TIPS WITH FLOUR

I have discussed briefly in posts before tips when working with flour. I am sure you have noticed before in recipes that sometimes in the ingredients list, it will read ...flour, sifted or ...sifted flour. You might think it really doesn't matter. Well, I am here to tell you it does make a difference.

The key is the location of the word sifted. If it is after the amount and before the word flour, you should sift some flour and then measure for the amount called for in the recipe from the sifted pile. If the word is after the word flour, it means to measure the designated amount and then sift it before adding to the mixture. To prove my point, I experimented one day to just see.

What I did was I measured the amount of flour the recipe called for (2 cups) the way I usually do...lightly spooning (actually I use a small scoop that comes in a drink mixture) the flour into the measuring cup and sifted it. 

Then I remeasured two cups from this sifted flour...

I was surprised at how much I had left in the bowl.

I decided to measure it to see just how much that actually was...

It was almost 1/4 cup of extra flour I would have been putting in the recipe. That's enough to possibly make a difference in the outcome of the recipe.

If a recipe doesn't say to sift the dry ingredients, I will put them all in a bowl and at least mix them with a whisk to make sure the salt, baking powder, and /or baking soda is better distributed in the mixture. 

If a recipe says to sift the dry ingredients together and I don't combine them together in a bowl first, I will sift them twice to better distribute the ingredients.

It is also important that you don't scoop/measure the flour by scooping the measuring cup into the bag or container of flour as packing the flour gives you more flour. Keep reading...

I enjoy Joanne Fluke's Hannah Swensen Mysteries and the recipes that are included in the books. One time I read a recipe that said to lightly spoon the flour in the measuring cup. I was so surprised because she always says to pack the flour down in the measuring cup. Since I never do that, I always remeasure the flour afterwards to see what it would be measuring it lightly. I recently made some Strawberries Muffins in which the recipe called for 2 cups of flour packed down. When I remeasured it, I had 2-2/3 cups of flour. That's quite a bit more. I shared the recipe indicating the latter measurement instead of what she had in the book.

One other tip I wanted to share with you was a substitution I used recently in a recipe that called for cake flour. I had some but not evenly lose to the amount I needed for the recipe. I pulled out my Better Homes & Gardens checkerboard cookbook for emergency substitutions and substituted all-purpose flour for the cake flour. The cake tasted delicious!

The recipe called for 3 cups of cake flour. To substitute all-purpose flour - 1 cup of cake flour is equal to 1 cup of all-purpose flour with 2 tablespoons removed. 

Doing a little math - I would be removing 6 tablespoons from the 3 cups of all-purpose flour I measured (2 x 3 = 6). Six tablespoons is 3/8 cup. I don't know about you, but I don't have a measuring cup that measures 3/8 cup, but I do have one that measures 1/4 cup or 4 tablespoons. So to make it a little bit easier, I measured 2-3/4 (3 cups - 1/4 cup) and then simply removed 2 tablespoons.

I can measure 2 cups at a time in my measuring "cup" so after I measured the 2 cups, I set it for 3/4 cup and then filled it up.

Then I lightly filled my tablespoon (don't dip it in the flour and measure it) to remove a tablespoon...

and then the second tablespoon...

The amount of all-purpose flour to substitute for the amount of cake flour is in the red bowl...the removed 2 tablespoons in the other bowl.

I hope these tips will help you when you are making your next recipe using flour. It will make a difference.

STRAWBERRY MUFFINS

I have read several of Joanne Fluke's Hannah Swensen Mystery books and shared several of the recipes from the books. These Strawberry Muffins were featured in Double Fudge Brownie Murder. I decided to make them for three reasons - I had some fresh strawberries I needed to use up, I also had some homemade strawberry jam that I made, and we didn't have anything "sweet" in the house to eat. Since I was making them for us and I don't like to add sugar to fruit recipes, I used stevia for the sugar in the muffins. I did go on and use the sugar for the topping though. 

PRINT just the recipe.

STRAWBERRY MUFFINS

Batter:
3/4       cup butter
1          cup sugar (I used stevia)
2          beaten eggs
2          teaspoons baking powder
1/2       teaspoons salt
1/2       teaspoons  cinnamon
1          cup fresh or frozen sliced strawberries (not necessary to thaw if using frozen)
2-2/3    cups flour
1/2       cup milk
1/2       cup strawberry jam

Crumb Topping:
1/2       cup sugar
1/3       cup flour
1/4       cup butter (1/2 stick)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease the bottoms only of a 12-cup muffin pan.

Melt the butter. Mix in the sugar.

Add the baking powder, salt, cinnamon and then the eggs.(I combined the sugar, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon first and

added the eggs.

Mix thoroughly.

(I had to move the mixture to a bigger bowl before I add the rest of the ingredients.)

Put 1 tablespoon of flour in a ziplock bag with the sliced strawberries.

Shake to coat the berries and leave them in the bag until you are ready to add them to the batter.

Add the flour and

milk alternately to the mixture starting and ending with the flour mixing well after each addition.

Add the jam to mixture and

stir to evenly mix in the batter. (I had to change to my spatula.) 

Fold in the flour-coated sliced strawberries.

 

Fill the muffin cups 3/4 full.

(I used my ice cream scoop and that worked great.

I had just a little bit left in the bowl

so I filled in "cups" that looked a little less filled.)

Prepare the crumb topping by mixing the sugar and the flour in a small bowl.

Add the butter and cut it in until it's crumbly.

(I cut the butter in pieces and used my hand/fingers to create the crumbs to work in the butter piece by piece.)

Fill the rest of the muffin cup with the topping.

Bake for 25 to 30 minutes.

Cool muffins in pan on wire rack for 30 minutes before removing to enjoy or

finish cooling completely.

(I ran a knife around the inside of the cup to loosen the muffin to remove it easier.)

Joanne (Hannah) said, "They are wonderful when they're slightly warm, but the strawberry flavor will intensify if you store them in a covered container overnight."

COCOA COLA CAKE

Earlier in the week, my husband brought me his phone and asked me if I had seen a particular post on Facebook. I looked at it and saw it was a picture of a chocolate cake. I asked him if he wanted me to make it for Tasty Bunch and he said, "Yeah, everyone likes chocolate." I  sent the post to me in an email so I could check it out. 

It was a recipe for a Coca Cola Cake and I remembered I had a recipe for one that I used to make years ago. Actually I thought I had made and shared it on my blog but when I did a search for it, no posts came up. I searched through several cookbooks thinking I would find the recipe I had used but had no luck. I was just about ready to give up when I picked up  my Taste of Home 2004 Quick Cooking Annual Recipes Cookbook and found, not the recipe I remembered using, but one I felt I could live it. 

You see the one my husband saw on Facebook had 2 cups of flour and 2 cups of sugar. If you have visited my blog even a few times, you know I avoid those old recipes that use that much sugar. I remember one of the first cakes I made I got the sugar and flour mixed up in the recipe and the cake flopped  big time. The layers were maybe 1/2 inch thick after cooking them the allotted time. In some cake now the amount of sugar and flour is the same. I just can't do it! 

When my husband realized I had not used the recipe he had seen, I could tell he was not happy with me. I told him that I had tried but I just couldn't do it. Ellen Champagne of New Orleans, LA used a white cake mix for her cake. I had planned to use a sugar - free white cake mix, but only had a yellow and chocolate one. The next time I make it, I will definitely substitute the sugar - free one. The cake still has plenty of sugar - IN THE ICING. It has 4 cups of powdered sugar and is to die for!

Everyone at Tasty Bunch loved the cake which didn't surprise me as it is fantastic. It isn't rich with chocolate taste as it only has 1/4 cup baking cocoa in it but it is still delicious.

PRINT  just the recipe.

COCOA COLA CAKE

1       white cake mix (no pudding included)
1       cup regular cola
2       eggs
1/2    cup buttermilk
1/2    cup butter or margarine, melted (1 stick) (I used unsalted butter)
1/4    cup baking cocoa
1       teaspoon vanilla
1-1/2 cups miniature marshmallows

Fudge Frosting:

1/4    cup baking cocoa
1/2     cup butter or margarine
1/3    cup regular cola
4       cups powdered sugar
1       cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease or spray a 9 x 13 - inch baking pan.

Combine the cake mix, cocoa, cola, eggs, and butter in a large mixing bowl.

(I beat it on low just to moisten the cake mix and cocoa,

scraped the side of the bowl, and then increased speed to medium and

beat for 2 minutes.)

Fold in marshmallows.

Spread batter in the pan and bake for 35 to 40 minutes or until the cake tests done with a toothpick.

Cool cake in pan on wire rack for 15 minutes.







Meanwhile, prepare frosting.

Combine the cocoa and butter that you have cut in chunks in a saucepan.

Over low heat, cook mixture

until butter melts stirring constantly.

Gradually add the coke continuing to stir constantly until mixture comes to a boil. (

I kept the temperature on low until about the last two minutes on the timer (for the 15 minutes the cake was cooling) and then I turned the burner up to almost medium.

It quickly came to the boil. 

Remove the pan and add the powdered sugar. Stir til smooth.

(I started off with just a little powdered sugar and

finally added all of the rest.

I also changed from my spoon to a whisk trying to get it completely smooth.

I finally realized it would be okay if there were just a few SMALL lumps because you would never know it after you added the nuts.) 

Add the nuts.

Spread over top of the cake. Wait at least 20 minutes before cutting to serve.

Serve with a scoop of ice cream.