匿名使用者 9級 2007-04-30 回答

Dessert is a course that typically comes at the end of a meal， usually consisting of sweet food but sometimes of a strongly-flavored one， such as some cheeses。 The word comes from the Old French desservir， “to clear the table。” Some common desserts are cakes， cookies， fruits， and candies。

The word dessert is most commonly used for this course in U。S。， Canada， Australia， and Ireland， while sweet， pudding or afters would be more typical terms in the UK and some other Commonwealth countries。 According to Debrett‘s， pudding is the proper term， dessert is only to be used if the course consists of fruit， and sweet is colloquial。

Although the custom of eating fruits and nuts after a meal may be very old， dessert as a standard part of a Western meal is a relatively recent development。 Before the rise of the middle class in the 19th-century， and the mechanization of the sugar industry， sweets were a privilege of the aristocracy， or a rare holiday treat。 As sugar became cheaper and more readily available， the development and popularity of desserts spread accordingly。

Some have a separate final sweet course but mix sweet and savoury dishes throughout the meal as in Chinese cuisine， or reserve elaborate dessert concoctions for special occasions。 Often， the dessert is seen as a separate meal or snack rather than a course， and may be eaten apart from the meal （usually in less formal settings）。 Some restaurants specialize in dessert。 In colloquial American usage “dessert” has a broader meaning and can refer to anything sweet that follows a meal， including milkshakes and other beverages。

One of the earliest known sweet foods is honey

A cake is a form of food that is usually sweet and often baked。 Cakes normally combine some kind of flour， a sweetening agent （commonly sugar）， a binding agent （generally egg， though gluten or starch are often used by vegetarians and vegans）， fats （usually butter or margarine， although a fruit puree can be substituted to avoid using fat）， a liquid （milk， water or fruit juice）， flavors and some form of leavening agent （such as yeast or baking powder）。

Cake is often the dessert of choice for meals at ceremonial occasions， particularly weddings， anniversaries and birthdays。 There are literally thousands of cakes recipes （some are bread-like and some rich and elaborate） and many are centuries old。 Cake making is no longer a complicated procedure； Baking utensils and directions have been so perfected and simplified that even the amateur cook may easily become an expert baker。 There are five basic types of cake， depending on the substance used for leavening。

In the United States and Canada， a cookie is a small， flat baked pastry。 In most English-speaking countries outside North America， the most common word for this is biscuit； in many regions both terms are used， while in others the two words have different meanings—a cookie is a bun in Scotland， while in North America a biscuit is a kind of quick bread。

Contents ［hide］

1 Origin

2 Etymology

3 Description

4 Classification of cookies

5 Biscuits （cookies） in the United Kingdom

6 See also

7 Notes

Origin

The earliest cookie-style cakes are thought to date back to 7th century Persia A。D。 （now Iran）， one of the first countries to cultivate sugar （luxurious cakes and pastries in large and small versions were well known in the Persian empire）。 According to historians， sugar originated either in the lowlands of Bengal or elsewhere in Southeast Asia。 Sugar spread to Persia and then to the Eastern Mediterranean。 With the Muslim invasion of Spain， then the Crusades and the developing spice trade， the cooking techniques and ingredients of Arabia spread into Northern Europe。［1］

Etymology

Its name derives from the Dutch word koekje which means little cake， and arrived in the English language through the Dutch in North America。 It spread from American English to British English where biscuit is still the more general term。

Description

Cookies can be baked until crisp or just long enough that they remain soft。 Depending on the type of cookie， some cookies are not cooked at all。 Cookies are made in a wide variety of styles， using an array of ingredients including sugars， spices， chocolate， butter， peanut butter， nuts or dried fruits。 The softness of the cookie may depend on how long it is baked。

A general theory of cookies may be formulated this way。 Despite their descent from cakes and other sweetened breads， the cookie in almost all its forms has abandoned water as a medium for cohesion。 Water in cakes serves to make the base （in the case of cakes called ’batter‘［2］） as thin as possible， which allows the bubbles – responsible for a cake’s fluffiness – to form better。 In the cookie， the agent of cohesion has become some variation of the theme of oil。 Oils， be they in the form of butter， egg yolks， vegetable oils or lard are much more viscous than water and evaporate freely at a much higher temperature than water。 Thus a cake made with butter or eggs instead of water is far denser after removal from the oven。

Oils in baked cakes do not behave as water in the finished product。 Rather than evaporating and thickening the mixture， they remain， saturating the bubbles of escaped gasses from what little water there might have been in the eggs， if added， and the carbon dioxide released by heating the baking powder。 This saturation produces the most texturally attractive feature of the cookie， and indeed all fried foods： crispness saturated with a moisture （namely oil） that does not sink into it。

Classification of cookies

Eight types of cookiesCookies are broadly classified according to how they are formed， including at least these categories：

Drop cookies are made from a relatively soft dough that is dropped by spoonfuls onto the baking sheet。 During baking， the mounds of dough spread and flatten。 Chocolate chip cookies are an example of drop cookies。

Refrigerator cookies are made from a stiff dough that is refrigerated to become even stiffer。 The dough is typically shaped into cylinders which are sliced into round cookies before baking。

Molded cookies are also made from a stiffer dough that is molded into balls or cookie shapes by hand before baking。 Snickerdoodles are an example of molded cookies。

Rolled cookies are made from a stiffer dough that is rolled out and cut into shapes with a cookie cutter。 Gingerbread men are an example。

Pressed cookies are made from a soft dough that is extruded from a cookie press into various decorative shapes before baking。 Spritzgebäck are an example of a pressed cookie。

Bar cookies consist of batter or other ingredients that are poured or pressed into a pan （sometimes in multiple layers）， and cut into cookie-sized pieces after baking。 Brownies are an example of a batter-type bar cookie， while Rice Krispie treats are a bar cookie that doesn‘t require baking， perhaps similar to a cereal bar。 In British English， bar cookies are known as “tray bakes”。

Six types of cookiesFried cookies including traditional cookies such as the zeppole as well as a newer American trend of deep-frying ordinary drop cookie dough。

Commercially-produced cookies include many varieties of sandwich cookies filled with marshmallow， jam， or icing， as well as cookies covered with chocolate which may more closely resemble a type of confectionery。

Biscuits （cookies） in the United Kingdom

A basic biscuit （cookie） recipe includes flour， shortening （often lard）， baking powder or soda， milk （buttermilk or sweet milk） and sugar。 Common savoury variations involve substituting sugar with an ingredient such as cheese or other dairy products。 Note that this is not the only type of cookie in England。 In the UK the term cookie often just refers to chocolate chip cookies or a variation