Most batter products are meant to be delicate and tender Tenderness can be encouraged in several different ways The concentration of gluten proteins in the batter is reduced by the use of pastry flour, or low-or no-gluten flours (buckwheat, rice, oat), or all-purpose flour mixed with cornstarch or other pure starches Gluten development is minimized by minimal stirring of the ingredients Replacing milk or water with soured dairy products, notably buttermilk and yogurt, helps produce an especially tender texture This is mainly an effect of their thick consistency, which means that it takes less flour to make the batter properly thick A spoonful of the finished batter therefore contains less flour, less starch and gluten, and cooks to a more delicate structure Leavening the batter with gas bubbles not only divides it up into innumerable thin sheets surrounding the gas bubbles, it makes the batter more viscous (as in sauce foams, p 595), which again means that less flour is needed to thicken it It’s useful to divide batter foods into two groups Thin batters are both thin in consistency and cooked in the form of small, thin, free-standing cakes Quickbreads and cakes are made from thicker batters, and are cooked in pans in larger, deeper masses Crêpes Crêpes and their relatives (Eastern European blintzes and palaschinki), thin unleavened pancakes that are cooked on a shallow pan and folded over a filling of some kind, have been made for a thousand years from a simple batter of flour, milk and/or water, and eggs Their delicacy comes from their thinness The ... It’s useful to divide batter foods into two groups Thin batters are both thin in consistency and cooked in the form of small, thin, free-standing cakes Quickbreads and cakes are made from thicker batters, and are... Crêpes and their relatives (Eastern European blintzes and palaschinki), thin unleavened pancakes that are cooked on a shallow pan and folded over a filling of some kind, have been made for a thousand years from a simple... folded over a filling of some kind, have been made for a thousand years from a simple batter of flour, milk and/ or water, and eggs Their delicacy comes from their thinness The