What are the purposes of food additives?

Answer 1

* 1. Food colouring can be found in cakes. Offsetting colour loss due to light, air, extremes of temperature, moisture, and storage conditions. * Masking natural variations in colour. * Enhancing naturally occurring colours. * Providing identity to foods. * Protecting flavours and vitamins from damage by light. * ** Decorating purposes such as cake icing 2.Seasoning is the process of adding or improving flavor of food. Seasonings include herbs, spices, and all other condiments (which may themselves be referred to as "seasonings"). Salt may be used to draw out water, or to magnify a natural flavor of a food making it richer or more delicate, depending on the dish. For instance, kosher salt (a coarser-grained salt) is rubbed into chicken, lamb, and beef to tenderize the meat and improve flavor. Other seasonings like black pepper and basil transfer some of their flavor to the food. A well-designed dish may combine seasonings that complement each other. In addition to the choice of herbs and seasoning, the timing of when flavors are added will affect the food that is being cooked. 3.When used as an ingredient in food, it is intended to curb effusion or effervescence in preparation or serving. Antifoaming agents are included in a variety of foods such as Diet Pepsi, Diet Coke, Sprite, and chicken nuggets in the form of polydimethylsiloxane (a type of silicone). Antifoaming agents are also used medicinally to relieve bloating, because they cause small bubbles to coalesce into large bubbles, which are passed more easily. A familiar example is the drug Simethicone, which is the active ingredient in drugs such as Gas-X.

Answer 2

A typical Western-style cake contains the following ingredients:

Flour--gives structure and nutrition, the amount and type of nutrition depending on the flour (wheat-based, wheat alternative, or nut flour each having their own nutrients and properties). Also, gluten-containing flours give elasticity and springiness.

Sugar--in addition to sweetness, sugar gives structure and brown color when baked. Sugar substitutes such as stevia or sucralose (Splenda) cannot contribute structure to the finished cake, nor do they brown in the oven. Cakes using sugar substitutes usually have some adjustment made to the dry ingredients to compensate for the loss of bulk caused by omitting sugar.

Eggs--contribute structure, protein, some fat, and leavening. In some cakes, beaten egg whites provide the only leavening the cake has.

Baking powder--contributes leavening. In the US, where I'm writing from, most consumer baking powder is double-acting, meaning it contains one chemical that gives off carbon dioxide when exposed to liquid, and another chemical that gives off carbon dioxide when exposed to heat. This was an improvement over single-acting baking powders that reacted only upon exposure to liquid. If you added the baking powder, and didn't bake the cake right away, the bubbles might have dissipated before you put the cake in the oven, and the cake wouldn't rise enough.

Oil or fat of some sort--adds elasticity and flavor. You can use butter, margarine, oil, or a combination of any of those. Lower-fat cakes often use pureed fruit, such as applesauce or prune butter, as a substitute. This also affects the taste of the finished cake.

Salt--adds mold inhibition and pH control. In my house a cake never lasts long enough to grow mold. :)

Cocoa powder and other flavorings--add flavor, of course. In chocolate cakes, cocoa powder or melted chocolate adds structure and calories as well. Cakes calling for cocoa powder usually decrease the amount of flour somewhat to compensate for the added bulk the cocoa powder provides.

Water--adds not only moistness, but also ease in blending the ingredients, and gives the first component in double-acting baking powder something to react with.

Answer 3

they prevent caking or clumping and some increase the shelf life of the cake.

Answer 4

Butter adds moisture, rich taste, and acts as a minor binding agent for the cake.

Answer 5

Flouring gaves the cake it's taste