Hi all, I am doing some writing on the history of baking, and I was wondering when flour became pure. We take for granted the fact that flour in our grocery stores is free from insect larvae, twigs, and other contaminants. I have heard that the purpose of sifting flour was once to get this stuff out. Now we sift for nostalgia's sake or possibly to make flour fluffy. I want to say that flour became pure with the advent of large flour millers in the 19th century like Wasburn-Crosby and Pillsbury (both now are part of General Mills). But that is just a guess. When did things really get cleaned up? Do any of you foodies and bakers know? Thanks!
posted by tnygard on Feb 5, 2009 - 23 answers

Should I put the flour used to dust the counter and/or pizza peel back in the bag? [more inside]
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I've got a 10lb bag of all purpose flour. What easy-to-prepare foods can I make with it? [more inside]
posted by raydexter on Aug 2, 2006 - 24 answers

I would like to buy a 25-50 lb sack of flour in NWDC. The only place I can think of is Costco in Tenleytown, and I'm not a member. I'm limited to metro-accessible areas. Bonus points if it's unbleached white or whole wheat.
posted by The White Hat on Feb 11, 2006 - 10 answers

I'm looking for an economical source for small quantities of various flours, online or brick and mortar in the Boston area. [more inside]
posted by rxrfrx on Jan 16, 2006 - 19 answers