemistry, I wondered why you needed both baking soda and baking powder, and whether there was even a difference.
Years later, I’ve realized the error of my ways and come to the conclusion that baking powder is the unsung hero of the baked good world. Whatever batter the white powder touches, it makes it light and fluffy!
Developed by Eben Horsford in 1856, baking powder is (at its most basic) a combination of baking soda, an acid, and a starch. The baking soda and acid react to produce carbon dioxide bubbles that give a light texture to the resulting treat. But there’s a catch — if you just put baking soda and an acid together, they’ll react quickly, but for some recipes, they need to react in the batter and/or in the oven to make the baked good fluffy. Often, companies will put a starch or buffer in the baking powder so this happens later. A common buffer is cornstarch, which many health-conscious consumers avoid because it is typically heavily processed, full of preservatives, and genetically modified. In fact, my mom used to make her own baking powder substitute because she wanted to bake as clean as possible.
The only baking powder that meets her standards is Azure Market Baking Powder (BP713). Azure Market uses tapioca powder rather than cornstarch as a buffer, so, as we put it, “you can be confident no GMOs are sneaking into your baked goods!”
We most often use Azure baking powder in yogurt pancakes. This beloved family tradition began because we didn’t have buttermilk to make the super fluffy pancakes we craved, and found that yogurt worked really well as a substitute! Since yogurt is acidic, the recipe calls for reduced amounts of baking powder so the fluff-making chemical reaction is delayed. I love seeing how science affects our daily lives!
Here are some other Azure recipes that make excellent use of baking powder’s lightening properties:
Bright and Light Lemon Bread with Cream Cheese Frosting (by our own Bethany Joy Stelzer!)
No-Yeast Garden Veggie Pizza Squares
Classic Easy Skillet Cornbread
Strayer family tested and approved, Azure Market Baking Powder is sure to bring some fluffy baked goodness to your family as well!
What do you use baking powder for? Let us know in the comments below!
SOURCES:
https://www.armandhammer.com/en/articles/baking-soda-vs-baking-powder
https://www.acs.org/education/whatischemistry/landmarks/bakingpowder.html