Sorry all, The "Keyword" does not get printed in the post. I put "Carol Field in the Italian Baker" in the Keyword so you would know the source of the reference. Page 36 if you have the book.
She says, "Never sift flour for bread; always for pastries and cookies." How does one sift?? Would an ordinary strainer do or do you need a flour sifter??
Secondly, what are we sifting for? Do we expect lumps in the flour or are we adding air??
Why do we do this??
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and a rather biased one at that. Who is "she?" I would think the reference here is to measuring using volume cup measurements. With a scale it doesn't matter. Some sifting using a fine mesh can be fine enough to remove bran from the flour. Some use sifting as a way of mixing the flour with other flours or fine ingredients for a more homogeneous blend. As in the case of a quickly mixed pie crust, scone, or muffin recipe where the mixing time is too short to blend dry ingredients well after liquid are added. An ordinary sieve works just fine and a large one or a cup sieve is easier to control. A whisk also works. Just place the sieve over an empty bowl and slowly pour or spoon the flour into it and shake the sieve gently back and forth or against the palm of your free hand. Sifting to blend ingredients should be done several times.
Regular sifting depends on your source of flour and where in the world you find yourself. In tropical climates, sifting is standard because all kinds of foreign "goodies" are in the flour that you don't want included into the food. Flour purchased from open bins is another good reason to sift. Webs inside the flour sack another.
:)
1 - Remove "stuff" from flour
2 - Mix powdered ingredients
3 - Remove chunks and/or lumps
Sifting is best accomplished with a rotary sifter but just as easy with a strainer and whisk. Start off by rapping the side of the strainer with the whisk handle and finish off by whisking the lumps left behind if any. It's pretty much the same procedure as dusting pastries with icing sugar. Hints:Use a larger bowl than you think is needed to catch the powder and make sure there are no drafts or strong breezes around.
Generally speaking, AP flour does not need to be whisked since it doesn't form many lumps, however, in humid climates it will most definitely form lumps, so sift. Here (Montreal area), I sift AP in our hot humid summer but not in dry winter. Another Hint: Always sift a new batch of flour or flour that has been left sitting in storage for a while just to test.
Pastry or Cake flour almost always needs sifting as does icing sugar, cocoa powder, etc.
When sifting several dry ingredients together, I sift once to remove lumps then whisk the sifted powders to mix thoroughly.
I rarely sift bread flour unless it is to mix dry ingredients together.
Simple rule: When in the slightest doubt, sift.
Rose Levy Berenbaum responded to an inquiry about the need for sifting by saying:
"Not if you weigh it. Sifting makes it easier to measure consistently. It does not, however, evenly incorporate dry ingredients. Whisking them together by hand, beating them in a mixing bowl, or whirling them for a few seconds in a food processor does a far better job of mixing."
I would insert the parenthetical statement (if you use volume measurements) after the word "consistently" in the second sentence. It is implicit, given the first statement about weighing.
Paul