MILK in ma Cake (Another informative baking discussion)

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Almost all baked product like cakes,breads,pastries(not all),dessert(not all),and even some savory dishes calls for milk(but im going to focus more on baked products).Milk is often mentioned and used for a certain cake recipe (an exception to some cakes ex:Pound cake and Dacquise). Certain cake mix would call for whole milk, cream, sour cream, mascarpone, cream cheese, and even the low fat milk. Have you ever wonder why they call for milk in a standard cake/bread recipe like butter cake, or a pain au lait (milk bread) or just a simple pancake? well im gonna share some information about milk and its function in baking. Well first of all milk came from cow it can be from horse,buffalo... but im gonna focus on the most common source the humble methane producing cows... Milk has lactose,protein,vitamins and minerals, and milk fat on it but it is made up mostly of water.People who lived in the farm says it has a little natural sweet(lactose) taste to it (sorry i never really tasted an all natural milk I mean fresh from the cow). As i mentioned above there are difference milk products that is used in baking and that includes the common Fresh milk, sour cream, and etc.Now im gonna discuss about its functions. First off it increases crust color of a baked product due to milliard reaction (I have mentioned milliard reaction in my older discussion "Sugar and Everything that makes thing sweet) Milliard reaction is a process of amino acids and protein under going caramelization turning the crust of the baked good to be brown.As i mentioned milk is made up if lactose (sugar from milk) and protein and those it makes baked good turn brown because they react to heat easily in a desirable way, its good to remember that bread and cakes that has a lot of milk should be baked in a shorter time (or reduce the temperature halfway) because they brown easily unless you like it a little browner. It also delays stalling and increases crust softness because milk proteins and lactose absorbs the water in a baked good making it more moist and delays the stalling of the baked good by trapping the water. No wonder the pain au lait i eat was sooo good and soft it has milk on it. It provides a rich milky flavor and it makes other flavor stay.Remember that fats are great flavor retainers that is why some adds vanilla during creaming the butter and sugar when making cake.The milk fats present in the milk retains flavor of some flavoring like vanilla and it incorporates a milky flavor to the baked good. It creates stable foam like when you are whipping a cream it becomes lighter and it doubles in volume its because of the fat content of the milk product like cream which is a common frosting for cakes and cupcakes. And finally it adds additional nutritional value to your baked product.Milk products or milk are high in calcium,riboflavin, vit A and D which is good for your health. So next time you drink your milk or use it in a cake mix Thank it for its awesome job in your baked product