On 22/03/2016 4:31 AM, Cindy Hamilton wrote:
> On Monday, March 21, 2016 at 6:42:28 PM UTC-4, sf wrote:
>> On Mon, 21 Mar 2016 09:37:25 -0700 (PDT), Cindy Hamilton
>> > wrote:
>>
>>> On Monday, March 21, 2016 at 10:08:38 AM UTC-4, sf wrote:
>>>> On Mon, 21 Mar 2016 03:31:28 -0700 (PDT), Cindy Hamilton
>>>> > wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> On Sunday, March 20, 2016 at 6:19:26 PM UTC-4, Dave Smith wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Creaming the butter and sugar is a very important step in making good
>>>>>> cookies.
>>>>>
>>>>> Depends on the cookie; depends on how you like your cookies. I prefer
>>>>> to melt the butter for chocolate-chip cookies. It makes them chewy.
>>>>>
>>>> Tell me more! Can I use the Toll House recipe and just melt the
>>>> butter? I love chewy cookies and can never get them to Mrs. Field's
>>>> quality. I love the texture of those cookies but they are way too
>>>> sweet for me.
>>>
>>> Yes, that's what I do. If the butter is really hot after
>>> melting, let it cool a bit before adding the eggs, or
>>> they'll scramble. Although if you add the sugar before
>>> the eggs, it should be ok.
>>>
>>> I can't guarantee how chewy they'll be, but liberating
>>> the water phase from the butter helps the flour form a
>>> little gluten. I use King Arthur GP flour, which is
>>> higher in protein than, say, Gold Medal, so I get a
>>> little extra chewiness there, too.
>>>
>> Thanks. I think I have KA this time around. Are you saying KA is
>> better for breads than cake? Personally, I'm more the pound cake, old
>> fashioned carrot cake type than Southern style cakes made with cake
>> flour type anyway, so I'm okay with that.
>
> Depends on what you're looking for in texture, I suppose. I don't
> have much hands-on experience, but the science is easy to understand.
>
> KA unbleached all-purpose flour is 11.7% protein
> KA unbleached bread flour is 12.7% protein
> Gold Medal AP is 10.5% protein
> Gold Medal bread flour is 12% protein
> White Lily AP is 8-9% protein
> White Lily bread flour is 11.7% protein
>
> Clearly, White Lily thinks 11.7% is enough for bread, but KA finds
> that a little... wimpy.

French bread flour is a bit lower than this. AP up here is 12% and makes
a good bread. The bread flour I get is close to 14%.

>
> The pizza crust recipe that I use is intended for AP flour, but
> I've seen recipes that call for bread flour.
>
I've been making them with imported Italian "00" flour, which is softer
than bread flour. So next time, try cake flour or that White Lily AP if
you can't get the Italian stuff.
Graham