# Flour vs. Flour



## mech3d (Mar 9, 2015)

When baking cakes we are faced with the question what flour to use, should it be cake flour, self-rising, all purpose, bleached, unbleached etc.

So I am curious, what are your preferences?


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## jennyema (Mar 9, 2015)

I use cake flour for cakes if I have it.  Bread flour for almost all breads.  AP for everything else.


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## Andy M. (Mar 9, 2015)

Cake flour should be your first choice for cakes but AP flour will also work.  There would be texture differences.  They cannot be substituted one for one.  Bleached vs. unbleached within a flour type is less critical.  They can be subbed one for one.

You don't often see recipes that call for self-rising flour.  IT is most commonly called for in biscuit recipes.


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## bethzaring (Mar 9, 2015)

I generally only buy hard and soft flours; whole wheat and white. Hard/bread flours are best used for yeasted products such as bread. Soft/cake/pastry flour is best used for items leavened with baking power and baking soda, such as cookies, cakes, pancakes, biscuits. I rarely buy AP flour because I have the hard flour or soft flour in stock and use the appropriate flours as needed. I never buy self rising flour because I consider it a gimmick. I have always been fully capable of adding my own salt and leavening agents to my flour to create my own "self-rising flour".


That said, I have successfully used the "wrong" flour for some non-yeasted products.


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## Aunt Bea (Mar 9, 2015)

I grew up with plain old unbleached AP flour.

If we needed cake flour we added two tablespoons of cornstarch to the bottom of each cup of flour and sifted the mixture three times.

For self rising flour we added 1 1/2 t of baking powder and a 1/4 t of salt to the bottom of each cup of flour and sifted the mixture.


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## RPCookin (Mar 9, 2015)

Aunt Bea said:


> I grew up with plain old unbleached AP flour.
> 
> If we needed cake flour we added two tablespoons of cornstarch to the bottom of each cup of flour and sifted the mixture three times.
> 
> For self rising flour we added 1 1/2 t of baking powder and a 1/4 t of salt to the bottom of each cup of flour and sifted the mixture.



I've made bread with AP flour too.  I add a TB of vital wheat gluten to each cup, and it works just fine.  I've also started using a conditioner, and that seems to help too, especially with shelf life.


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## Kayelle (Mar 9, 2015)

All of the above is very interesting to me, although I don't bake. I only have AP flour on hand for that reason. If I get inspired to ever make a cake, I'll sure remember this AB!



Aunt Bea said:


> I grew up with plain old unbleached AP flour.
> 
> *If we needed cake flour we added two tablespoons of cornstarch to the bottom of each cup of flour and sifted the mixture three times.
> *
> For self rising flour we added 1 1/2 t of baking powder and a 1/4 t of salt to the bottom of each cup of flour and sifted the mixture.



Another question I've always wondered about....do *brands* of flours make any difference in the product?


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## Aunt Bea (Mar 9, 2015)

Kayelle said:


> All of the above is very interesting to me, although I don't bake. I only have AP flour on hand for that reason. If I get inspired to ever make a cake, I'll sure remember this AB!
> 
> 
> 
> Another question I've always wondered about....do *brands* of flours make any difference in the product?



IMO the age of the flour, and other ingredients, is more important than the brand name.  It is one of those vicious cycles where the less you bake the worse the results and the more discouraged you become.


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## CharlieD (Mar 9, 2015)

Growing up in Soviet Union we were lucky to get flour. Forget about all those options. Both my grandmother and mother were excellent cooks/bakers. The cakes, the breads, the pasta, the pastries and everything in between was absolutely amazing. I, on the other hand have hard time to bake anything with all those fancy flours available.


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## RPCookin (Mar 9, 2015)

CharlieD said:


> Growing up in Soviet Union we were lucky to get flour. Forget about all those options. Both my grandmother and mother were excellent cooks/bakers. The cakes, the breads, the pasta, the pastries and everything in between was absolutely amazing. I, on the other hand have hard time to bake anything with all those fancy flours available.



It's always been said that cooking is an art.  If that's the case, then baking is a fine art.


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## CWS4322 (Mar 9, 2015)

I tend to have a lot of different flours. I used an Indian flour to make the pooris yesterday, chickpea flour to make the coating for the Gobi. I also have wild rice, brown rice, barley, and white rice flours, a flour made from a white lentil (can't remember the name of it), whole wheat, rye, whole wheat pastry flour, pastry flour, cake flour, AP, spelt flour, graham flour, and a couple of different multigrain flours, buckwheat flour, red fife flour, and unbleached flour. And corn flours.


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## Addie (Mar 9, 2015)

The typical American recipe for baking, unless otherwise stated, when stating to use flour, is referring to All Purpose (AP) flour. Very rarely do you find recipes today that call for self rising flour for a cake. 

Sometimes a recipe for bread will specify Unbleached Flour. This is often referred to as Bread Flour in the recipe. 

Most AP flour is made from hard winter wheat. In the Southern part of the country, they prefer to use soft wheat flour for their biscuits. And in that instance, it does make a difference in making biscuits from scratch. They seem to rise higher and are lighter. 

The one other flour that is found in a lot of homes is Semolina Flour. This is used in making pasta by hand from scratch. 

For the average day in your kitchen, I would suggest that you keep AP on hand. It is used in making cakes, cookies. creating sauces, and a multitude of other dishes. 

Today's recipes suggest that you no long need to sift your flour. Just whisk it thoroughly. Some recipes will state to add 2-3 cups of "*Sifted*" flour. This is when you will be glad you have your mother's old sifter. There is a big difference between a cup of sifted flour that has passed through a sifter and a cup of flour that doesn't call for sifting first. 

My preference is to measure out the flour called for in the recipe. After I have all the dry ingredients measured out and combined, rather than just whisk it, I will then sift it. Only after I have measure EVERYTHING out. I still have the right amount of dry ingredients, just lighter in volume. It makes for a much lighter cake and cookies. 

But if the recipe calls for 2 cups of *sifted* flour, the AP flour must be sifted first with all the other dry ingredients. Measure out the amount of flour called for in the recipe, and then sift it. You will find some left over flour that can go back into your flour bin. When measuring out the sifted flour, spoon it into your measuring cup. Don't scoop it like you would normally do. 

If you have a kitchen scale, weigh a sifted cup of flour against a cup of flour that you have sifted after measuring. You will see why it is important that you pay attention to added "sifted flour" to sifting after measuring. 

Any questions? Just ask!


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## CWS4322 (Mar 9, 2015)

Since I've been "teaching" the young lads how to bake, we've been weighing flour and applying baker's percentage. I have noticed a difference in the pie crust dough when we've used pastry flour vs. AP.


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## Addie (Mar 9, 2015)

Aunt Bea said:


> I grew up with plain old unbleached AP flour.
> 
> If we needed cake flour we added two tablespoons of cornstarch to the bottom of each cup of flour and sifted the mixture three times.
> 
> For self rising flour we added 1 1/2 t of baking powder and a 1/4 t of salt to the bottom of each cup of flour and sifted the mixture.



I am sorry to see that we have gotten away from sifting the dry ingredients. Just whisking is does not do it for me. I feel that sifting all the dry ingredients together makes for a lighter end product. Yes, I have one of those sifters that you crank with the handle on the side. And it gets a lot of use in my kitchen.


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## mech3d (Mar 9, 2015)

I am glad you mentioned sifting I always wondered either to measure first then sift or sift into the cup. It does make a big difference with dry ingredients since they can be packed and the end result may be more flour than the recipe calls for.


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## bakechef (Mar 9, 2015)

I try to formulate all of my cake recipes with all purpose flour.  While cake flour is very often the best choice, I always have all purpose on hand.  

I do like bread flour for bread and pizza dough.


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## Andy M. (Mar 9, 2015)

Addie said:


> ...Sometimes a recipe for bread will specify Unbleached Flour. This is often referred to as Bread Flour in the recipe. ...



Any flour can be unbleached.  King Arthur flours are unbleached, both AP and bread flours.  Some national brands are all bleached.


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## Kayelle (Mar 9, 2015)

Kayelle said:


> Another question I've always wondered about....do *brands* of flours make any difference in the product?



*Like King Arthur or Lilly?*



Addie said:


> Most AP flour is made from hard winter wheat. In the Southern part of the country, they prefer to use soft wheat flour for their biscuits. And in that instance, it does make a difference in making biscuits from scratch. They seem to rise higher and are lighter.
> Any questions? Just ask!



OK so what's "hard winter wheat" and "soft wheat flour"? I assume their claim to fame with "soft wheat flour" is they are superior to lets say, Gold Medal all purpose four. Sounds like a marketing ploy with northern vs. southern to me, but I've been known to be wrong. 
The west is neutral.


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## taxlady (Mar 9, 2015)

Hard flour is bread flour. It has more gluten than soft flour, which is cake/pastry flour. AP flour is pretty much half hard flour and half soft flour.

BTW, if you feel hard flour with your fingers, it feels slightly sandy. If you feel soft flour, it feels soft and powdery.


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## Andy M. (Mar 9, 2015)

To get a little more technical, hard wheat yields flours with higher protein content.  Higher protein flours create more gluten when used in a recipe.  Higher gluten content results in a tougher/chewier product.  Think hearty breads.

Soft wheat yields flours with lower protein content that creates less gluten.  The result is a softer more tender product.  Think cakes and pastries.

AP flour is a compromise product that can work for breads and cakes.


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## CWS4322 (Mar 9, 2015)

Addie said:


> I am sorry to see that we have gotten away from sifting the dry ingredients. Just whisking is does not do it for me. I feel that sifting all the dry ingredients together makes for a lighter end product. Yes, I have one of those sifters that you crank with the handle on the side. And it gets a lot of use in my kitchen.


What, Addie? I still sift flour like my grandma taught me...you mean I don't have to do that? I have my grandma's sifter and use it all the time!


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## bakechef (Mar 9, 2015)

Bleaching also creates a softer flour, that's why cake flour is almost always bleached.  King Arthur makes an unbleached version but explains on the package that it will not produce as soft a cake as bleached cake flour.


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## Cooking Goddess (Mar 10, 2015)

I've made one attempt (so far) at from-scratch baking powder biscuits. I didn't use this recipe (yet), but their flour chart is simple, explanatory, and informational. I hunt it down every time I have a question about flour. Seriously, I have to hunt - I can never remember which folder I hide it in.

*How to Make the Best Buttermilk Biscuits from Scratch - Pinch My Salt*

I rarely bake anything that requires a soft flour. I've found that in spite of a higher protein content (13%), unbleached, white whole-wheat flour works fine for me. Even when I bake scones.




CWS4322 said:


> What, Addie? I still sift flour like my grandma taught me...you mean I don't have to do that? I have my grandma's sifter and use it all the time!


I sift too, although I have my own flour sifter. I'm always careful to see if a recipe calls for sifting before measuring, since so many recipes I use are old ones. My Mom's sifter has now been designated a sugar sifter if I'm using a large amount of powder sugar.


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## Addie (Mar 10, 2015)

mech3d said:


> I am glad you mentioned sifting I always wondered either to measure first then sift or sift into the cup. It does make a big difference with dry ingredients since they can be packed and the end result may be more flour than the recipe calls for.



Just remember if the recipe says "2 cups of *sifted* flour, you measure out your flour *after* you have sifted it.


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## Addie (Mar 10, 2015)

CWS4322 said:


> What, Addie? I still sift flour like my grandma taught me...you mean I don't have to do that? I have my grandma's sifter and use it all the time!



I hate to watch Martha S. bake. According to her and a lot of others on TV, nope you no long have to sift. Just whisk all the dry ingredients. Hogwash! 

I keep a zippy bag of the dry ingredients in the fridge. Saves me a lot of work when someone asks me for Hershey's Chocolate Cake. I always sift it before I add any of the wet ingredients. Like you, I grew up sifting and I always will sift.


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## Aunt Bea (Mar 10, 2015)

If you don't still have your Granny's sifter you can get good results using a fine mesh wire strainer similar to this one.  Just tap it against the palm of your hand.







Browne-Foodservice - S9098 8" Fine Mesh Stainless Steel Single Strainer


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## bakechef (Mar 10, 2015)

I don't often sift anymore, I don't find a difference.  I do sift if I'm using a lot of spices to help break up the lumpy bits, or if my baking soda looks a bit clumpy.  My mom ALWAYS sifts.  

I do need a new sifter, the one I have gets more rust every time I wash it (which isn't often). I like a sifter because the ingredients go straight into the bowl, I always make a mess with dry ingredients in a sieve.

Sent from my XT1080 using Discuss Cooking mobile app


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## RPCookin (Mar 10, 2015)

bakechef said:


> I don't often sift anymore, I don't find a difference.  I do sift if I'm using a lot of spices to help break up the lumpy bits, or if my baking soda looks a bit clumpy.  My mom ALWAYS sifts.
> 
> I do need a new sifter, the one I have gets more rust every time I wash it (which isn't often). I like a sifter because the ingredients go straight into the bowl, I always make a mess with dry ingredients in a sieve.
> 
> Sent from my XT1080 using Discuss Cooking mobile app



When I sift, I use a screen sieve, but I don't usually sift unless I feel the need to thoroughly mix the dry ingredients.  What I do is weigh rather than depend on volume.  

1 cup of flour is supposed to weigh 5 ounces.  Unsifted flour here in arid Colorado comes out of my big glass flour canister dead on - I've weighed it several times just to test.  It also tells me that my cheapo tin measuring cups are accurate, something I was a bit surprised to find out.  I suppose that in a more humid environment, a cup might weigh a bit more.  Sifted flour should be a bit lighter, but I've never tested it.


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## CharlieD (Mar 10, 2015)

CWS4322 said:


> Since I've been "teaching" the young lads how to bake, we've been weighing flour and applying baker's percentage. I have noticed a difference in the pie crust dough when we've used pastry flour vs. AP.




+ 1. The best way to do it.


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## bakechef (Mar 10, 2015)

RPCookin said:


> When I sift, I use a screen sieve, but I don't usually sift unless I feel the need to thoroughly mix the dry ingredients.  What I do is weigh rather than depend on volume.
> 
> 1 cup of flour is supposed to weigh 5 ounces.  Unsifted flour here in arid Colorado comes out of my big glass flour canister dead on - I've weighed it several times just to test.  It also tells me that my cheapo tin measuring cups are accurate, something I was a bit surprised to find out.  I suppose that in a more humid environment, a cup might weigh a bit more.  Sifted flour should be a bit lighter, but I've never tested it.



I weigh as well, it's just easier, and so much more accurate.  When I convert my old recipes I also use the 5 oz. per cup of flour standard, it works well for me.


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## Mad Cook (Mar 10, 2015)

mech3d said:


> When baking cakes we are faced with the question what flour to use, should it be cake flour, self-rising, all purpose, bleached, unbleached etc.
> 
> So I am curious, what are your preferences?


It depends on the recipe. I usually use self-raising flour for cakes because that's what most British cake recipes ask for, plain flour for pastry, "strong" flour (ie flour with a high gluten fcontent for most yeast cookery- but in any case use what the recipe states. I like unbleached because it is usually better quality than artificially and chemically bleached flour. 

Unless you really know what you are doing don't try playing around with the type of flour or he raising agent in a recipe as you will be heading for disaster.


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## taxlady (Mar 10, 2015)

I often substitute whole grain flour for white flour and with cakes, biscuits, cookies, and muffins, it has never been a problem.


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## mech3d (Mar 12, 2015)

So much great information - this is a great forum, glad I found it.


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## Addie (Mar 12, 2015)

mech3d said:


> So much great information - this is a great forum, glad I found it.



We are glad you found it also. Stick around for more information and fun.


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## Mad Cook (Mar 12, 2015)

Kayelle said:


> All of the above is very interesting to me, although I don't bake. I only have AP flour on hand for that reason. If I get inspired to ever make a cake, I'll sure remember this AB!
> 
> 
> 
> Another question I've always wondered about....do *brands* of flours make any difference in the product?


I must say that there are brands that I don't use because I don't think the results are as good as with those that I do use. (No point in mentioning brands as I'm not in your area.) Price is not always an issue in this

I tend to be less picky about plain flour than I am about self raising flour. The only difference I can see between plain flours sourced from reputable sources is that the cheaper brands need more sifting. Sifting flour is a bit of a thing among cooks in my country. All English cookery books call for it when baking. From observations while watching Food Network and other US cookery programmes, American cooks don't usually bother with sifting. Is that generally the case? Specific "cake" flours are a bit of a recent innovation in the UK and don't seem to be widely used.


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## Addie (Mar 12, 2015)

I honestly think the not sifting and using a whisk instead came about because sifting takes time, using a whisk is much quicker. On TV, time is of the essence. So using the whisk came about. I always sift. But then I am not in front of a TV camera.


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## Mad Cook (Mar 12, 2015)

taxlady said:


> I often substitute whole grain flour for white flour and with cakes, biscuits, cookies, and muffins, it has never been a problem.


 Sorry, Taxi, I didn't make myself clear. I meant self-raising as opposed to plain flour (ie flour packed without raising agents added at the factory), not whole grain, white, etc. I often substitute flours as you metion.


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## taxlady (Mar 12, 2015)

I quit sifting flour when I switched to wholegrain, so I don't sift out the bran. Okay, I do sift wholegrain cake flour. For the hard flour, I really don't find it causes a problem. I used to use a fork to mix the ingredients until I saw someone use a whisk. It's quicker and seems more efficient than a fork


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## bakechef (Mar 12, 2015)

Mad Cook said:


> I must say that there are brands that I don't use because I don't think the results are as good as with those that I do use. (No point in mentioning brands as I'm not in your area.) Price is not always an issue in this
> 
> I tend to be less picky about plain flour than I am about self raising flour. The only difference I can see between plain flours sourced from reputable sources is that the cheaper brands need more sifting. Sifting flour is a bit of a thing among cooks in my country. All English cookery books call for it when baking. From observations while watching Food Network and other US cookery programmes, American cooks don't usually bother with sifting. Is that generally the case? Specific "cake" flours are a bit of a recent innovation in the UK and don't seem to be widely used.



I grew up sifting, and most people that I knew that baked, sifted.  I think that a new generation is "discovering" baking and this is just a shortcut that has become popular.  I sometimes sift and sometimes don't.  With most things I don't really notice much difference.  I will say that as soon as I buy a better sifter, I'll likely sift more since my instinct is to sift.


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## Blackitty (Mar 16, 2015)

I don't have a sifter.  

I've been watching Alton Brown (really like him, so much better than the rest of the show-offs) and he said to skip the sifter.  Said we should weigh the flour (he's very big on weighing!) and then put the stuff in the food processor to sift it.

Running it through the FP does make it poofier, but it loses some of the poof when it's transferred.

Any thoughts on FP versus real sifting? (Should I get a sifter?)


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## taxlady (Mar 16, 2015)

Blackitty said:


> I don't have a sifter.
> 
> I've been watching Alton Brown (really like him, so much better than the rest of the show-offs) and he said to skip the sifter.  Said we should weigh the flour (he's very big on weighing!) and then put the stuff in the food processor to sift it.
> 
> ...



You can use a sieve instead of a sifter. If you start to do a lot of baking, you will know when it's time to get a sifter.

Since you like whisking, why not just whisk instead of using the food processor. Unless you are going to use the FP for some other part of the recipe and get it dirty anyway, the whisk will be much less clean up.

I really like Alton Brown too, but he isn't always right, just most of the time. 

BTW, Welcome to DC.


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## Aunt Bea (Mar 16, 2015)

Blackitty said:


> I don't have a sifter.
> 
> I've been watching Alton Brown (really like him, so much better than the rest of the show-offs) and he said to skip the sifter.  Said we should weigh the flour (he's very big on weighing!) and then put the stuff in the food processor to sift it.
> 
> ...



If I was just starting out I would invest in a good scale instead of a sifter.

A sifter or food processor would be handy to mix various dry ingredients like flour, baking powder, cocoa, spices etc...

Borrow your Mom's sifter and see what you think, she may not even ask you to return it! 

Good luck!


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## Blackitty (Mar 16, 2015)

I got a scale.  I've started weighing things.  

I do whisk it, lol. I whisk everything I can and probably longer than is needed.  But I run it through the FP when sifting is called for...because Alton said so and for no other reason.  It isn't hard to clean, but those food processors do have a lot of parts.  It's kind of a pain in the butt.

I want to make cakes that are as yummy as they can be.  So, if actual sifting is best, then that's what I want to do.

I also want my breads to rise better.  They taste good and aren't doughy or anything and no tunnels, but they don't get very high up and I'm trying to work on that, too.  I honestly don't know what I'm doing wrong there, so no clue on how to fix it.  Kind of hoping that I'll just get better somehow.  Maybe real sifting will help.


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## taxlady (Mar 16, 2015)

Do you have a sieve? Sieves work just fine for true sifting. Sieves are handy for lots of things. Mine gets used a lot for rinsing rice before I cook it.


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## Addie (Mar 16, 2015)

Blackitty said:


> I don't have a sifter.
> 
> I've been watching Alton Brown (really like him, so much better than the rest of the show-offs) and he said to skip the sifter.  Said we should weigh the flour (he's very big on weighing!) and then put the stuff in the food processor to sift it.
> 
> ...



Yes you should. All the FP does is mix the dry ingredients together. It does not put air into the mixture. That is what a sifter does. And you will find that you will come across recipes that require sifting for the best results.


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## Andy M. (Mar 16, 2015)

Addie said:


> Yes you should. All the FP does is mix the dry ingredients together. It does not put air into the mixture. That is what a sifter does. And you will find that you will come across recipes that require sifting for the best results.




Addie, I think a FP aerates dry ingredients very well.  It would be a good substitute for a sifter if you needed the FP for other parts of the recipe.  I wouldn't bring out the FP just to aerate flour.


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## taxlady (Mar 16, 2015)

Andy M. said:


> Addie, I think a FP aerates dry ingredients very well.  It would be a good substitute for a sifter if you needed the FP for other parts of the recipe.  I wouldn't bring out the FP just to aerate flour.


Exactly


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## RPCookin (Mar 16, 2015)

Blackitty said:


> I don't have a sifter.
> 
> I've been watching Alton Brown (really like him, so much better than the rest of the show-offs) and he said to skip the sifter.  Said we should weigh the flour (he's very big on weighing!) and then put the stuff in the food processor to sift it.
> 
> ...




I did neither when I made ciabatta bread this weekend, but then bread is a different animal.  I've never seen any bread recipe that recommended sifting or processing.   

I did weigh everything except the yeast and salt.  I weighed the flour and the water to get exactly the right proportions.  I replaced some of the flour with conditioner (one tablespoon per 5 oz. of flour) and vital wheat gluten (one teaspoon per 5 oz.), adding the conditioner and gluten before all of the flour, then using more flour to bring it up to the exact weight.  Proper bread textures require correct dry to wet percentages, and the only real way to get it as close as possible is by weight.   

Process is equally important.  For me, ciabatta takes an overnight fermenting for the poolish, then about 4½ hours of mixing, kneading, folding, resting and baking before the meal it's intended to be eaten at.


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## Cooking Goddess (Mar 16, 2015)

Blackitty said:


> ...I run it through the FP when sifting is called for...because Alton said so and for no other reason.  It isn't hard to clean, but those food processors do have a lot of parts.  It's kind of a pain in the butt...


AB isn't the one cleaning up your kitchen equipment. If he's willing to send his prep people and clean-up people to your home, use the FP.  Otherwise, whisk or sift. I sift before measuring if the recipe calls for it. I sift all dry ingredients together if a recipe calls for it. Otherwise, whisking blends the dry ingredients adequately and adds a bit of air.


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## bakechef (Mar 16, 2015)

Blackitty said:


> I got a scale.  I've started weighing things.
> 
> I do whisk it, lol. I whisk everything I can and probably longer than is needed.  But I run it through the FP when sifting is called for...because Alton said so and for no other reason.  It isn't hard to clean, but those food processors do have a lot of parts.  It's kind of a pain in the butt.
> 
> ...



Sifting won't make your bread rise better.  Once liquid is added to flour, and volume that you've built up from sifting is gone.

I like to sift if there are a lot of spices to incorporate with the flour or if my baking soda looks a bit clumpy, the rest of the time I whisk, I would never use my FP, no way I'm going to clean that just to sift.


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## Addie (Mar 16, 2015)

taxlady said:


> Do you have a sieve? Sieves work just fine for true sifting. Sieves are handy for lots of things. Mine gets used a lot for rinsing rice before I cook it.



Excellent suggestion. Just for straining pasta alone makes it worthwhile. And it is easier to break up the lumps with a sieve.


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## Maelinde (Mar 16, 2015)

taxlady said:


> Do you have a sieve? Sieves work just fine for true sifting. Sieves are handy for lots of things. Mine gets used a lot for rinsing rice before I cook it.




My sifter broke a few months ago and I've been using sieves for the time being.

Never thought to rinse rice in it, though!  Thank you Taxlady for that tip.


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## Mad Cook (Mar 16, 2015)

Aunt Bea said:


> If you don't still have your Granny's sifter you can get good results using a fine mesh wire strainer similar to this one. Just tap it against the palm of your hand.
> 
> 
> 
> ...


That's what I use and I always sift. Because we almost always weigh ingredients over here it doesn't matter whether we sift before or after.

As for flour, we don't have the equivalent of your AP flour so it's plain flour for pastry, self-raising for most cakes and strong flour for Bread. Very soft cake flour is a fairly recent addition over here and not widely used so far. Most varieties come in bleached or unbleached (unbleached is more expensive) and wholemeal flour

We also have specialist flours such as rye flour (mainly for bread making) available.


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## Mad Cook (Mar 16, 2015)

Blackitty said:


> I got a scale. I've started weighing things.
> 
> I do whisk it, lol. I whisk everything I can and probably longer than is needed. But I run it through the FP when sifting is called for...because Alton said so and for no other reason. It isn't hard to clean, but those food processors do have a lot of parts. It's kind of a pain in the butt.
> 
> ...


I always sift but recently I was in a tearing hurry and trying to do several things at once. I decided not to bother with sifting flour for a madeira cake and when it was cooked you could tell I hadn't sifted. I've made that recipe hundreds of times and it's always worked but the time I didn't sift the flour the texture of the cake was not good. It was course and crumbly and difficult to cut and it didn't taste quite as good.


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## Blackitty (Mar 17, 2015)

Thanks, everyone!  This board is so helpful!

I have a sieve and will use that for sifting.  One less thing to buy and yay that.  Sieve cleaning is easier than FP cleaning.  FPs would be much handier if they weren't a pain to clean.  I'm still doing things myself that I thought I'd let it do, because it's quicker to chop the onions myself than it is to clean it.  I'm only using it to do things that I simply couldn't do without it.  I suppose a smaller one might be helpful there, but my money and counter space are not unlimited.

I'm eager to see the difference with the sifting.  Planning to make a layer cake, so I'm going to do one with unsifted and one with sifted, to see how they differ. 

I feel like I should be paying you people.  You're teaching me so much.  Thanks!


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## taxlady (Mar 17, 2015)

Instead of getting a small FP, I got this Cuisinart immersion blender with attachments. There is a whisk and a mini food processor. I use this all the time and it's easy to clean. Probably I use it a lot because it is easy to clean.

https://www.cuisinart.com/products/hand_blenders/csb-79.html


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