Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley, and rye. It helps dough rise and gives bread its chewy texture.

**Bread Flour**: Bread flour made from hard spring wheat, which has a higher protein content (12-14%) providing more gluten. The flour is usually bleached, and sometimes bromated. Bread flour is milled in a process that often involves passing it through large steel or stone rollers. It's ideal for bread making, especially yeast breads, as it yields a more elastic dough and results in a chewy texture. **All-Purpose Flour**: All-purpose flour, also called white flour, is made from a mixture of hard and soft wheat. It goes through a milling process to remove the bran and germ, leaving just the endosperm. It's versatile and can be used in everything from bread to cakes to pastries. **Pastry Flour**: Pastry flour is also milled from soft wheat and falls in the middle of the protein spectrum, generally at 8-10% protein. It’s a bit stronger than cake flour, making it perfect for pies, pastries, and cookies. **Cake Flour**: Cake Flour is made from soft winter wheat. Its protein content is lower (between 7 and 9 percent) to ensure a tender texture in cakes. It's often bleached, which helps the flour hold more liquid, produce more carbon dioxide and rise higher in cakes. **Self-Rising Flour**: Self-rising flour is a type of flour that has salt and leavening agents (like baking powder) already mixed into it. It's typically made from a softer variety of wheat, which makes it best suited for biscuits and quick breads. **Wheat Flour**: Wheat flour can refer to all-purpose, bread, or any other type of flour made from wheat. Whole wheat flour, which includes the entire grain (endosperm, germ, and bran), is nutritionally superior to refined wheat flours and gives heartier flavor and texture to baked goods. **Gluten-Free Flour**: Gluten-free flours are made from ingredients that do not contain gluten. These might include rice, almonds, chickpeas or potatoes. The milling process can vary depending on the base ingredient. **Xanthan Gum**: Xanthan gum is actually a stabilizer and thickening agent rather than a type of flour. It is fermented by bacteria before being dried and ground into a fine, white powder. It is often used to give gluten-free flours a consistency similar to wheat flours. **Coconut Flour**: It's made from dried, ground coconut meat. Used primarily in gluten-free and grain-free baking, coconut flour is high in fiber and low in carbohydrates. **Almond Flour**: Almond flour is made from ground sweet almonds. It's often used in gluten-free and paleo baking, as well as for making macarons. **Cassava Flour**: Cassava flour is made from the whole root of the cassava plant. It has a mild flavor and is most commonly used in gluten-free and grain-free recipes. **Sifting flour**: Sifting is the process of passing a dry ingredient like flour through a sifter or a fine mesh to break up any lumps and aerate the ingredient. It is done to remove any impurities, incorporate air into the flour helping in leavening of baked goods, ensure a uniform consistency and to achieve accurate measurements. Three more types of flour include: 1. **Rye Flour**: Rye has a lower gluten content than wheat, it is often used for making rustic breads and crackers. It gives a distinct nutty flavor. 2. **Spelt Flour**: Spelt is an ancient variety of wheat. It has a somewhat nutty and slightly sweet flavor and can be used in most recipes that call for regular or whole wheat flour. 3. **Buckwheat Flour**: Despite its name, buckwheat is actually a fruit seed, not a grain, which makes it gluten-free. This flour has a rich, earthy flavor and is often blended with other flours for pancakes, noodles, crepes, and many gluten-free baked goods. **Gluten**: Gluten is a type of protein found in wheat, barley, and rye. It provides elasticity and strength to doughs, helping them to rise and keep their shape, and often giving the final product a chewy texture. Some people are intolerant to gluten or have chosen to remove gluten from their diet for other health reasons.