A few days ago, i baked a cake using mocaf (mocaf stands for MODIFIED CASSAVA FLOUR. Source in Indonesian Language: https://id.wikipedia.org/wiki/Modified_cassava_flour). It is gluten-free flour. I used this kind of flour several times but this time, i used one literally ‘named’ MOCAF (there are several cassava based flour. I don’t know the difference between them in terms of their processing. Are they actually the exact same flour or with different ‘mix’ or ‘process’.
One thing I can sense with my ‘nose’ and my tongue when using this flour to make a cake: the aroma and texture.
The Aroma
When the oven is opened, i can smell kind of smell, quite noticeably different from if I use regular flour. It’s like, I don’t know the correct term for this smell, a very light burnt smell, light but as I describe, quite noticeable. The aroma is still sensed when I eat the cake. It’s like there is another flavour added into the dough. As for myself, I’m not too comfortable with it. (^_^)”’. But if one don’t care about it, it’s actually ok. Sensitivity for one person to another is different
The Texture
I used mocaf for the first time but before, I used cassava based flour MANY times. It’s quite the same. The cake is ok but a bit different than it should be when we make it with flour. Like what happened to me, the cake is a biiiiit more dense. NOT FAIL. I would like to shout that. Haha. Not fail at all. Compared to the same recipe but I used regular flour, the sponge cake with regular flour, well, like common sponge cake, spongy, ‘chewy’, and ok. But with mocaf, it’s not too spongy and chewy.
I would like to add about how it feels in my stomach. Haha. Well, for some cakes i made before with cassava-based flour and this mocaf flour, I feel uncomfortable somehow. Like hmm… ‘acid’ in my stomach or hmm…i don’t know how to say it literally. Non-gluten flour is supposed to be good for someone with sensitive stomach and healthier generally (?). But I don’t know, in my case, my stomach isn’t too friendly with this kind of flour. *Palm sugar too. my stomach doesn’t accept palm sugar replacement in cake dough very well. It was ok for 2-3 slices but then, i feel like uncomfortable in my stomach.
This flour is good for anyone who wants to bake using gluten free flour but keep in mind, there might be slightly differences (I would like to add sensitivity variable here. Haha. As I said, sensitivity between people is different). So, if you feel your cake is ‘failed’. May be it is not! It is like that!
My suggestions are:
- make the un-changed recipe. Use regular flour or as written. It is to know how the cake should be.
- make sure the making technique is already correct (^_^)”’. If our technique is still not stable (a.ka. sometimes luckily we make correct cakes and on another day we have bad luck in making it. Haha), we won’t know how the cake is supposed to be.
note: In the past, i used cassava-based flour to make cheese-cake. It was ok but for me, it’s not as saviour as using regular flour. Haha. Goodness! Devilish food are good but unfortunately some people can’t eat with original recipe. (T_T).
I forgot whether i used MOCAF or Low protein flour when making one cake. I combine with corn flour, the texture was very very light. But yet, I forgot. I also forgot which cake I made. The processing as well as the composition of the ingredients play roles (of course); that’s why i wasn’t sure was it mocaf or low-pro flour. The use of the flour wasn’t much so that’s why it’s very light. Different from when I made sponge cake. So, again, I would like to emphasise my suggestions above. If you really want to compare, make the no-alternate flour recipe with correct technique. I didn’t want to make a comparison back then, I didn’t know the original cake taste. (^_^)”’. Lately I’ve been making cake with low-pro flour and now MOCAF, yet, sometimes, i forgot to make notes about it.