Castagnaccio Cake is a traditional Tuscan cake made with chestnuts. It’s perfect for the holidays but you can enjoy it ...

For certain baked goods, cake flour is absolutely crucial. But if you don't have any on hand, you can actually make a great substitute right at home.

Making your own cake flour substitute is super simple—and you only need two ingredients. If your recipe calls for cake flour and you don't have any, fear not!

In addition to flour, it contains a leavener and salt — essentially, it’s a 3-in-1 ingredient. Self-rising flour was originally created as a way for British sailors to make better baked goods ...

Getty Images. Self-rising flour is a pre-mixed flour blend. In addition to flour, it contains a leavener and salt — essentially, it’s a 3-in-1 ingredient.

For cakes that do use all-purpose or cake flour, use the blender to make quick work of emulsifying the fat and liquid, but keep the dry ingredients in a bowl to the side.

All-purpose flour is the pastry chef’s multitool. With it, you can make cake batter, roux, pizza dough, or paper mache masks. (Do not eat the mask.) ...