Baking mix

A baking mix is a pre-mixed formulation of ingredients used for the cooking of baked goods. Baking mixes may be commercially manufactured or homemade. Baking mixes that cater to particular dietary needs, such as gluten-free baking mixes or kosher baking mixes, can be bought in many places.

The contents of a chocolate cake baking mix
A cake baking mix being mixed together

Types

Baking mixes are produced for the preparation of specific foods such as breads, quick breads, pancakes, waffles,[1] cakes, muffins, cookies, brownies[2] pizza dough,[3] biscuits[4] and various desserts,[5] among other foods. Some all-purpose baking mixes, including commercial and homemade varieties, can be used to prepare several types of baked goods,[1][6] such as biscuits, pizza dough, muffins, cookies and pancakes,[7] among others. Some bread baking mixes are formulated for use in a bread machine.[8]

Ingredients in baking mixes may include flour, bread flour, baking powder, baking soda, yeast,[2] sugar and salt, as well as others depending upon the food type. Gluten-free baking mixes may be prepared using rice flour in place of wheat flour.[2][9] Dry baking mixes typically require the addition of water or milk, and may also require additional ingredients such as eggs, butter and cooking oil.

Size

Some baking mixes are sold in bulk volumes, and the baker measures out the amount needed. In other cases, the mix is sold pre-measured in a commonly desired size, such as enough baking mix to make a particular size of cake. Around 2012, most large American manufacturers of cake mixes reduced the size of their standard cake mixes by about 15% by weight, as a result of rising prices for ingredients.[10] This resulted in complaints from some customers about the mix making smaller cakes or fewer cupcakes.[10] Betty Crocker and Pillsbury mixes shrank from 18.25 ounces to 15.25 ounces. However, not all manufacturers followed this trend of reducing the amount to maintain the price; the King Arthur Flour Company, which makes premium-quality cake mixes, continued to produce 22-ounce cake mixes.[10]

Brands and companies

Brands

Arrowhead Mills[11] is a brand of organic baking mixes, cereals, grains and nut butters. The company was founded in 1960 by nutritionist Frank Ford in Hereford, the seat of Deaf Smith County in the southern Texas Panhandle west of Amarillo, Texas. Many Arrowhead Mills products are certified at least 70 percent organic by the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) or Pro-Cert Organic Systems.

Atkins Nutritionals produces an all-purpose baking mix, along with several other foods.[12] Dr. Atkins founded Atkins Nutritionals, Inc. in 1989 to promote the low-carbohydrate products of his increasingly popular Atkins diet. This diet was developed after Atkins read a research paper in the Journal of the American Medical Association published by Gordon Azar and Walter Lyons Bloom. Atkins used information from the study to resolve his own overweight condition.

General Mills owns the brand Betty Crocker, under which a variety of foods are purveyed, including baking mixes.[13] Marjorie Husted was the creator of Betty Crocker. She was a home economist and businesswoman under whose supervision the image of Betty Crocker became an icon for General Mills. In 1921, Washburn Crosby merged with five or more other milling companies to form General Mills. There are a number of Betty Crocker-branded products, such as plastic food containers and measuring cups, and a line of small appliances like popcorn poppers and sandwich makers with the Betty Crocker brand name. It also owns the Pillsbury Company, which makes its own baking mixes.

Bisquick is a baking mix brand that was founded by Carl Smith in 1931. At the time, Smith was employed a sales executive for the General Mills, Inc. Sperry Division.[14] Bisquick may be used to bake several foods, such as biscuits, pancakes, coffee cake[15] and other baked goods. According to General Mills, Bisquick was invented in 1930 after one of their top sales executives met an innovative train dining car chef on a business trip. After the sales executive complimented the chef on his deliciously fresh biscuits, the dining car chef shared that he used a pre-mixed biscuit batter he created consisting of lard, flour, baking powder and salt. The chef then stored his pre-mixed biscuit batter on ice in his kitchen ahead of time, enabling him to bake fresh biscuits quickly on the train every day. As soon as the sales executive returned from that business trip, he stole the chef's idea and created Bisquick.

Bob's Red Mill is an American company that produces over 400 products, including baking mixes.[5][16] The company is a producer of lines of natural, certified organic, and gluten-free milled grain products, billing itself as the "nation's leading miller of diverse whole-grain foods."[17] In February 2010, owner Bob Moore transferred ownership of the company to his employees using an employee stock ownership plan.[18]

Dassant is an American brand of baking mixes.[19] The company was founded in 1980, with its specialization product the Classic Beer Bread. Dassant Truffle Brownie mix was first introduced in 1987. Since then it has been reviewed by numerous publications. In January 2012, Woman's World Magazine called the mixes the "holy grail of brownie mixes".[20] In early 2012, the company introduced a line of baking mixes including pancakes, cookies, carrot cake and pumpkin bread.[21]

Grain elevators at the Chelsea Milling Company, manufacturer of Jiffy mix products, in Chelsea, Michigan

Jiffy mix is a baking mix brand produced and owned by the Chelsea Milling Company in Chelsea, Michigan.[22] Jiffy mix has been produced since 1930.[22] As of 2015, 19 mixes are produced, which are distributed to all of the U.S. states, and in 32 countries.[22][23] Most of the company's products are handled, processed and produced in-house, which includes grain storage, the grinding of grains into flour, product mixing and box manufacturing.[23][24]

Martha White is an American brand under which several baking mixes are purveyed.[25] The Martha White brand was established as the premium brand of Nashville, Tennessee-based Royal Flour Mills in 1899.[26] At that time, Nashville businessman Richard Lindsey introduced a fine flour that he named for his daughter, Martha White Lindsey.[27] The Martha White brand is probably most associated with its long-term sponsorship of the Grand Ole Opry, a radio program featuring country music.[26]

Companies

Auntie Anne's is an American chain of pretzel bakeries that also produces a pretzel baking mix.[28] The chain started as a market stand in the Downingtown, Pennsylvania Farmer's Market. Auntie Anne's now has over 300 franchisees with more than 1,500 locations in the United States and more than 23 countries globally.

Cherrybrook Kitchen is a company that produces baking mixes[29] and other baking products. The company was founded in response to the growing number of children and adults diagnosed with food allergies. 11 million adults and children are affected by peanut, dairy, egg and nut allergens, while approximately one in 133 Americans suffers from celiac disease.[30]

The King Arthur Flour Company is an American supplier of flour,[31] baking mixes,[16] baked goods and cookbooks. The company was founded in 1790 in Boston, Massachusetts by Henry Wood. In 1996 the company's name was changed to The King Arthur Flour Co. to reflect its principal brand, and also converted to an employee-owned business structure. The employee-owned company has been named one of the Best Places to Work in Vermont every year since the inception of the award in 2006.[32]

Pinnacle Foods is an American packaged foods company that owns the Duncan Hines brand, which includes cake mixes.[33] Duncan Hines (March 26, 1880 – March 15, 1959) was an American pioneer of restaurant ratings for travelers. He is best known today for the brand of food products that bears his name. In 1952, Hines introduced Duncan Hines bread through the Durkee's Bakery Company of Homer, New York. Principals Michael C. Antil Sr., Albert Durkee, and Lena Durkee were the bakery proprietors. This was Duncan Hines' first foray into baked goods. In 1957, Nebraska Consolidated Mills, who at the time owned the cake mix license, sold the cake mix business to the U.S. consumer products company Procter & Gamble. The company expanded the business to the national market and added a series of related products.

Streit's is a kosher food company based in New York City that produces 11 cake mixes.[34] The company also produces pancake mixes and many other foods. The company was founded in 1916 by Aron Streit, a Jewish immigrant from Austria. Its first factory was on Pitt Street in the Lower East Side of Manhattan. The company's 47,000-square-foot (4,400 m2) matzo factory, along with Katz’s Delicatessen and Yonah Schimmel’s Knish Bakery, is a surviving piece of the Lower East Side's Jewish heritage.[35]

  • Baking mixes
  • An advertisement for Henry Jones Self-Raising Flour, Bristol, UK (between circa 1845 and circa 1880)
  • A spicy baking mix in Hong Kong

See also

References
  1. Perillo, J. (2013). Homemade with Love: Simple Scratch Cooking from in Jennie's Kitchen. Running Press. ISBN 978-0-7624-4723-7.
  2. Layton, McFadden; Larsen, L. (2011). Gluten-Free Baking For Dummies. For Dummies. Wiley. pp. 151–168. ISBN 978-1-118-07773-3.
  3. Davis, W. (2013). Wheat Belly 30-Minute (Or Less!) Cookbook: 200 Quick and Simple Recipes to Lose the Wheat, Lose the Weight, and Find Your Path Back to Health. Rodale Books. p. 185. ISBN 978-1-62336-208-9.
  4. Heeren, M. (2014). 10 Ways to Use Biscuit Mix (Recipe Book). MicJames. p. 9.
  5. Qualizza, Jill Russell (September 3, 2014). "Bakery Trends Go Back to Basics". Food Processing. Retrieved June 6, 2015.
  6. Wilbur, T. (2009). Top Secret Recipes Unlocked: All New Home Clones of America's Favorite Brand-Name Foods. Penguin Publishing Group. ISBN 978-1-101-15242-3.
  7. Better Baking Mix. Washington State University College of Agricultural, Human, and Natural Resource Sciences. Revised March 2006. Accessed June 6, 2015.
  8. Dailey, Pat (November 29, 1995). "Have a bread machine, and although it is very easy to..." Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 6, 2015.
  9. great, Rice flour (March 9, 2011). "Rice flour great for gluten-free baking (and onion rings)". The Press of Atlantic City. Retrieved June 6, 2015.
  10. Popken, Ben (1 August 2013). "Cupcake conundrum: Cake mixes shrinking along with other favorite products". TODAY.com. Retrieved 2017-03-06.
  11. Ford, F. (1974). The simpler life cookbook from Arrowhead Mills. Harvest Press. ISBN 978-0-930718-00-8.
  12. "Atkins Nutritionals Holdings, Inc.: Private Company Information". Bloomberg Businessweek. June 6, 2015. Retrieved June 6, 2015.
  13. Sutherland, Brooke (March 20, 2015). "General Mills' Rut Could Put Betty Crocker on Notice: Real M&A". Bloomberg Business. Retrieved June 6, 2015.
  14. Jorgensen, J. (1994). Encyclopedia of Consumer Brands: Consumable Products. Encyclopedia of consumer brands. Saint James Press. p. 62. ISBN 978-1-55862-336-1. Quote: "Bisquick brand of baking mix founded in 1931 by Carl Smith, a sales executive of the Sperry Division of General Mills, Inc., who discovered the "instant mix" idea in 1930 in the dining car of a train; Bisquick name coined by ..."
  15. Johnson, F.K. 101 Simple Coffee Cake Recipes. Fraser Keith Johnson. p. 11.
  16. Griepentrog, Troy (June 1, 2015). "Gluten-Free Baking Mixes and Other Gluten-Free Products". Mother Earth News. Retrieved June 6, 2015.
  17. Strom, Shelly. Taking Red Mill global. Portland Business Journal, February 18, 2005.
  18. Tims, Dana (February 16, 2010). "Founder of Bob's Red Mill Natural Foods transfers business to employees". The Oregonian. Retrieved 17 February 2010.
  19. "Adweek". Volume 29, Issues 31–39. A/S/M Communications. 1988. p. 194. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
  20. "You Deserve the Best....Brownie Mix!". Woman's World. January 30, 2012. Truffle-packed indulgence
  21. "Dassant Introduces a New Face in Premium Baking Mixes" (Press release). Yahoo News. February 1, 2012.
  22. Pardo, Steve (April 30, 2015). "Happy 85th birthday, Jiffy mix". The Detroit News. Retrieved May 31, 2015.
  23. Seguin, Nichole (October 31, 2013). "Made in Michigan: Chelsea's Jiffy expansion means a lot more muffins". Chelsea Standard. Retrieved May 31, 2015.
  24. Karol, Gabrielle (August 19, 2013). "Jiffy Mix Recipe: If it Works, Leave it Alone". Fox Business. Retrieved May 31, 2015.
  25. "Company News; Pillsbury to Acquire Tennessee Baking Mix Business". The New York Times. July 20, 1994. Retrieved June 6, 2015.
  26. Samuelson, Dave (2012). "Martha White Flour". In P. Kingsbury, M. McCall & J. Rumble (ed.). The Encyclopedia of Country Music. Oxford University Press. pp. 1281–1283. ISBN 978-0-19-992083-9. Retrieved 23 September 2013.
  27. Sheckler Finch, Jackie (2009). Nashville. Globe Pequot. p. 81. ISBN 978-0-7627-5567-7. Retrieved 24 September 2013.
  28. Omazic, Tamara (November 12, 2013). "Auntie Anne's in Your Kitchen? Brand Expands Baking Mix". QSR magazine. Retrieved June 6, 2015.
  29. Pascal, C. (2010). Allergen-Free Baker's Handbook. Potter/TenSpeed/Harmony. p. 2. ISBN 978-1-58761-375-3.
  30. "SPINS". SPINS. Retrieved August 15, 2011.
  31. Anderson, D.A.; Sands, F. (2004). King Arthur Flour Company. Images of America. Arcadia Pub. ISBN 978-0-7385-3626-2.
  32. "Best Places to Work in Vermont". The Best Companies Group, Inc. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  33. Hatchett, L. (2001). Duncan Hines: The Man Behind the Cake Mix. Mercer University Press. ISBN 978-0-86554-773-5.
  34. Travers, L. (2006). Encyclopedia of American holidays and national days. Encyclopedia of American Holidays and National Days. Greenwood Press. p. 101. ISBN 978-0-313-33131-2.
  35. Snyder, Tamar (2007). "Streit's Leaving Lower East Side". The Jewish Week News. Archived from the original on 2008-02-21. Retrieved 2008-03-03.
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