Vegan Cooking Tips with Ann Gentry

Ann Gentry is a chef, restaurateur, food educator and visionary. She opened Real Food Daily in Los Angeles 1993, a totally vegan and organic restaurant that has since spawned another in West Hollywood. Please visit Real Food Daily to find out more about this truly unique restaurant and to learn more about Ann Gentry.

Question:

What is the purpose of sifting dry ingredients like flour, baking soda, and salt? What does this accomplish and how will it affect my cake if I don't sift?

Answer:

Sifting is a way of lightening flour and thoroughly mixing it with the other dry ingredients. Most flour today is sifted during the milling process so it is not necessary to do so at the time of baking. Simply using a fork to mix well the flours with the other dry ingredients will do the trick. If you do not mix baking soda or powder and salt thoroughly with the flour there can be a tendency to taste those ingredients. They also tend to clump in the final product. If the baking powder is not well mixed then your cake may not rise.

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