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At its discovery, there wasn’t that much to baking. A dough is made, and then put in the oven for an extended period of time. However, the uses of baking have extended beyond what it once was. Evolving from bread to pie, cake, pastry, and even crazier creations, baking has become something that is used to express oneself. It has become an art form of sorts.

 

The earliest form of baking was the use of cereal grains for gruel. This gruel could be used to make the first flatbreads. These breads were seen made around the world, in many different cultures from the Indian chapati to the Mexican tortilla. Back in 2014, ovens found to be roughly 6500 years old were discovered in Croatia. This invention likely pushed the advancement of baking further into the realm of different loaves and cakes. With the first recorded intentional use of leavening agents in baked goods in 2600 B.C. by the Egyptians, baking rose to greater heights. They were known to keep large amounts of sourdough, and with ovens of their own design, many types of bread were discovered and mastered.

 

In the medieval era, baking was a luxury that very few could afford. For the wealthy that  could, white, pillowy loaves were served. For those who couldn’t, hard, black rye breads were made. The better your bread, the wealthier you tended to be. It was only those of extreme wealth that could afford to feast on cakes. However, these cakes were completely different from modern cakes, and often weighed up to 10 pounds. With the exponential growth of spices in England during the 15th century, baked goods started to become much more flavourful. Saffron especially was an extremely large import for England. Baking continued to be something only enjoyed by the rich, as sweet doughs filled with cream became very popular, for those of high wealth. The poor feasted on pies made from minced mutton and beef, biscuits of poor quality, and gingerbread made of leftover breadcrumbs. Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, baking became much more accessible, due to an influx in treacle and currants, as well as the price of sugar dropping considerably. The middle and lower classes now baked better quality foods, with higher quality gingerbread, and mince pies as we know them today. During this time, the first recipe books were also created. Recipes for different cakes, pastries, and yeasted breads were featured. The popularity of pastry-making during this time rose so much that it was taught in specialized classes. 

 

From that point up until now, the technology surrounding baking has only grown to greater heights, with each generation getting more broad and complicated. Evolving from gruel to complicated techniques such as puff pastry, baking has become a staple in many homes and cultures across the world.