In Defence of All-Purpose Flour

Walk into a supermarket these days and check out the baking or flour aisle and you'll see that the speciality flours are at hand reach and eye level; all-purpose flour is relegated to the floor shelf or it is placed on a separate part of the shelf as if it does not belong. It has taken a back seat to the newer kids - the ones at are singular in purpose.

I am a proud sack-carrying all-purpose flour user. I use it for everything - from dumplings to doughnuts, from breads to bakes, from cookies to cakes, from scones to pastries to roti! And I have to say, I am yet to be disappointed by the outcome of anything that I've made and shared, because I used all-purpose flour instead of the speciality flour prescribed by a recipe. Read this week's column to learn more about flour and why cake flour, pastry flour and bread flour are different from each other. And see why all-purpose flour is still the better choice, in more ways than one.

This is a tiny snapshot of the things I've made over the years with good ole all-purpose flour. Be sure to check out my breads and sweet stuff albums for more items made with all-purpose flour.