I finished the last sourdough loaf last evening and thought I'd bake a savoury soda loaf to a new recipe this morning.
I decided I'd include sunflower seeds and, in order to emphasise the 'savoury', I also made the liquid component with vegetable stock - one Knorr vegetable stock cuboid dissolved in the 375ml of water. Commercial stock has salt included so I reduced the additional salt to ½ teaspoon.
The result is very tasty indeed but an 'interesting' chemical reaction has taken place:
Just look at the original colour of the sunflower seeds and their colour in the baked loaf! Here's a closer view:
I suspect that either there has indeed been a chemical reaction between the acid (white wine vinegar) and the sunflower seeds or the alkali (the bicarbonate of soda) and the sunflower seeds
or the sunflower seeds contain an 'indicator' (anyone remember that from school chemistry lessons?).
I sense further experiments on the horizon!
In any case, the loaf is a culinary and, depending on one's view, a visual delight and will be repeated.
Colin