I was measuring flour wrong for years until a friend in Denver pointed it out
I always just scooped my flour straight from the bag with the measuring cup, packing it down a bit. My friend watched me do it while we were baking together and said, 'You know that's adding like an extra ounce per cup, right?' I started spooning and leveling instead, and my cookie recipes finally stopped coming out dry. Has anyone else had a basic technique they were messing up for way too long?
Oh man, same exact thing here! I always just dunked the cup in the bag and shook it a little. My cakes were so dense for years, and I blamed my oven. Then I saw a video about spooning flour and it was a total game changer. My baking actually turns out right now, it's wild how one small change makes that much difference.
That spooning method is definitely better than dunking, @fionajenkins, but it can still pack in too much flour. The real trick is using a kitchen scale. A cup of flour can weigh so many different amounts depending on how you get it in there. Weighing gives you the exact amount the recipe writer used. It's the only way to be truly sure.