Whether you're fresh out of all-purpose flour or are simply seeking ways to use up cake flour from your classic cake recipe, you might be wondering, "Can you use cake flour for cookies?" True, few cake flour cookies exist—by that, we mean cookie recipes that already call for cake flour in the ingredients list—but using cake flour for cookies is possible. And we promise it won't ruin your entire batch of cookie dough. (Just be sure to bake 'em first. Here's a quick reminder why you should never eat raw flour.) Learn the science behind cookies made with cake flour, plus score some additional baking inspiration to customize your next cookie jar stars to make your best batch yet.
Can You Use Cake Flour for Cookies?
So you invested in a full bag of cake flour for Classic Shortcakes, Pumpkin Spice Latte Bundt Cake with Whipped Cream, Chiffon Cake, or another of your family's favorite birthday cake recipes. While we'd never say no to another slice of cake, you do have more options for putting that cake flour to delicious use.
When the protein and gluten in any kind of flour are hydrated, they offer the structure required to give baked goods their foundation and crumb. The amount and type of flour in cookies can make them chewy or cakey, crispy or soft.
Cake flour is a lower-protein flour; it has about 7% to 9% protein compared to the 10% to 12% protein in all-purpose flour. If you opt for all cake flour cookies, less gluten is formed when you mix the cookie dough. The resulting cookie consistency post-baking is delicate, softer, fluffier, and, well, more cake-like. The color may end up paler, and the edges might not be as crispy. But the flavor should still deliver. And if you're a fan of soft batch cookies or those remarkably tender frosted sugar cookies, you might even enjoy cake flour cookies more than the original versions.
22 of Our Test Kitchen's Best Cookie Recipes of All Time
Gluten acts like a spring. When mixed with a liquid, it can stretch and expand to add to the structure and shape (for example, making layers in flaky biscuits), trap gasses (like those that give focaccia bread its signature bubbles), and offer chewiness (such as in al dente homemade pasta). The amount of gluten formation varies based on how much you mix and what flour you use. A general gluten rule of thumb: The more protein there is in the flour, the more gluten in the final product, which leads to more chew.
Ranked from highest to lowest protein, here are the most common flours for baking:
Whole Wheat Flour: Since this uses all of the wheat kernel, this flour is heavier and more dense than all-purpose, which has the bran (the exterior of the wheat kernel) and germ (a portion of the internal seed) removed, leaving only the endosperm part of the grain. With about 13.5% protein, whole wheat flour comes in white whole wheat and whole wheat pastry varieties too. It's occasionally called for in waffles and pancake batters, bread dough, and pasta recipes, and is frequently mixed half-and-half with all-purpose.
Bread Flour: Because this has more protein than all-purpose, about 12% to 14%, bread flour yields more gluten—and more chew. It's often called for in yeast breads, pizza dough, and pastries.
All-Purpose Flour: If a recipe calls for "flour," use all-purpose. This is available bleached or unbleached and contains 10% to 12% protein.
Cake Flour: When you're seeking tender, 7%- to 9%-protein cake flour is your baking BFF. It stars in cakes (especially angel food cakes and sponge cakes) and cupcakes as well as some muffins and scones.
21 Essential Baking Tools Every Home Cook Needs (Plus 16 That Are Nice to Have)
How to Make Cake Flour Cookies
If you're craving soft, cake-like cookies or have cake flour to use up, cookies made with cake flour can be a stellar solution. Feel free to swap in 75% cake flour (with 25% all-purpose) for the all-purpose flour called for in your cookie recipe (so 1½ cups cake flour plus ½ cup all-purpose in a recipe that requires 2 cups flour). You can even substitute 100% of the all-purpose with cake flour—especially if you adore soft cookies and are topping them with a frosting recipe to cover the paler top.
If you want to tinker around with using cake flour for cookies but don't have any in your pantry at the moment, try this homemade cake flour recipe: Accurately measure 1 cup all-purpose flour, remove 2 tablespoons of the flour, then replace those with 2 tablespoons cornstarch. Sift to blend, then use in cake flour cookies.
Admittedly, cookies made with cake flour are different in texture than your classic chewy-on-the-inside, crunchy-on-the-outside homemade chocolate chip cookies. But you won't sacrifice at all on the flavor front if you make cake flour cookies. And if you adore super-soft cookies, you might even enjoy the results more.
Cake flour is a lower-protein flour; it has about 7% to 9% protein compared to the 10% to 12% protein in all-purpose flour. If you opt for all cake flour cookies, less gluten is formed when you mix the cookie dough. The resulting cookie consistency post-baking is delicate, softer, fluffier, and, well, more cake-like.
it's best to use bread flour in cookies that are flatter, cookies that already have some chew to them. it doesn't make a difference in cookies that are thick and gooey, as they don't have much chewiness to them in the first place.
Making a cake flour substitute is easy with the following two ingredients: all-purpose flour and either cornstarch or arrowroot powder. Start with one level cup of AP flour, remove two tablespoons of the flour, and add two tablespoons of cornstarch or arrowroot powder back in.
A cake with all-purpose flour substituted for cake flour is more likely to have a slightly coarser crumb, while a cake made with cake flour will have a finer, more even crumb and enhanced tenderness. Our Traditional Angel Food Cake is a good example.
Whenever you're wondering what type of flour to choose when baking chocolate chip cookies, the safest answer is always all-purpose flour. It will always provide you with the desired results, ensuring your cookies go out of the oven just as you imagined them.
For cookies, bars, cakes/cupcakes, biscuits, scones, or anything that needs a tender crumb, use Farina di grano tenero, 00. This is your “cake flour.” Nobody wants a chewy cake. For bread, I recommend starting off with Farina di Manitoba, grano tenero, 0; this is similar to standard American bread flour.
Pastry Flour – Pastry flour is also milled from a soft wheat and has a low gluten content. With protein levels somewhere between cake flour and all-purpose flour (8-9 %), pastry flour strikes the ideal balance between flakiness and tenderness, making it perfect for pie dough, biscuits, brownies, tarts and many cookies.
If you're looking for chewiness and bend, bread flour could be a handy addition to your cookie recipes. Fun fact: Alton Brown even named his signature bread flour Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe “The Chewy." Baker's tip: Looking for another way to add a little extra chew? Use brown sugar in your cookie dough.
Butter gives flavor, tenderness and flaky layers to baked goods. It can also bring a bit of structure and rise. For instance, a chocolate chip cookie dough incorporates butter and sugar to incorporate air into the final result.
But is sifting flour necessary? That depends. Sifting flour is recommended for some desserts where the goal is light, delicate, and fluffy results (think angel food cakes, sponge cakes, and chiffon cakes). However, sifting flour isn't a must for desserts that are chewy or crisp, like cookies.
Overall, the use of cake flour in a recipe will discourage gluten formation compared to a higher protein flour product. Lower levels of gluten equal more softness and tenderness in a baked good.
“The result is added tenderness with more structure.” You don't need much of the ingredient to notice significant changes in your favorite recipe. Add a teaspoon or two to your dry ingredient mix and it will drastically change the texture. It's also fun to experiment until you get the exact finish you desire.
If the expired flour is still good, it should act much like non-expired flour. But if that expired flour is bad, well, chances are the end product will be too. Rancid flour will make the recipe taste and perhaps smell bad. Textures may also be affected, making the final product either too dry or too moist.
Cake flour is ground extra-fine, which results in a lighter, loosely-structured crumb and fluffy texture. Cake flour is ideal for baked goods with a tender texture due its low gluten content, which makes it easier to achieve lighter, tender textures when baking delicate sponges, cupcakes, muffins, and pastries.
On the other hand, cake flour only contains 6-8% protein. It has a lighter and more velvety texture, and also is a little bit lighter in color. The lower protein count creates a more tender and delicate final product. This is ideal when you are making cakes and cupcakes to get that light and fluffy texture.
More flour will result in a "breadier" cookie. It will have more structure and be less chewy. Less flour will do the opposite, resulting in a softer, flatter cookie.
Address: Suite 447 3463 Marybelle Circles, New Marlin, AL 20765
Phone: +5816749283868
Job: Sales Executive
Hobby: Air sports, Sand art, Electronics, LARPing, Baseball, Book restoration, Puzzles
Introduction: My name is Jerrold Considine, I am a combative, cheerful, encouraging, happy, enthusiastic, funny, kind person who loves writing and wants to share my knowledge and understanding with you.
We notice you're using an ad blocker
Without advertising income, we can't keep making this site awesome for you.
:strip_icc()/gluten-free-flour-mix-RU233618-138fc323bac04e7990feb33a865df963.jpg "Can You Use Cake Flour for Cookies? Find Out about the Cookie Chemistry from Our Pros (1)")
