Learn to Bake with Freshly Milled Flour
Next level bread baking is learning to grind/mill your own wheat berries to create a flavorful and nutrition filled flour to make your bread with.
Bread has been around forever- how many times does Jesus mention the word “bread”
Give us this our daily bread – Matthew 6:11
Poor ol’ bread has gotten a bad rap as of lately. I for one do not buy into it. I love bread in it’s true to form state. This so called “bread” at the stores is so far from what Laura Ingalls Wilder’s Ma brought to the table daily. So far from the daily bread that the bible talks about. THAT bread deserves a bad rap. As in rap that right into the garbage.
- Bread has been one of those things I like to get on a high horse on, it’s that one item I say to people “can you make that at home”? That one thing instead of buying at the store, make it at home please. Yes, oh yes you can. Now that you can bake bread at home why not take it up a notch? Actually, like many notches. By grinding your own wheat berries.
WHY? Why let me tell you.
Back in the 1870’s the flour industry was changed when the steel roller mills were invented. The rollers allowed companies to separate the parts of the grain that caused the flour to go rancid after a period of time. Package up the leftover and sell it as “flour”. Which historically by the 1920’s people started to become sick because their bodies were not getting the good stuff. Think pellagra, anemia, and beriberi due to deficiency of certain vitamins. So being the brilliant scheming minds the flour companies decided to “enrich” said flour with iron, and three B vitamins known as thiamine, riboflavin, and niacin.
But there’s actually 30 nutrients that are removed from the bran and germ that by milling your own flour you’ll get all of those bad boys.
Let’s talk about the three main parts of the grain (wheat berries)
Bran: The protective outer layer that is high in fiber and B vitamins
Germ: The seed for a new planet and the life force of the grain, the germ contains B vitamins, minerals, protein, healthy oils, fatty acids, and is one of the most abundant food sources of vitamin E.
Endosperm: The white flour portion of the milled grain that contains starch, protein, and very little vitamins and minerals. The endosperm is the end product you receive in the store in the flour bags.
Its’ fine but it’s not good nor contains what the bran & germ does. Having all three together is top notch. That’s the good stuff right there. Because the bran and germ are where the highest concentration of lipids (oils) reside, which are the primary cause for spoilage and going rancid.
Let’s talk about the term Enzyme. Have you seen that on the back of your flour? King Arthur has it on the back (including their organic flours). So being a naturally skeptical person I reached out to them to find out what this said enzyme is.
Email from them: (click to view)
Hi Laura,
Thanks for contacting us here at King Arthur Baking Company.
We used malted barley previously because it is a source of enzymes, but found that the level and efficacy of those enzymes can vary from batch to batch. The activity of straight enzymes varies less, so using them creates an even more consistent flour. Also, the process of malting barley is very water and energy intensive, and we were looking for alternatives.
The enzyme added is called fungal alpha-amylase. Enzymes have been used in food products for over 40 years to to help create nutrition in flour for feeding yeasts. Adding enzyme results in improved bread volume and crumb texture in baked goods.
Rest assured this change should not impact your baked goods in any way. If you do find our flour is performing differently for any reason, we hope you’ll reach out to us and let us know. Ensuring the integrity of our goods is one of King Arthur’s topmost commitments, so that you as a baker have peace of mind and know you’ll get excellent products and experiences each and every time you bake.
Please let us know if we can answer any additional questions or assist you further.
Kind regards,
Erin
(800) 827-6836
Well since I am that skeptical person I say nah, I’ll just mill my own and not trust your enzymes thank you very much. So now either I’ve scared you from baking or eating bread entirely or fueled you to dive deeper into milling your own wheat berries. If it’s the later keep reading…
Learning to Mill Your Own Wheat Berries
Your freshly ground berries have nutrition packed right in those tiny little berries! I suggest milling and storing in the fridge or mill on demand which can be difficult lugging out the grinder every day. I generally mill up a larger glass container (see video above) once a week. Grinding (aka milling) your own wheat berries provides an excellent source of nutrition. Once something is milled it starts to lose its nutrition, it’s best to store milled wheat/flour in the fridge until you’re ready to use.
What Kind of Mill to Use
You will need a grinder; the one I use is a Mockmill 100
It’s a stone-on-stone grinder and with my research that proved to the best the best for me. To my understanding the impact mills end up heating up the berries while milling so I prefer to stay away from that. You could try using a blender like a ninja or a vitamix although it will not get as fine, but it may be something to try at first if you already have that on hand. I have heard from several friends that the kitchen aid attachment while handy does not grind it fine enough either. I use the Mock mill 100 to grind rice, corn and wheat berries.
What Type of Wheat Berries You’ll Need
Hard VS Soft
Hard wheat berries are used for baking breads, rolls, etc.
Soft wheat berries are used for pastries, sweets, cakes, etc.
My current favorite is the Hard RED Wheat Berries, it lends a slightly nutty flavor and dept to the bread. Red or White are both wonderful though. If you see the word spring tor winter hat just means the berries were planted in the spring or fall.
Where to Purchase Wheat Berries From?
I buy all my wheat berries from Azure Standard the cost is the best that I have found. You can buy in smaller amounts to start at first or get up to 50LB bags. Finding a drop location near you will prove beneficial for your pantry as it has mine.
Red Wheat Berries (my current favorite used for bread )
Einkorn Berries are known as the “Ancient Grain” this grain has never been altered or hybridized- it also has lower gluten so it is a bit different to bake with. You’ll have to do some adjustments with baking, click HERE to read more tips about baking with Einkorn.
Spelt Grain is also an ancient grain that is unique, it holds it’s nutritional value even after being milled. Click HERE to learn how to bake with Spelt.
Azure Standard has the best prices for Organic Wheat Berries- see if there’s a drop near you!
Baking With Wheat Berries
- Use about a 3 to 4 tablespoons less in each “cup” that is required in your recipe
- It’s a good idea to mix up the dough and let it sit for 15 minutes to allow the flour to absorb the liquid. Then you can assess correctly if you need to add more liquid or flour. In general, I find that most recipes seem to use a bit more liquid.
- When measuring out the freshly ground wheat berries you’ll use 2/3 cup of wheat berries that will give you 1 cup of flour. When using the freshly ground wheat you’ll want to use about 3 to 4 tablespoons less per “cup” than the recipe calls for.
RESOURECES
Information citated from Homestead Living Magazine, Nourishing Tradition & Back to Eden books.
Some of the links may be affiliate links, which means I may earn a commission at no additional cost to you, if you click through and make a purchase. I only share links of products I either use or would be comparable to what I am currently using.
