🥐 Pastry
Also known as: baked goods
Dough products baked with dry heat: muffins made with 2% milk have 296 kcal and 200 mg of calcium per 100 g (USDA); milk adds protein and lactose.
Baking means making dough products with dry heat, usually in an oven, but also in hot ashes or on a stone (Wikipedia). Milk and dairy products go into many baked goods: milk is the liquid in the dough, and its proteins set during baking along with egg and gluten proteins. One USDA example is muffins made with 2% milk.
The composition of such muffins per 100 g: 296 kcal, 6.9 g of protein, 11.4 g of fat, 41.4 g of carbohydrates, 200 mg of calcium, 39 mg of cholesterol and 467 mg of sodium (USDA).
Wikipedia notes that eggs together with dairy products, especially cheese, are often used in desserts, and that eggs thicken baked custards. Butter is one of the fatty ingredients that make a product spread during baking. Starch gelatinizes during baking, and sugars caramelize and brown the surface. Baking is usually done at temperatures above 300 °F (about 149 °C).
The oldest baked goods were grain ground with water and baked on a hot stone. Wikipedia, citing Britannica, writes that the ancient Egyptians were the first to invent ovens, and that by 2600 BC their way of baking bread already resembled the modern one.
Pastry, cake or baking? In everyday English “pastry” often means one sweet item from a patisserie, while this page covers the process behind pastry, bread, cake and muffins alike: dough of flour, a liquid (water or milk), eggs and fats, cooked with dry heat. What differs is the recipe, not the physics: in all of them starch gelatinizes, sugars caramelize and proteins set. Milk is just one of the possible liquids, and butter is one of the fats that make a dough spread.
Baked goods hide their dairy in the ingredient list: look for milk, skimmed milk powder, butter, cream or whey. Milk is among the allergens that must be highlighted there in the EU and the UK. You will find baked goods at bakeries, patisseries and the in-store bakery of a supermarket; a loose item may carry its ingredients on a shelf label instead of a pack, so ask at the counter if the label is missing.
Why it matters to you. In baked goods milk is not always visible, but it adds lactose and protein: muffins with 2% milk have 6.9 g of protein and 200 mg of calcium per 100 g, according to USDA.
Facts
| Main use | Dough products baked with dry heat |
|---|---|
| Temperature | Usually above 300 °F (≈ 149 °C) |
| Raw material | Flour, liquid (water or milk), eggs, fats |
How it connects to milk
Links
- Used in
- 🧈 Butter
- What is used
- 🥛 Milk, 🧀 Milk powder, 🥫 Condensed milk, 🍯 Dulce de leche, 🧀 Cream cheese, 🫕 Smen, 🫖 Clotted cream, 🧀 Buttermilk, 🥛 Sterilized milk
- Who works with it
- 🧑🍳 Pastry chef
- Part of
- ☕ Milk in the kitchen: dishes and drinks
Frequently asked questions
What is baking?
Cooking dough products with dry heat, usually in an oven, but also in hot ashes or on a hot stone.
What role does milk play in baked goods?
Milk is the liquid in the dough. Its proteins set during baking together with egg and gluten proteins.
Is it true that baking only happens in an oven?
No. Baking is cooking with dry heat, usually in an oven, but it can also be done in hot ashes or on a stone; the oldest baked goods were grain ground with water and baked on a hot stone.
What is in muffins made with milk?
Per 100 g, USDA lists muffins made from a recipe with 2% milk at 296 kcal, 6.9 g of protein, 11.4 g of fat, 41.4 g of carbohydrates and 200 mg of calcium.
What happens to sugar and starch in the oven?
Starch gelatinizes and sugars caramelize, browning the surface. Baking usually takes place above 300 °F (about 149 °C).
What to read next
- 🧑🍳 Pastry chef — Makes cakes and desserts; per USDA, butter has 81 g of fat per 100 g, heavy whipping cream 36 g.
- 🧀 Cream cheese — A soft fresh cheese made from milk and cream; the US standard requires at least 33 % milkfat and no more than 55 % moisture.
- 🥫 Condensed milk — Canned milk: milk partly evaporated with sugar; under EU and US rules, at least 8% fat and 28% milk solids.
- 🥛 Sterilized milk — Drinking milk heated above 100 °C long enough to reach commercial sterility: unopened, it keeps up to 90 days at 1–25 °C (DSTU 2661) and tastes “boiled”.
- 🧀 Milk powder — A powder made from milk with the water removed (no more than 5%): whole milk powder contains 26–42% fat, skimmed up to 1.5%.
Similar
🍳 Béchamel · 🍳 Breakfast · 🍫 Milk chocolate · 🥤 Milkshake · 🌙 Warm milk at bedtime · 🥣 Breakfast cereal
ℹ️ Dairy products contain lactose and milk proteins: if you are lactose intolerant or allergic to milk protein, ask a doctor.