The Simple Stand Mixer Hack For Avoiding That Massive Cloud Of Flour

When it comes to baking flavorful homemade rainbow layer cake, crusty artisan breads, or delectable cookies, a good stand mixer is a handy kitchen tool. Beloved by many seasoned and amateur bakers alike, a stand mixer helps incorporate the ingredients in your recipe seamlessly, without all the additional energy it takes to whisk or knead batters and doughs by hand.

Once you've gathered all your ingredients together, preheated the oven, prepared your baking pans, and whipped out the correct paddle or whisk attachments, however, the last thing you want is to deal with the dreaded cloud of flour that forms over your stand mixer when you add in your dry ingredients to the bowl. We've all been there  — that sudden moment when your kitchen, clothes, and everything in sight is covered with dust. Beyond the mess and the dreaded extra cleanup, you may wonder if your ingredient ratios are still accurate, as you stand in the wake of the flour cloud, enveloped in the powdery stuff.

This mess can make you want to skip the stand mixer altogether and opt for handheld whisks and mashing tools instead. Luckily, we have a simple trick that will help avoid the whole (very common) dusty scenario. To keep your baking space clean and contain your flour in your mixing bowl where it belongs, simply drape a clean dish towel over the bowl of your stand mixer to prevent flour from flying everywhere.

To use a kitchen towel as a seamless and headache-free flour guard for all your baking needs, first set up your mixing bowl and affix your whisk or paddle attachment. Mix any butter and wet ingredients as directed by your recipe. Then, when you're ready to add in your flour and other dry ingredients, drape your dish towel over the top of your stand mixer so it falls down around the edge of your bowl. Add your dry ingredients with the mixer turned off, then turn on the mixer starting with the lowest setting — pulse off and on this lowest setting — then gradually increase the speed as needed.

Your towel should loosely cover the edges of the bowl. Avoid letting it fall inside the bowl, to prevent it from getting caught as you mix. To check that your flour is incorporated, lift the towel, scrape the sides of your bowl with a spatula, and add the rest of your dry ingredients as needed, repeating the process by covering your mixer with the towel. You'll find that the dish towel serves as a protective barrier to keep the flour dust from flying everywhere.

To keep your kitchen (and yourself) clean when baking, it's important to gather all of your materials ahead of time. This is often referred to with the French culinary term "mise en place," which translates to "everything in its place," and well, it works. To practice mise en place, weigh out your ingredients ahead of time and have your clean dish towel ready so you have easy access to it. Once you've weighed/measured (maybe sifted), and whisked your flour with salt, spices, and leavening agents, it'll be easy to add the dry ingredients to your mixer.

When adding your dry ingredients into the bowl of your stand mixer, it's key to do so gradually, adding about a third of the dry ingredients at a time — when the mixer is off. You can even use a spoon or measuring cup to carefully add your dry ingredients to the bowl for a clean transfer that further avoids flour spills. Even with the towel as a flour guard, you'll want to take this gradual approach to ensure that all the ingredients in your recipe get incorporated evenly (and mess-free).