Tips to saving grocery money and being healthy: Milling Fresh Flour - Why Bother?

[Iareamom]

I have a Blendtec blender that grinds wheat but I wonder if it is fine enough for baking? Do you have experience grinding wheat this way? Also, do you recommend red or white wheat for bread, waffles, pancakes etc?

[thewheatguy]

@Iareamom ~ Hi! Thanks for asking and watching! A blender really does not 'grind' wheat - it makes it into small pieces. It does not produce the same true flour texture that a mill does. So it will be more dense. The best transitional wheat to use for whole wheat, I've found to be Prairie Gold Hard White. Works great! Feel free to email, call or stop by the store site MillersGrainHouse(dot)com and I'd be delighted to help if you have more questions!

Best Blessings!

Donna

[Grain991]

Two months after seeing this vid I finally baked my first loaf of bread using a Corona manual grain mill. What a delicious and substantial bread it is too! I have a nutrition question: Since the grain isn't milled very fine this way (which I very much like -- the bread is chewy like an old rustic roll), are hard wheats like red winter really releasing their vitamins during digestion?

[thewheatguy]

FIRST - Congratulations on your first loaf made of fresh-milled flour!

Great Question!

Yes. The minute the hull is breached the oils and nutrients are released. They will get out even in the smallest of cracking - so you are as good nutritionally even if your teeth cracked a whole kernel or you milled it super fine - as long as it's used right away and doesn't  oxidize- you have all the same nutrients.

Thanks for asking this!

Best Blessings!

Donna

[imsailing2]

I like to do things easy like you do. I like to get out ingredients and utensils once! So I had planned to make up at least a weeks worth of packages for bread, mixing all the dry ingredients together, so that I can just grab it in the morning and throw it in. (Like you do the muffins) So if I were to mill a week's worth of flour at a time and put all my little mixes together, would I loose any of the nutrients because I am not doing it immediately before use?

[thewheatguy]

This is a great question!

For convenience sake it makes a lot of sense, and fresh milled will still be better even if it's been a week old (vs. who knows how old it is in the store, and it's stripped of nutrients).

To slow the loss of nutrients you could remove as much air as possible from the mixed bags, then place in the freezer immediately after you've mixed the fresh milled flour and ingredients.

Some nutrients will be lost, but in compairison to bagged flour you are much better.

[imsailing2]

Wow, thank you. No one has ever taught that to me before, it makes so much sense. I am just beginning my little journey. I have purchased a bread maker and decided that I am going to make all my families bread at home. I have been a little scared of the whole grains because I knew nothing about them. Now I am excited to learn more about how to use them and find recipes we like. I do have one question...which I will ask in the next comment because I am running out of room!

[thewheatguy]

Ran out of room below....but hoped I answered it!

Don't be shy of whole grains! They are so much better and not as hard as you might think. If you do begin to mill your own, you'll NEVER go back to store bought...the taste is so much more REAL and FULL. Even nutrition aside, my kids prefer my tortillas, bread, buns, pancakes etc. So it is worth it!

Best Blessings!

Donna

[marlhigh]

Donna,

This video has been really interesting. I am going to be looking into this more closely, specially when I start nearing the end of my flour bag.

I am a college student and my vision is heading to work for agricultural policy reform. being a healthy eating society is very very important to me.

Thanks again for awesome inspiration.

-M

[thewheatguy]

Greetings -M!

Thank you for watching....there is a LOT more info on home-milling than I could sqeeze into the video.

You sound like someone who could really make a difference in the policies that effect our foods. Best of wishes for you in that endevour!!

Best Blessings!

Donna

[thewheatguy]

Agreed (if you are refering to the 'elephant, one bite at a time' comment). It had to be edited for shortening and it was meant to refer to the LEARNING process of why & using freshly milled flour....so it fit's THAT, but you're right, not the context of the whole video.

Nice point - wish I had time to re-do this older vid, likely will before too long!

Thanks for the comment and kind words!

Best Blessings!

Donna

[akashsharmamd]

Good information but lost credibility in the end. Correct information- poor analogy.

[rae1968]

Love you video. I have a question for you what mill would you recommend for grinding your own grits? The Wondermill doesnt seem to provide a course enough grind so I was hoping you may have a recommendation!

[thewheatguy]

Hi!

Thanks for the kind words.

Most electric mills - mill to finely for cracked grains or grits. You would want an adjustable hand (manual) mill.

We offer a few on our website if you want to take a look.

millersgrainhouse(dot)com/stor­e

Then go to: Grain/Flour Mills

You can email the 'contact' on there if you have any specific questions about one or another.

Thanks again for the kind words and for asking!! Love to help.

Best Blessings!

Donna

[joeymackaroni]

I'm going to show this to my mom. She grew up in a very rural village in sicily; when nothing even up until the 60s was was bought at a grocery store. I was led to this video by a renewed interest on her part to mill and bake our own bread. She will also appreciate that you're religious.

Thank you.

God Bless.

[thewheatguy]

Thank you for the encouraging words! I really hope your mother likes it! It's proof to her why her thoughts to mill are sound and valid!

I'd LOVE to hear more about rural life in Sicily! No store food until the 60s! Sounds very interesting.

Thank you for sharing this with her. Please let her know I'd also like to learn from her as well!

Best Blessings!

Donna

[stopplayingchurch]

I am tempted to believe you because your complexion is beautiful and you look very healthy

[thewheatguy]

Thank you for the kind words! It's quite interesting, and other people have told me the same has happened to them, but when switching to fresh milled grains, my digestion is much better but also my hair that was turning grey, has actually reversed back to dark again. Live food and healthy grains MUST do a body good!

Thanks again!

Best Blessings!

Donna

[lylahledner]

this is fantastic. posted it on twitter as a MUST see u-tube!. i'm a believer now! :-) thanks for all your videos. i've been sharing them with other women.

blessings...lylah

[thewheatguy]

OH! Thank you for that Lylah!

I hope more people will do this for thier families and own diets. It makes a big difference that I can FEEL when I end up eating 'dead bread' at a resturaunt. I usually skip it now since nothing compares to fresh milled flour!

Hope you're doing well with your pantry stocking!

Best Blessings!

Donna

[rotoclip]

can you freez a fresh loaf of bread [fresh milled and baked bread]? will it lose nutientsin the freezer?

[thewheatguy]

Great question!

Yes you can freeze it. The texture may not be exactly the same as it is when it was fresh out of the oven, but it does store well. First make sure it is completely cooled and air tight. Be sure to put it way back or far down in your freezer (vs. the door or top shelf) to avoid condensation from the freezer opening and shutting and thus ice crystals. Then when thawing, open the end of the bag (again avoiding moisture) and you are good to go!

Best Blessings!

Donna

[4xthefun]

Great video. We are long time whole grain users and grind our grains. I am home schooling my children and we are doing a home economics unit and I had them watch this video! Now they know why mom grinds!

[thewheatguy]

Oh wow that is so GREAT! I am a homeschool parent as well - but now all of ours are graduated and in college (three at the same time!). It's nice to think I get to still 'homeschool' with the fact that you shared this with YOUR kids! What a Blessings!

Thanks for the encouragement!

Donna

[thewheatguy]

You are very welcome! Thank you for the encouragement! (o:

[mychickadee]

A great teaching video...thanks for reminding me why I take the time to grind!