The Southern Flour Brand That Went From Humble Beginnings To Household Staple

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There’s an iconic flour brand that’s considered a staple in Southern cuisine and may be the only flour to use if you’re cooking mouthwatering biscuits. Although the brand started as a small company that didn’t originally have a flour mill, it blossomed into a business that developed a sizable following, known for producing special flour with an exemplary consistency for pastries and biscuits.

White Lily is a Southern brand of flour that is popular with both professional bakers and home cooks. It began as an idea by James Allen Smith, who in 1873 opened a company that traded grain and provisions in Knoxville, Tennessee. After working with business partners to open Knoxville City Mills in 1882, it later merged with Smith’s original grain-trading company to become J. Allen Smith & Company. Smith tried to develop a better-quality baking flour for his customers, and after experimenting with locally grown and milled varieties without success, he gave his mill operators the task of creating a better flour…

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