The History of Baking

Kayla Cobb
Mr. Jenkins
Honors English 11
10 April 2009
Baking and How it Has Changed Over Time
Summary:
Baking has been different cultures’ favorite way to create snacks, desserts, and other meals for many years. Today baking is known as a way to make sweets and many different kinds of delicious pastries. In ancient history the first evidence of how baking came about was when humans soaked wild grass in water. Then they mixed everything together mashing it into a broth like paste. After that they would cook the paste that turned into a bread-like substance. Later, as baking progressed, the paste was roasted on hot embers, which made baking much easier. Records show that the Egyptians baked bread in 2500 B.C. The Egyptians may have learned how to bake bread from the Babylonians. Baking spread throughout Rome. To bake bread, the Romans used an oven with its own chimney and had grain mills to grind grain into flour. Eventually the art of baking became widely known throughout Europe, and eventually spread to the eastern parts of Asia. Bakers usually baked their goods at home and then sold them in the streets. Eventually Paris opened up the first open air café that sold baked goods. After that baking became an art through out the entire world.
Response:
Tim Tanis’ article on the history of baking shows just how much baking has changed from how baked goods are made, baked, or even presented. Baking has changed from being baked “onto a flat, hot rock, resulting in a bread-like substance” to being baked over a fire to being baked in the modern day oven. The article shows how baking progressed over the years in different countries. It shows this by stating that it spread from the Babylonians to the Egyptians. Then it went to Rome and all over Europe spreading over to Asia. It all started with bread and now there is a world wide love of all the different creations of baked goods. There are pancakes, cakes, doughnuts, cupcakes, pastries, bread, muffins, cookies, brownies and so many more things. It went from pasty dough cooked on a hot rock to a stove to amazingly decorated and designed baked substances that we have today. In conclusion baking has completely evolved.
Citation:Tanis, Tim "History of Baking." History of Baking. 3 Aug. 2008. EzineArticles.com. 10 Apr 2009 <http://ezinearticles.com/?History-of-Baking&id=1379310>.