Prioritize substitutions that protect gluten development and fermentation performance. Bread dough is less forgiving than quick bakes. Structure and fermentation can collapse with poor substitutions.
Reviewed by the CupOrGram Editorial TeamSources: King Arthur Baking, USDA FoodData CentralMethodology
Can I make bread without cake flour?
Yes. Start with All-Purpose Flour + Cornstarch at For 1 cup cake flour: use 1 cup AP flour minus 2 tbsp, add 2 tbsp cornstarch, then adjust liquid or bake time in small steps after a test batch.
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All-Purpose Flour + Cornstarch
Use For 1 cup cake flour: use 1 cup AP flour minus 2 tbsp, add 2 tbsp cornstarch
The cornstarch dilutes the protein content to mimic cake flour.
On CupOrGram, 1 cup of cake flour is treated as 114 grams. Use the conversion page if you want the original ingredient weight before choosing a substitute.
Will all-purpose flour + cornstarch work as a cake flour substitute in yeasted dough?
Yes, at For 1 cup cake flour: use 1 cup AP flour minus 2 tbsp, add 2 tbsp cornstarch. The cornstarch dilutes the protein content to mimic cake flour. Bake-test before scaling up.