> Both are simple sugars which are derived from malting
> (or sprouting) barley, and they not only contribute
> sweetness--though much less than table sugar--but they
> also promote enzyme activity and add to the leavening
> effects of yeast.
Actually, this isn't true. I can't speak to the syrup, but diastatic malt
powder is NOT primarily a simple sugar. To make the powder, barley is
placed in water until it just starts to sprout, it is then dried out to
stop the growth and ground into a powder. If the timing is right, and the
growth is stopped at the right time, the primary yield from the powder is
enzymes not sugar. These enzymes allow the starches in the flour to be
broken down into sugars by the yeast in the bread which enhances the
raising power of the yeast.
You have to be careful that you are getting "diastatic" malt powder, which
shouldn't taste particularly sweet. Non-diastatic malt powder is made by
allowing the barley to sprout longer, to the point where the enzymes have
been used up by the grain and sugars have been produced. Non-diastatic
malt powder has very little use in bread baking other than to impart a
"malty" taste.
thanx,
dave.
*8-o