Question about cooking with liqueur.

"montygram" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
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Quoted message said:

I've seen recipes that call for anise extract or anise seeds. What if
I use anisette, to make a bread for example? What would the
equivalencies be, and would the anisette evaporate during baking?
Would this create a dry bread/biscotti effect, or would it just ruing
it? I guess at the right temperature it would work, right? I like to
experiment, and this seems like something to try, but I thought I'd get
some suggestions before I make a really dumb mistake.
Thanks in advance.

Extracts and oils are very concentrated. Generally you don't use more than
a teaspoon in a recipe and therefore the flavoring agent is incidental to
the formula; it doesn't change any of the chemistry or physical processes.
If you substitute a larger amount of a less concentrated flavoring, then you
start to alter the balance of the recipe unless you compensate by reducing
the amount of something else. But, if the "something else" also bring other
properties along with it, then you have made another alteration to the
formula. For instance, if you substitute three tablespoons of liqueur for 1
teaspoon of extract and compensate for the extra liquid by eliminating an
egg white, then you have reduced the structure producing proteins. If the
liqueur also has a high sugar content, then that is another change. It can
get complex.

Alcohol will never be completely eliminated during cooking when you add it
to a dough. Will it be dry - no, probably just the opposite. Will it ruin
bread or other baked goods? It all depends on how much you add and if you
compensate by altering the formula. In a simple bread, you can always add
more flour to compensate for more liquid or you can reduce some other liquid
by an equal amount.

I think that you should experiment. Unless the ingredients are expensive,
you have little to lose but your effort. That said, sometimes it doesn't
make sense to reinvent the wheel.

"montygram" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've seen recipes that call for anise extract or anise seeds. What if
I use anisette, to make a bread for example? What would the
equivalencies be, and would the anisette evaporate during baking?
Would this create a dry bread/biscotti effect, or would it just ruing
it? I guess at the right temperature it would work, right? I like to
experiment, and this seems like something to try, but I thought I'd get
some suggestions before I make a really dumb mistake.
Thanks in advance.

Add about a teaspoon to your wet ingredients for biscotti, before you add
the flour mixture. Same with quickbreads.

With unleavened breads or conversely crusty breads containing yeast, you
might change the end experience a lot by using extract rather than seeds, in
my opinion. I like coarse breads with seeds that offer the occasional burst
of flavor. You'll need to consider whether the seeds are there to impart
texture as well as taste,

"montygram" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I've seen recipes that call for anise extract or anise seeds. What if
I use anisette, to make a bread for example? What would the
equivalencies be, and would the anisette evaporate during baking?

Oils are very concentrated, extracts are next, the the much more dilute
liquer would come in.

I don't know what the substitution would b e but if you use a lquer you'd
have a lot more liquid to get the same flavor. That could throw off the
recipe.