9.20.2010

What Makes Pumpernickel Bread Brown?

This week is dedicated to the unusual colors of common foods. For some reason, it's been coming up randomly a lot recently in my life!

Colorful Foods Day 1


Q. What makes American pumpernickel bread dark brown?

A. Molasses, cocoa powder, coffee, and possibly food coloring

The original German pumpernickel bread got its rich chocolaty-coffee flavor and color from a chemical reaction between the amino acids and sugars in the dough while the bread baked for an exceedingly long time (16-24 hours).

Americans changed the recipe for economic reasons, in case you were wondering. :)


No comments:

Post a Comment