flour
(warning, showing off bit) For those of you who don't know, my sister is studying violin at the San Francisco Conservatory. She's doing a recital on April 22, and I don't remember what she's playing (concertos by Bach, Bloch, maybe Mozart???) but it'll be fabulous so you should all come! Let me know if you're interested, and I'll tell you times, etc, when I know. Actually, don't bother, I'm sure I'll post about it and maybe even email locals regardless of potential interest.
But anyway, she's letting our mom and me conspire to provide food, and so my mom's bringing Welsh cakes and I'm making teisen lap. If you read my St. David's Day cooking babbling, you know that I was planning to mess with the flour next time I made it as it turned out a bit drier than I'd liked, and my mom says when she makes it in the UK it turns out fine but in the US it's dry. Nearly all the recipe-transfer problems my family's ever had we've put down to differences in UK versus US flour.
So I just Googled "plain flour." According to every website I checked, it ought to be exactly the same as US "all-purpose flour." What the heck? Why's my cake dry, then? The other major ingredients are butter, shortening, currants, sugar, eggs, and baking powder, all of which ought to be consistent. It is possible she always uses lard in the UK and shortening here, could that do it?
Any ideas? Baking wisdom?
But anyway, she's letting our mom and me conspire to provide food, and so my mom's bringing Welsh cakes and I'm making teisen lap. If you read my St. David's Day cooking babbling, you know that I was planning to mess with the flour next time I made it as it turned out a bit drier than I'd liked, and my mom says when she makes it in the UK it turns out fine but in the US it's dry. Nearly all the recipe-transfer problems my family's ever had we've put down to differences in UK versus US flour.
So I just Googled "plain flour." According to every website I checked, it ought to be exactly the same as US "all-purpose flour." What the heck? Why's my cake dry, then? The other major ingredients are butter, shortening, currants, sugar, eggs, and baking powder, all of which ought to be consistent. It is possible she always uses lard in the UK and shortening here, could that do it?
Any ideas? Baking wisdom?