| Recognize and appreciate spring and winter wheat |
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Recognize and appreciate spring and winter wheat
The terms “hard” and “soft” refer to the texture of the kernels. Hard wheat is high in protein and gluten; whereas, soft wheat is low in protein and gluten. Gluten is the component of flour that makes it stretch. The more gluten you have, the more the flour can stretch and grow, or rise.
Because hard spring wheat flour has more gluten and can therefore stretch more, or rise, it is used to make breads and rolls. Conversely, soft winter wheat has less gluten and stretch and stays flat and dense, making it ideal for cookies and crackers. A blend of the two flours is called “all-purpose” and is used in dense foods that need a little rise in the dough like cake, pizza dough, and bagels. Winter wheat harvest that began in early July in south western Ontario is almost done, but spring wheat harvest in central and eastern Ontario is just about to get underway. If you see the combines rolling east of the 400 highway, they're probably destined for the bakery to become a warm, fluffy loaf of Ontario bread. You can learn more about Ontario grains online at www.whatsgrowingon.ca www.newscanada.com |
(NC)—There are two main types of wheat grown in Ontario – soft winter wheat that is planted in the fall and harvested in July, and hard spring wheat that is planted in the spring and harvested in August.Some winter wheat farmers plant their seeds as late as December when there is snow on the ground and some spring wheat farmers start planting in March when there is still frost...
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