Cake flour (usually called cake and pastry flour) is a finer flour that all purpose, just like icing sugar is finer than regular sugar. It should be in any grocery store in the section with the all purpose flour, just make sure to read the labels as it could look very similar.
You should be able to get it at the grocery store.
There are a number of "grades" of flour out there, and it all has to do with the amount of gluten in the flour.
"Hard" flours such as bread flour are very high in gluten - this makes the structure of your breads work ... kneading actually activates the gluten.
"Soft" flours (such as cake & pastry flours) have less gluten, because gluten makes cakes tough. (This is also why you don't want to over-beat your cake, muffin or pancake batters... you want to avoid activating the gluten in the flour)
All-purpose flour falls somewhere in the middle and can be used for either one!
just to clarify a smidge: the gluten content that MelC speaks of has to do with the protein content of the flour, which results in the development of glutenin and gliadin, known collectively as "gluten".
canadian AP (all-purpose) flour typically has a higher protein content than AP flour in the u.s., but if your recipe calls for cake flour, regardless of where you are, buying the box or bag labelled "cake/pastry" will ensure that you'll be getting a low-protein, low-gluten flour, suitable for cakes and other baked goods that don't require the strong structure that bread needs (in canada, you can often make quite good bread with AP flour, rather than buying the more expensive "bread" flour).
I'm so glad there are so many smart people on here. 
aunt-judy just wondering if you knew about www.cakescanada.com...great site for us canadians!
Cake flour is becoming increasingly harder for me to find in grocery stores. This has been happening over the last 6 months or so. The store managers are saying that no one is buying it (except for me apparently).
Does anyone buy this in bulk? And if so, are you ordering from a distributor or directly from the company? I guess I could ask a store manager if they would order me a case, but I was wondering if it would be cheaper to get it direct from the company.
I like unbleached all purpose flour--if the recipe calls for a-p flour, of course. Does anyone know if there is any difference in the baked cake, bread, etc. between bleached & unbleached a-p flour?
Thanks, bakersofcakes
P.S. Sorry if this is the wrong thread to post this question. 
I like unbleached all purpose flour--if the recipe calls for a-p flour, of course. Does anyone know if there is any difference in the baked cake, bread, etc. between bleached & unbleached a-p flour?
Thanks, bakersofcakes
P.S. Sorry if this is the wrong thread to post this question.
That is all i use recipes that call for all-purpose flour of course
I do notice a difference...i taste the vanilla and/or other flavorings more
Because ..........of course less chemicals
I love king arthur flour and if you have a sales tax id you can get it in bulk in most places ...i can't wait for that .
AShiana
AShiana
Here is an interesting link from baking911.com that compares and discusses various types of grains and flours:
http://www.baking911.com/pantry/flour,grains.htm
gliaden makes the flour more elastic, and glutenin is what makes the flour tough and you can over develop the glutenin from over mixing.
There are also subsets to the
We have a test on this on Monday so I may as well use you to review..lol
"There are many types of flour, but I'm sure you will just want to know about Wheat".
Wheat flour:
All purpose.................Mixture of hard and soft flour
Whole Wheat..........Bran added, not separated
Cake flour.............protein (gluten) 8%
Durum wheat flour....used for pasta
Graham.............contains wheat germ and bran
Hard flour.................Used for breads
Self-Rising...............soft wheat flour with leavening
Ok, here are the subsets..( I know, more info than you need, but bear with me..I'm reviewing...lol)
Hard wheat flour...has kernels that are hard, tough and difficult to cut. Best bread flour. Creamy or creamy white in color, granular in feel, doesn't pack well when you squeeze it, has a heavy wheat smell and is usually a winter wheat.
First clear....uses only the endosperm of the wheat kernel, which gives it softness and spreadability to the dough. Straight flour is used after the wheat has been washed and the brand and germ removed and it goes through one milling process. Protein content...14 to 15% Used where strength is needed, used to make artisan breads where no pan is needed as it can hold it's shape. and lifts multigrains and strength to multigrain breads.
High gluten flour...is a product of washing out the starch from patent flour. resulting in higher protein , same character as first clear. Protein 13 to 14%
Patent or second clear flour, is the most used flour, less than the entire endosperm used. It's also good for strenght.
Whole wheat..the entire kernel is used in making. Protein 11 to 13 %. whole wheat flour has poor structure and poor gas retention and it must be used in combo with first clear, poor absorbtion and must be s oaked overnight.
SOFT WHEAT...soft kernel, suitable for cakes, pastries and crackers. creamy white in color, feels soft, packs easily when squeezed, light wheat smell and is usually a spring wheat.
Cake flour...the softest flour, it has a high starch content and a low protein count...6 to 8 % Cake flour is white because it has been chemically treated. it packs easily and absorbs moisture, cake flour is used for high ratio cakes...higher ratio of sugar to flour. It is able to carry increased amounts of shortening and sugar.
Pastry flour...has a protein count of aa7 to 10 % and it's off white in color. It is used for low ratio cakes where the amount of flour is greater than the amount of sugar and only used when cake flour is unavailable. It is used for cookies , pie doughs and short doughs.
FLOUR BLENDS:
All purpose: family flour, or blend flour because it is a blend of cake flour and bread flour. It is used in the home as a multipurpose flour
Cookie Flour: similar to all purpose, blend of hard and soft wheat. but contains less starch.
WINTER WHEAT: sown in the fall and harvested the following summer in climates where winters are not severe enough to kill the sprout
SPRING WHEAT: is sown in the spring and harvested late summer and fall in climates where frost will not kill it before it has a chance to ripen
SOMETHING INTERESTING FOR YOU:
Bleached flour...flour requires proper aging to produce the best results in baking, flour that is newly milled is called GREEN FLOUR and there are 2 ways to age it. It can be stored for several months to allow the oxygen in the air to react with the color pigments of the flour, this is costly and time consuming
.....or they can use artificial chemicals like chlorine and benzoyl peroxide...some places are trying to outlaw this practice.
Sorry to quote out of a textbook for your information, I usually like to put things in simple terms so everyone understands, but...I wanted to share a good basic understanding of the types of flours out there.
Sometimes our recipes don't turn out the way we want them to, and we blame ourselves....well....it all starts with the type of flour you use...as a matter of fact...before you blame yourself...take a look at all your ingredients!
By the way...flour CAN get to old, and lose it's protein strength!
Thank you for letting me use you guys for review, there is a WHOLE chapter of this that I have to get inside my ole head for Monday!..lol
Thanks for that Diva! I had a general idea about the differences, but not the hows and whys! I love this sort of peripheral information when I'm doing any sort of project (you should have seen my reserach when I was pregnant! LOL)
MelC, thank you for that comment, I was worried that I was giving anyone some "DIVATUDE" again..lol
Your love for peripheral info...ha..must be the SCORPIO brain...as I was born a day after you...lol
and am a total trivia geek! have so much useless info churning in my brain that the joke in my house is that...
"I've forgotten more than you will ever learn"..lol
But, hey...if we didn't have a love for peripheral information...all those Dictionary and Encycopedia writers would be out of a job! I'm the only kid that I am aware of that read the complete Webster's Dictionary in the sixth grade...FOR FUN! Well..amost all of it,...I'd open to a random page and read them until I got tired..did that for almost all of a school term..
GEEK=MARA
Thanks Diva for the info...you just scared me to death!!! 
I start my Pastry Chef program on January 9th and my first class is baking 101 where I'm sure we will learn what you just shared with us. I can't believe there is so much to know about flour.
Thanks for breaking that down Pastry Diva! Now I know the difference between pastry and cake flour. You mentioned that pastry flour should be used for cakes that have less sugar than flour. My recipes use less sugar than flour. Should I switch from cake flour to pastry flour and if I do what result can I expect?
Thanks Diva for the info...you just scared me to death!!!
I start my Pastry Chef program on January 9th and my first class is baking 101 where I'm sure we will learn what you just shared with us. I can't believe there is so much to know about flour.
CONGRATULATIONS!....Diva doing Snoopy dance of happiness in your honor!
It's a lot of work getting the honor to be called CHEF, but so worth it! You will be exasperated, tired, and wondering WHAT THE HECK DID YOU JUST GET YOURSELF INTO...but...when you walk across that stage, or look into the eyes of another pleased customer you will know it was all worth it. And you are also teaching your kids that anything worth while takes sacrifices.
oh..ok..off the soap box..
Didn' t mean to scare you, there is a LOT more information on flour... this was the short version. There are OTHER types of flour too..Rye, blah and blah blah blah..lol
but Wheat flour is the one most commonly used.
Oh one last thing for everyone concerned...unless you're using it in bulk..don't buy it in bulk...it tends to ....."HATCH"..lol
Thanks for breaking that down Pastry Diva! Now I know the difference between pastry and cake flour. You mentioned that pastry flour should be used for cakes that have less sugar than flour. My recipes use less sugar than flour. Should I switch from cake flour to pastry flour and if I do what result can I expect?
Coco, I think you will find that your crumb and mead will be denser/coarser than when you use cake flour.
Cake flour will give you a finer crumb than Pastry.
If I were you, I'd do a test run on both. Cut the cakes into 1/4's mark them.
this is the experiment I would run....have a 1/4 of the cakes out for taste testing right after they cool. the other quarters, wrap and leave on the counter....the other wrap and refrigerate..and the last quarter freeze.
then you know how each cake flour will react to the "normal" conditions that you would subject them too.
I know it seems like a lot of effort, but if you are really into giving your customer the best cake that YOU can do...
( and for some of us..that just a box cake..I admit to this practice right up front...lol..sometimes...I'm lazy and with limited space and....a non paying customer..well, I admit to shortcuts ....but not because I don't know how to do right..hehehe)(I'm trying NOT to be offensive to ANY baker that uses box mixes..because box mixes have their uses too!! 
)
This is a way of arming yourself with information, and KNOWLEDGE IS POWER!
PS: I prefer a more "rugged" looking cake, for me all those nooks and crannies were just made for my simple syrup!
Your love for peripheral info...ha..must be the SCORPIO brain...as I was born a day after you...lol
and am a total trivia geek! have so much useless info churning in my brain that the joke in my house is that...
"I've forgotten more than you will ever learn"..lol
That's me in a nutshell ... that or I belong in a nutshell ... not entirely sure some days... LOL
At least once a day my DH gives me an incredulous look and says "HOW do you know THAT?" Half the time I have no idea where I learned it ... but at the same time, I am so scattered with day to day stuff ... it is a unique brain type eh? 
I'm very interested in details too. Didn't know it was because I'm a scorpio, though!
I buy kind of in bulk. I get mine from the bulk bins at a Whole Foods-like grocery store. It's only $.59/lb that way, instead of $1+ for Swan's Down, but I don't buy more than I can use in a couple of months.
And Diva, when you say "hatch" do you mean that literally?
I'm very interested in details too. Didn't know it was because I'm a scorpio, though!
I buy kind of in bulk. I get mine from the bulk bins at a Whole Foods-like grocery store. It's only $.59/lb that way, instead of $1+ for Swan's Down, but I don't buy more than I can use in a couple of months.
And Diva, when you say "hatch" do you mean that literally?
It's a real brain quirk..lol
and YES, flour, has ...extra protein via microscopic incect eggs. They will not harm you or anyone if ingested and there IS NO WAY to remove them. Just keep your flour in rotation. If you leave a bag of flour in a hot and humid location and you ever see little skinny black moths in the area where you kept your flour....your flour has hatched!..lol
Sorry to have grossed anyone out, but that is nature at it's most sublime!--lol
CONGRATULATIONS!....Diva doing Snoopy dance of happiness in your honor!
It's a lot of work getting the honor to be called CHEF, but so worth it! You will be exasperated, tired, and wondering WHAT THE HECK DID YOU JUST GET YOURSELF INTO...but...when you walk across that stage, or look into the eyes of another pleased customer you will know it was all worth it. And you are also teaching your kids that anything worth while takes sacrifices.
Thanks Diva...this will be my second degree, I guess you could say this is my mid-life crisis It is the total opposite end of the spectrum from my current company which provides business services to small business owners. I can't wait to get started, I am already selling cakes and cookies but I want to learn it all and open a bakery sometime in the next 2 years.
and YES, flour, has ...extra protein via microscopic incect eggs. They will not harm you or anyone if ingested and there IS NO WAY to remove them. Just keep your flour in rotation. If you leave a bag of flour in a hot and humid location and you ever see little skinny black moths in the area where you kept your flour....your flour has hatched!..lol
We called them (the bugs) weeviles. I grew up in South Louisiana, VERY hot and humid, and we had to keep flour, meal, rice, etc. in the freezer. This seemed to eliminate the problem.
Freezing, just keeps the critters dormant...and any you ingest..well, your stomach acids pretty much take care of the problem..lol
yes, they are already there, harvested and processed with the flour!
FYI..
lol
I buy kind of in bulk. I get mine from the bulk bins at a Whole Foods-like grocery store. It's only $.59/lb that way, instead of $1+ for Swan's Down, but I don't buy more than I can use in a couple of months.
You know, I buy a lot of my cake ingredients in the bulk bins at Whole Foods but it never occurred to me to buy cake flour there. 
Thanks!
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