How to Make Cake Flour

If you’ve baked my recipes or read my cookbooks, then you know I usually call out King Arthur for the best cake flour. No one makes an organic cake flour – yet. I am waiting for someone to make one, so I can use it! But, King Arthur makes a Non-GMO one and the best one that is on the market today.

However, if you are like me, and you don’t eat anything that is not organic then you may be avoiding cake recipes or not wanting to make them because of this. I feel ya! I’ve been making my own cake flour for a while, and so I’m going to share how to do that with you today for when you want a 100% organic cake flour option!

What is cake flour?
Cake flour is a very fine flour that is milled to have a protein content of 7% to 9%. The lower protein content in cake flour makes for less gluten formation, and this provides a fluffier and lighter baked good. Hence, why it is used all the time for cake. Because cake should be light and tender, cake flour is used to achieve this perfectly delicate crumb.

Some cakes though, depending on the other ingredients inside the cake, are best when made with all purpose flour. My Orange Carrot Ginger Cake for example, uses all purpose flour. This is because the cake is very moist with the addition of the carrots. So, it actually requires all purpose flour to hold it together. This is why you will typically see all purpose flour in cakes like carrot, zucchini, banana or others that use fruits and veggies. Using the right kind of flour that a recipe calls for is crucial to have success, as flour makes a big difference in the texture and structure of your final baked goods.

What is the difference between cake flour and all purpose flour?
While cake flour typically has 7% to 9% protein, all purpose flour has 10% to 12% protein. So, all purpose flour has more gluten formation, because of the higher protein content. This is great for baked goods like brownies and cookies where you want that gluten formation to create a chewy baked good that holds together well. Alternatively, bread flour has a protein content of 12% to 14%, making this the best option for certain breads and pastries because even more gluten formation occurs when you use this flour.

So, now that you know a little bit about the different types of flours and why they are important, I am going to show you how to make your own cake flour. It is so easy to make your own cake flour! All you need are two simple ingredients – organic all purpose flour and organic cornstarch. These two things combined together will mimic cake flour. Why does it work? By removing some of the all purpose flour and adding a binding agent, such as cornstarch, we are lowing the gluten formation and therefore the protein content in the flour. And, it will act and work just as cake flour in recipes. Grab my recipe for Homemade Cake Flour below.

Why Organic

Why use organic ingredients in this recipe? You all know I’m a huge organic advocate, and I bet you may be thinking sometimes, Why would I even bother to use organic ingredients in something that is so sweet and indulgent? But, that is the exact reason why you should use organic ingredients! Sweet things need to have flavor in order to be good, otherwise they are just sweet and they don’t taste like much else. Organic ingredients are more pure than conventional ones, therefore they actually have more flavor than the non organic options. Say it with me, organic means more flavor! And not just more flavor but a more true and pure flavor. And organic ingredients are much healthier for you to eat in general as they do not contain GMOs or anything artificial. Plus, you are being environmentally friendly when you choose organic ingredients!

So, I highly recommend that you buy the best organic ingredients for this recipe! You can also shop my Amazon Storefront for all my favorite organic ingredients here. Tip – hover over each ingredient to see the name. And if you want to learn more about organic foods and the difference, read my post here on Food Labels and What They Mean.

Homemade Cake Flour

Recipe by MimiDifficulty: Easy

Makes

2

cups

When you run out of cake flour, or you want to make your own organic cake flour use this simple recipe for homemade cake flour!

Ingredients

• 248 grams (1 3/4 cups) organic all purpose flour

• 28 grams (1/4 cup) organic cornstarch

Directions

• In a large bowl (I do this in my flour tub actually!), add the flour and cornstarch and whisk together.
• Store in an airtight container in the pantry for up to 3 months. Use this in place of cake flour in any recipe.

Notes

• High Altitude — Follow the recipe as noted.

Did you make this recipe? 
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Make sure to check out my What is Organic Cane Sugar post, which I’m sure you’ll love too! And, share it with someone who you think will like it too!