"Karen in NC" > wrote in message
news:h_b9j.251546$Fc.5301@attbi_s21...
>
> "Lou Decruss" > wrote in message
> ...
>>
>> The Jam Lady mentioned her Cream Cheese Coffee Cake this morning and
>> it motivated me to make it. I calls for scalded milk and I've always
>> done that. Buy what does the scalding actually do? How would it be
>> different if you just used milk?
>>
>> Lou
>
> Some good info from http://www.ochef.com/586.htm:
>
> "What is Scorching or Scalding Milk?

> Many older recipes called for you to scald milk, that is, to bring it
> nearly to a boil (185°F, 85°C, or more), preferably in a thick-bottomed
> pan, and stirring actively, to keep a protein skin from forming on the
> surface and keep the proteins and sugar from sticking to the bottom.
> Scalding served two purposes, to kill potentially harmful bacteria in the
> milk, and to destroy enzymes that keep the milk from thickening in
> recipes. Pasteurization, however, accomplishes both of those goals, and
> since almost all store-bought milk in Western countries is pasteurized
> these days, scalding is essentially an unnecessary step.
>
> Shirley Corriher, the noted food scientist, baker, and author of Cookwise
> (Canada, UK), says she does scald milk before using it in breads, however.
> She says there is a protein in the whey that marginally reduces the volume
> of a loaf of bread as it rises and bakes. This is especially noticeable
> with the use of nonfat dry milk, and it appears that the amount of milk
> used really matters. That is, in relatively small quantity, the use of
> unscalded milk seems to have no negative effect on the formation of the
> loaf. But for her "peace of mind," Corriher says she continues to scald
> milk and reconstituted dry milk for her baking projects.
>
> Another reason some recipes continue to call for scalded milk is that they
> simply want you to heat the milk first, as it will speed the cooking
> process, help melt butter, dissolve sugar more easily, etc.
>
> To help keep a scalding project from turning into a scorching one, try
> some of these tips:
>
> Rinse your pan with cold water before adding and heating the milk, keep
> the heat to medium, and stir attentively.
> Heat the milk in a double boiler and stir occasionally.
> Heat the milk in a heat-proof glass container in a microwave oven."
>
> Karen

I mainly heat milk under three different circumstances. All three of these,
I use the thermopane thermometer. Instant and excellent.

1) bringing milk to a point to curdle milk for paneer cheese. I use a wide
non-stick pan, heat slowly until it comes to about 190F.

2) putting milk in a ss bowl over that same wide non-stick pan with boiling
water the pan, and bringing the milk to 180-185F. This is the temperature
I use for ice cream making, using eggs. When it is tempered, I bring it
back to 175 in the same ss bowl over water

3) 1 quart of milk in a 1 qt. pyrex container, bringing it to proper
temperature; quickly, but precisely.

Dee Dee