Desserts

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Buckwheat flour, in spite of its name, isn’t related to wheat. This has made it popular with those following a gluten-free diet. Buck- wheat flour is a whole-grain flour, rich in fiber and protein; its earthy taste has made it popu- lar—often mixed with other flours—for producing pancakes, blini, savory crepes, and soba noodles. Buckwheat flour makes my Blueberry Corn Pan- cakes (page 51) hearty and tasty.

Corn flour is basically cornmeal processed to its finest texture, creating a flour. In fact, you can make your own corn flour simply by pulsing cornmeal at a high speed in a food processor. I like to use it for a subtle corn flavor and to keep things gluten-free I use it in my Black Bean Veg- gie Burgers (page 135).

Oat flour is made from ground oats. This flour can be used in a wide variety of recipes, especially ones that are more rustic in texture. While oat flour can be purchased, you can make it at home in a few seconds, in the same way as the corn flour above—in your food processor. That’s how I make my oat flour for the Summer Blue- berry Crumble (page 236). I highly recommend making oat flour, as it allows more control over the texture of the final flour.

Spelt flour is great for baking. I like its mel- low, nutty, slightly sweet flavor, which is why I use it in my Nutty Raspberry Muffins (page 49). It’s great in quick breads and in crusts for savory dishes: I substitute spelt flour in most recipes call- ing for whole-wheat flour, while light spelt flour can take the place of unbleached white flour. Spelt is an ancient grain that is a cousin of wheat. While it’s not gluten-free, some people with a wheat intolerance can enjoy foods prepared with spelt.

Unbleached white flour is a highly refined wheat flour with the bran and germ re- moved. It is not chemically bleached, and that’s a good thing: The bleaching process eliminates the majority of nutrients in the flour. Unbleached white flour is very versatile; it can be used in nearly any baked good, as it provides unrivaled lightness and a tender crumb that is difficult to achieve using only alternative flours. This flour is interchangeable with unbleached all-purpose flour. I like using it in my Vanilla Cupcakes (page 240) and Chocolate Cupcakes (page 242), be- cause they should be as light as possible, and in my Double Chocolate Brownies (page 229) and Vanilla and Chocolate Swirl Bundt Cake (page 255), as well.

Whole-wheat pastry flour is made from wheat, naturally; “whole wheat” means that not all of the bran and germ have been removed, so the resulting flour is far more nutritious than white flour. Like other pastry flour, whole-wheat pastry flour has been milled down to a very fine powder, which gives baked goods a more delicate crumb. Whole-wheat pastry flour does tend to be heavier than its whiter cousin, but it will produce more delicate results than coarser whole-wheat flour.