How to Make Cake & Pastry Flour Substitute

This cake and pastry flour substitute will take your baking game to the next level! It helps make your final cakes and pastries light, airy, flaky, and tender! Learn how to make your own substitute at home with just 2 ingredients.

* This post was updated with new photos

Hello! And welcome back to another riveting edition of Ingredients I Always Need But Never Have!

As you may or may not have noticed, I make a lot of desserts, and a lot of them use (or could benefit from) cake and pastry flour.

Much like buttermilk and self-rising flour, cake and pastry flour gets added to the long shopping list of ingredients that always seem to be on my shopping list, but never make it to my pantry or fridge. It's mostly because I have A LOT of difficulty finding these ingredients in stores!

This is where the power of DIY comes in! Cake and pastry flour is incredibly easy to make and only needs 2 ingredients: all-purpose flour and cornstarch!

Why cake and pastry flour?

You may be wondering "Why do I even need cake and pastry flour? Can't I just use all-purpose flour?" Well ... yes. But cake and pastry flour does make a difference in your baked goods, particularly with cake and pastry recipes (as the name suggests!)

Cake and pastry flour is finer than regular all-purpose flour and also has a lower protein content. What this means for your baked goods is that they'll be less heavy (because there's less gluten weighing everything down) and more tender. Using cake and pastry flour will give you a more delicate, crumbly, and airier cake and pastry!

Cake and pastry flour versus all-purpose flour:

You can almost always substitute cake and pastry flour with all-purpose flour. This substitution won't cause any problems for your final product!

Since all-purpose flour has more gluten, it's naturally a heavier flour, which can weigh down your desserts. So when you do have the time, making cake and pastry flour can really take your baked goods to another level!

Cake and pastry flour storage:

Your cake and pastry flour will keep until the best before dates on your flour and cornstarch. Whichever one expires first, that's the date you should go by.

Keep cake and pastry flour stored as you would regular flour: in a cool, dry place. Keep your flour in an airtight container or sealed plastic bag. You can also freeze your flour if needed!

Recipes to try with cake and pastry flour:

Marble cake
Blueberry muffins
Funfetti cupcakes
Chocolate chip cookie cake
Pie crust
Vanilla cupcakes
Blueberry scones

How to Make Cake and Pastry Flour

Cake and pastry flour will take your baking game to the next level! It helps make your final cakes and pastries light, airy, flaky, and tender! Learn how to make your own substitute at home with just 2 ingredients.

4.50 from 2 votes

Print Pin Rate

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 0 minutes

Total Time: 5 minutes

Servings: 1 cup flour

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch

Instructions

• Measure out 1 cup of flour and remove 1 tablespoon of flour. In a medium bowl, combine your flour and cornstarch. Whisk together until combined. Sift before using for best results!

Notes

* Make sure to sift your cake and pastry flour before using. Sifting helps aerate the flour and helps make it finer. 

* Cake and pastry flour will keep for as long as your flour and cornstarch are good for. It's best to use the cake and pastry flour up before the best before date of whichever ingredient expires first. 

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Enjoy!