Spare yourself a trip to the grocery store and learn how to quickly make cake flour at home! Why waste precious space when you can make everything you need from good old fashioned all-purpose flour?
What is cake flour?
Cake flour is more finely milled than all-purpose flour, typically bleached, and it has a lower protein content of about 8%. All-purpose flour, on the other hand, has 10-11% protein.
So what exactly does that mean? Less protein means the batter won’t develop as much gluten, and your finished product will be more delicate and soft, with a good rise and a finer crumb. Cake flour is especially helpful with angel food cake and chiffon cake.
How to make cake flour substitute
Note: Skip to the end of the post for a condensed printable version.
Step 1: Measure 1 cup of flour
Start by measuring out 1 cup of all-purpose flour. Now hold up. Do I mean 1 cup of flour by weight or volume? Most tutorials don’t specify this.
Honestly, you can get away with either, but since I’m very pushy about weighing flour, let’s say one 4 1/2-ounce cup (129 grams) of flour, measured on a kitchen scale. If you don’t have a scale, measure the flour into a cup with a spoon, then level off the top using a knife.
(Note: King Arthur Flour says 1 cup all-purpose flour = 4 1/4 ounces. It’s not an exact science, yet baking is an exact science. Yay. This is why we all say use a scale.)
Step 2: Remove 2 tablespoons
Remove 2 tablespoons of the flour (place it back in your flour bag or canister). This will be roughly 3/4 ounce or closer to 18 grams.
Step 3: Add cornstarch
Replace that flour with 2 tablespoons cornstarch (3/4 ounce or 16 grams).
Step 4: Whisk or sift together
Whisk or sift the ingredients together. It’s technically better to sift them to make sure the cornstarch is very evenly dispersed. Voila! Cake flour.
1 cup all-purpose flour – 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour + 2 tablespoons cornstarch = 1 cup cake flour
Some websites say to sift the flour 5 times. I’m not going to lie; I have never done this. I’ve also never done a side-by-side angel food cake taste test with someone who sifted their flour five times, so maybe I don’t know what I’m missing. Choose your own destiny.
Try using homemade cake flour in my Sour Cream Coffee Cake!
HOW TO STORE FLOUR
Take your newly purchased bag of flour and place it in a large, sealable plastic bag, or (even better) a large snap-top plastic container.
You want your flour storage solution to be as airtight as possible, because the less moisture and air allowed in, the slower the oxidation process will be. Additionally, storing flour in an airtight container helps keep it from absorbing any flavors or odors.
More Flour Tutorials
If you enjoyed this post, you may also enjoy my tutorials on how to make bread flour and how to make self-rising flour! I also have a tutorial on how to measure flour. King Arthur Flour also has this handy ingredient weight chart which is incredibly useful for baking with various flours!
How to Make Cake Flour
Ingredients
- 1 cup all-purpose flour (4 1/2 ounces or 129 grams)
- 2 tablespoons cornstarch (3/4 ounce or 16 grams)
Instructions
- Measure out the all-purpose flour into a medium bowl.
- Subtract 2 tablespoons flour and replace with 2 tablespoons cornstarch (3/4 ounce or 16 grams).
- Whisk or sift to combine.
Please read my full post for additional recipe notes, tips, and serving suggestions!
Nutrition
Recipe Troubleshooting
For immediate help troubleshooting a recipe, please email me using the form on my contact page. I’ll try to respond to urgent questions as quickly as possible! For all general questions, please leave a comment here :)
What a great info! Many many thanks. BTW, is the all purpose flour that used to make cake flour bleached or unbleached? Thanks for the help.