Red Band Flour--gone but not forgotten

While my beloved Red Band Flour has died, profit margins or some such nonsense, I still get to use it for a bit longer.

I have 2 bags in transit back to Chicago as we speak. 2 more await me in S.C. when I get there next weekend. I wish I had more time there so that I could consider an argument with my husband about shipping, & storing, a case of it back.

So the baking will begin again, I won't be stingy, contemplating in an Elaine Benes' manner, whether a recipe is Red Band flour-worthy. My beloved biscuits, scones, cakes, & pies will continue, at least for a while, with Red Band Flour.

I made biscuits tonight with a bag of the new White Lily flour tonight, and it sure seemed exactly the same as the old to me. Same plaster of Paris consistency and weight, all that.

I know nothing of White Lily except it exists. I've never used it because we were Red Band folks. Luckily, the bakers weren't complaining about a change in Red Band with the Big corp. purchasing them, prior to killing them. I can put off on trying the Swans Mill cake flour exchange for a while longer. Although I do have a box of Swans Mill. That is used almost exclusively for Red Velvet Cake.

I've substituted Adluh self-rising flour for Red Band. Results were the same. I use it for biscuits and for top crust on pies. Adluh is milled in Columbia, SC. It's kosher-certified as well. Comes in regular or self-rising. You can find it in most grocery stores in SC (which incidentally still have Red Band of their shelves). Or order from the Adluh Web site. http://www.adluhstore.com/flour.html. They also offer stone-ground grits, but I have not tried them--prefer Jim Dandy regular grits.

If you're heading south, green (raw) peanuts are now in the grocery stores, for making boiled peanuts. Also muscadines and scuppernong grapes are at their height.

--Historian08 (in California)

Historian08 wrote:I've substituted Adluh self-rising flour for Red Band. Results were the same. I use it for biscuits and for top crust on pies. Adluh is milled in Columbia, SC. It's kosher-certified as well. Comes in regular or self-rising. You can find it in most grocery stores in SC (which incidentally still have Red Band of their shelves). Or order from the Adluh Web site. http://www.adluhstore.com/flour.html. They also offer stone-ground grits, but I have not tried them--prefer Jim Dandy regular grits.

If you're heading south, green (raw) peanuts are now in the grocery stores, for making boiled peanuts. Also muscadines and scuppernong grapes are at their height.

--Historian08 (in California)

Somehow I missed this. When I fly home I fly in and out of Columbia. I never thought to try any of the other flours. I'm still hoarding( much like Elaine in a certain Seinfeld episode with sponges ) my Red Band so for now I won't have to try anything else.

I am loving the collection of flours for specific purposes in this thread - I don't bake delicate things as much as I do hearty things like breads and muffins, so my pantry does have about five different kinds of flour (just counting wheat) just not for these particular utilities - but I understand the concept. (e.g. high-gluten, AP, whole wheat, whole wheat pastry, Wondra, sometimes pastry and/or cake flour, sometimes graham flour - and then I sometimes keep rye, buckwheat, cornmeal, oatmeal, rice flour and cornstarch for baking as well) I do love the WW pastry flour, which is that same red wheat, and I would hoard it if I had to.

Le Sigh! I've finished the last bag I had of Red Band flour. I fear the loss of the magic. https://mobile.twitter.com/chicagoduila ... 33/photo/1