FoodNet

Experimental cookery

1932

Page 39

Presented as published in 1932. Historical recipes may not meet modern food-safety standards. Cook from the modern interpretation, not the original instructions.
Thus at room temperature about 1 part of "Cerelose" is soluble in 1 part of water. "Cerelose" is less soluble than sucrose and goes into solution at a slower rate. The solubility of dextrose limits its use in cookery to a certain extent. Jellies average about 60 to 70 parts of sugar by weight and 30 to 40 parts of liquid or juice. Dextrose at room temperature is soluble in water to the extent of 1 part of dextrose to 1 part of water. Since the finished jellies average over 50 per cent of sugar, when dextrose alone is used in jelly it soon begins to crystallize after the jelly is cooled. If the jelly is not covered it crystallizes very rapidly. Levulose. Levulose is very soluble. It has a greater solubility than sucrose. Since it is very soluble it must be present in very large quantities before it crystallizes and is therefore very hard to crystallize. The data in the table for the solubility of levulose are obtained from the results of Jackson, Silsbee and Proffitt. The data in the third column are computed from the grams of levulose soluble in 100 grams of solution. Properties of Solutions A solute dissolved in a solvent affects the properties of the solvent or in other words alters certain of its constant characteristics. No discussion of osmotic pressure is given ; the effect on the freezing point is discussed in the chapter on freezing. These characteristics may be listed as follows: a. The vapor tension is lowered. b. The boiling point is elevated. c. The freezing point is lowered. d. The osmotic pressure is increased. EFFECT OF THE SOLUTE ON VAPOR TENSION 45 Vapor tension. Vapor tension may be defined as the vapor or gaseous pressure of a liquid. The vapor tension of a liquid depends upon the amount of vapor formed. Some liquids, like alcohol, evaporate rapidly and have a high vapor tension. Others, like water, evaporate more slowly. This gaseous pressure soon reaches a maximum at any given temperature. The maximum pressure at a definite temperature represents the vapor tension of the liquid. TABLE 9 Solubility of Levulose {Jackson, Silsbee and Proffitt) Temperature, degrees C. Grams of levulose in 100 grams of solution, or per cent Grams of levulose dissolved by 100 grams of water 20 78.94 374.8 25 80.29 407.3 30 81.64 444.6 35 82.98 487.5 40 84.34 538.5 45 85.64 596.3 50 86.90 663.3- 55 88.10 740.3 Effect of the solute on vapor tension. When a substance is dis- solved in a liquid the vapor tension of the solvent is lowered, i.e., there is less tendency to pass into the vapor state, hence the gaseous pressure is decreased. If water is the solvent, there is a tendency with a high concentration of some substances for vapor from the air to enter the solution, thus increas- ing the quantity of the solvent. This is particularly true of sugar solutions, when the humidity of the air is high and the solutions are concentrated. On damp, rainy days, fondant and similar candies have to be beaten for a longer time to crystallize, unless they are cooked to a little higher tem- perature so as to obtain a greater concentration.