So I'm in line at the checkout and was skimming a Southern Living magazine. There was an article about essential baking tools. In there they stated that only nesting cups should be used to measure dry ingredients. According to them, if you use the large glass measuring cups (intended for liquids) you will end up with a tablespoon or more of dry ingredients. I tend to measure my flour and sugar in the larger cups instead of measuring it out one by one in the nested cups.
I had never heard before that this was not a good idea. Do you all use the nested cups regardless of how much you have to measure, or is there a particular large cup that is good for dry ingredients (ie, more accurate)?
I always use the nested plastic measuring cups MADE for dry ingredients...ALWAYS! They are the Tupperware brand I have had for 20+years. 
That is correct. The glass cup is meant for liquids. The proper way to measure dry ingredients (mainly flour, sugar isn't really an issue) is to use a spoon to scoop the flour into the measuring cup. Overfill it, then use a straight edge (back of a butter knife works well) to level off the contents. You are not supposed to use the measuring cup itself to do the scooping.
You can get large sized measuring cups. I found some at Williams Sonoma that are 2C and 1.5 C. I think I saw a 3C at a cooking store recently but I don't usually do super big recipes so I didn't buy it.
Absolutely use nested cups for dry ingredients. I have recently started weighing my flour/sugar on a digital scale in grams because it is faster and easier. It was amazing to see how much more flour you might have if you measure improperly, and for baking that makes a big difference!
So glad to have learned this! So I tend to measure small quantities in the nested and large in the glass one (regardless of wet/dry). Clearly I have been using the wrong logic...LOL!
Silly question, but should liquids ONLY be measured in the large glass one or can I use the nesting cups?
I love my scale too...I only measure by grams now...it takes out variances from batch to batch. Quicker too with less dishes to wash!!
Silly question, but should liquids ONLY be measured in the large glass one or can I use the nesting cups?
Liquids only in the glass cup. No liquids in the nesting cups.
Try measuring some water in a nesting cup. Then, get eye-level with the cup and look at it from the side. You will see a slight bowing outward to the water, it looks like it is going to over flow. That is because of the surface tension of the water. Pour that into the glass measuring cup and you will see that you don't have the correct amount.
Here is a website with pictures of measuring different items.
http://www.wikihow.com/Use-Measuring-Spoons-and-Cups
This one has a little video.
http://startcooking.com/blog/87/Measuring-Different-Ingredients-in-Cooking
Here is a review of different liquid measuring cups.
http://www.cooksillustrated.com/equipment/overview.asp?docid=10377
Thank you so much for the info! I've been trying to figure out why my yellow cake recipe isn't turning out the way I like. So far I've learned I've been over-baking and now apparently measuring incorrectly!!! I'm learning alot from everyone here at CC!
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