Jake is grinding wheat berries for his fair entry.

When I was engaged to my husband many years ago, we agreed that he would never purchase a gift for me that plugged in unless I specifically asked for it.  We knew a couple who struggled at gift-giving time.  The husband loved gadgets, which he also loved purchasing for his wife whether she wanted it or not.  I have heard how she would unwrap some new appliance or contraption and be less than thrilled.  She knew he had purchased the gift because he liked it, not because he thought of her.

We wanted to avoid this awkwardness.   It may sound silly, but it works for us.  Lane knows not to surprise me with a toaster or a vacuum for my birthday or Christmas.  This agreement prevents any sense of disappointment over a gift.

With that said, Lane struggles to buy me something that I specifically ask for if it can be considered an appliance.  It is in-grained in his brain to avoid all things home appliance related.  If I really want something like a food processor or stand mixer, I have to be completely up-front with my wish. He has to be convinced that it is what I truly want.

One of the best gifts my husband ever got me for Christmas was the grain mill attachment to my KitchenAid Stand Mixer.  I absolutely love it!  Some people might think I am really weird.  I know that a grain mill attachment is a far cry from diamonds, but is a practical, useful gift.

My daughter won $750.00 for her whole wheat bread at the Grimes County Fair a few years ago.  One of our secrets (which is not really a secret anymore) is the fact that she uses freshly-ground flour in her recipe.  We bought two 25 pound bags of Wheat Montana Prairie Gold berries.

The freshly ground flour really makes your baked goods taste better.  You also don’t have to worry if the flour in bins or in bags at the store have gone rancid.  If you grind too much flour, you can freeze the rest for later.

My grain mill is completely made from stainless steel.  It cleans easily.  There are several settings to choose from when grinding your flour.  You can choose anywhere from fine for making flour to coarse for making breakfast cereals/porridge.

Since we are now gluten-free at our home, we no longer grind wheat berries.  At first I was sad that I might not be able to use my mill anymore.  Then I went to the health food store to look at gluten-free flours.  You can use rice, sorghum, buckwheat, potato, and bean flours instead of wheat.  I was shocked at the price of most of the flours.

Then it came to me.  I can grind my own rice flour.  In fact, I can choose which kind of rice I want to use.  It can be sweet, brown, jasmine, white, etc.  I can grind buckwheat groats or sorghum berries.  It is not only cheaper to purchase these grains whole and in bulk, but the results are freshly-ground grain.

The only thing that I have not figured out how to do is make nut flours.  My favorite for cooking/baking is almond flour.  I tried to make it with my grain mill, but I did not get flour.  Instead, I discovered a way to make fresh almond butter!  So, I do purchase that flour.  As I say in my cookbook, my source for great almond flour is Honeyville Food Products.

If you are interested in grinding your own flour at home whether it is wheat or gluten-free, then invest in a grain mill.  There are all different types available.  Sally Fallon in Nourishing Traditions recommends the Jupiter Grain Mill.

Mine is a KitchenAid attachment.  It works well for my family of seven.  Most importantly for me, it is easy to use.  Even my kids can use it without supervision.

Regardless of which kind of grain mill you choose, grinding your own flour is more economical and healthy.  It produces better results in your kitchen.  Having my own personal grain mill is one of my favorite things.  It sure beats having to do it the old-fashioned way by hand.

Tags: $750 bread, freshly ground flour, gluten-free flours, grain mill, honeyville food products, jupiter mill, kitchenaid attachment, Nourishing Traditions

This entry was posted on Wednesday, August 11th, 2010 at 11:09 am and is filed under Food Allergies, Homesteading. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.