extensive surface of flatbreads Flatbreads often puff to an impressive if temporary volume, and the central cavity of pita and similar breads is used as a pocket for filling with other foods Puffing occurs when the two bread surfaces have set in the heat and become tougher than the inner layer, where steam accumulates and eventually tears the tender interior, forcing the two surfaces apart When puffing is undesirable — in crackers, for example, which would become too fragile — the sheeted dough is “docked,” or pricked in a regular pattern with a pointed utensil — a fork, or a special stamp — to form dense gluten nodes that resist puffing Pretzels Pretzels are unusual for their woven shape, dark brown crust, and unusual flavor Like crackers, they’re made from a stiff yeast dough of soft wheat flour In manufacturing, the formed dough is sprayed for 10–15 seconds with a hot 1% solution of alkaline sodium hydroxide (lye) or sodium carbonate The heat and moisture combine to gelate the surface starch The dough is then salted and baked for about five minutes in a very hot oven The starch gel hardens to a shiny finish and thanks to the alkaline conditions created by the lye, browning-reaction pigments and flavor compounds rapidly accumulate (The lye reacts with carbon dioxide in the oven to form a harmless edible carbonate.) The final step is a long, slow bake to dry the whole pretzel out The pretzel is crisp but fragile thanks to tiny airy bubbles and ungelated starch granules throughout, and it has a distinctive flavor from its alkaline-browned surface Soft and homemade pretzels may be allowed to rise before being boiled briefly in a solution of baking soda and then baked for 10 or 15 minutes in a hot oven Bagels The bagel is a relatively small, ring- ... The starch gel hardens to a shiny finish and thanks to the alkaline conditions created by the lye, browning-reaction pigments and flavor compounds rapidly accumulate (The lye reacts with carbon dioxide in the oven to form...sodium hydroxide (lye) or sodium carbonate The heat and moisture combine to gelate the surface starch The dough is then salted and baked for about five minutes in a very hot oven The starch gel hardens to a shiny finish... edible carbonate.) The final step is a long, slow bake to dry the whole pretzel out The pretzel is crisp but fragile thanks to tiny airy bubbles and ungelated starch granules throughout, and it has