White flour, bleached flour, enriched flour, all-purpose flour!?!

The quality of flour is determined by the quality of the wheat and, the better the flour, the better the gluten, and, in turn, the better the bread. Soft wheat contains little gluten; soft-wheat flour is better used in pastry making. Hard wheat, durum wheat in particular, contains a larger proportion of gluten which is why it is used to make bread. Wheat flour being richest in gluten, the more wheat flour there is in bread dough, the more air cells it will contain which will make the bread lighter. Conversely, the less gluten it contains, the denser the bread, the longer it will keep.

Did you know that it is mandatory in Canada to enrich white flour? The flour must contain thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, folic acid and iron in the amounts required by the regulations established by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency. Vitamin B6, magnesium and calcium can also be added.


All-purpose white flour, as explained above, is enriched and therefore very nutritious. All-purpose flour is obtained by grinding and mixing different varieties of hard and soft wheat. It can be used for any purpose, as its name indicates.


Enriched wheat flour is used to make enriched white bread. Because it is illegal to add vitamins or minerals directly into the bread, the nutritional elements in enriched bread come from the flour.


Unbleached flour is aged naturally; it contains no food additives, no bleaches. It whitens to some extent but remains a creamy colour.


Bleached flour is whitened artificially, usually with food additives that contain either calcium or phosphorous. Oxidation of the flour makes the gluten stronger or more elastic, which renders better cooking results. Bleaching agents produce bread that is lighter, larger in volume, with a finer grain and a lighter colour.


Whole-wheat flour has the highest fibre content of any flour, approximately 4 grams per 60 ml (¼ cup). White flour can be substituted for wheat flour in most recipes but sometimes a slightly larger amount is needed. The end result will be more nutritious but the colour, flavour and often the volume will not quite be the same...the colour will be darker, the flavour more pronounced and the volume smaller. The higher concentration of bran is responsible for the loss in volume because bran contains an enzyme that reduces the elasticity of gluten. For a lighter product, whole-wheat flour should be sifted a number of times prior to use, taking care to reintegrate the bran left in the sieve. It can then be used to make bread or pastries that do not require elasticity like short-crust pastry, genoise sponge cake, shortbread or cookies. Whole-wheat flour should be stored in the refrigerator.


Soft wheat flour is used to make muffins or pie crusts.


Hard wheat flour is whole-grain flour that is used to make pancakes and pasta. It should be sifted several times if used to make bread.


Cake flour is white flour made exclusively of finely-ground soft wheat. It is highly refined because it always comes from the last grindings. Because this flour is higher in starch and lower in protein and gluten, it is ideal for very light cakes but not recommended to make leavened bread.


Pastry flour is usually made with soft wheat but it may also be made using hard wheat. Low in gluten, it is finely ground but not quite as light as cake flour. It is used to make pastries, biscuits or cakes. It should not be used to make leavened bread.


Bakery flour or bread flour is milled from a blend of hard wheat. It is slightly granular and, because it has a very high protein content, it is not suitable for domestic use and only used in bakeries.


Gluten flour is obtained from high-protein whole durum wheat that is washed to remove the starch, dried and then ground. Gluten flour is generally made up of 45% gluten and 55% white flour. It can be used with whole-wheat flour or with low-gluten flours such as rye, barley or oat flour.


Spelt flour is made from an ancient variety of wheat. Spelt is very high in gluten content which makes it suitable for bread and is often used in artisan bakeries for its delicious taste.


Wheatmeal flour is obtained when the bran is removed from wheat before it is finely ground. Wheatmeal flour is mostly used to make pastry, cookie and pizza dough.


Kamut flour gets its name from the commercial trademark “Kamut”; its scientific name is “khorasan” wheat. It is not “bread” wheat but it is still used to make bread because of its taste. Much like durum wheat, it is best used to make pasta.

• Flours for All Purposes and All Preferences!