Who here grinds their own grain? New mill owner looking for ideas....

beckys19
beckys19 Posts: 119 Member
in Recipes
I just recently got a mill for grinding my own grain for homemade bread and I'm in love with it (does a much better job than the good coffee mill I had been using previously, lol!) So far I've made some bread and ground some oat flour to use in chocolate chip cookies. I'm interested in anyone's recipes for stuff from bread to cookies to noodles to ???

Thanks!!!

Replies

  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 7,956 Member
    We did this for a little while with artisinal grains when we first bought a bread machine. However, the hubby who is the bread maker eventually stopped because he found the difference wasn't worth the effort.
  • beckys19
    beckys19 Posts: 119 Member
    edited August 2019
    just_Tomek wrote: »
    acpgee wrote: »
    We did this for a little while with artisinal grains when we first bought a bread machine. However, the hubby who is the bread maker eventually stopped because he found the difference wasn't worth the effort.

    Exactly.
    Its great and sentimental but why complicate life even more with zero added benefits?

    A good part of it is because my husband doesn't like the taste of store bought whole wheat/grain breads, but also because I like playing around with different grain blends and I love homemade sourdough. I have Beth Hensperger's The Bread Lover's Bread Machine Cookbook, and I have discovered many awesome varieties of bread that I hadn't eaten before. The cities I've lived in for the last 8 years don't have any artisinal bakeries......


    I don't hand knead, I just pop everything in the bread machine, let that knead and do the 1st rise, then take it out and put it in a bread pan for the final rise and baking. I can see where hand kneading might not be worth it (I hate sticky dough hands!) But with the bread machine, it's not too much effort.

  • aokoye
    aokoye Posts: 3,495 Member
    just_Tomek wrote: »
    acpgee wrote: »
    We did this for a little while with artisinal grains when we first bought a bread machine. However, the hubby who is the bread maker eventually stopped because he found the difference wasn't worth the effort.

    Exactly.
    Its great and sentimental but why complicate life even more with zero added benefits?

    Because some people are into the process as much as, if not more than, the product. I make apple strudel twice a year. Over the past two or three years, I've made the strudel dough from scratch instead of buying filo dough. I do it because I think the challenge is fun and I get some amount of satisfaction when I'm able to do it. Taste wise, I don't know that it's any better than really good filo dough, but it's definitely not any worse.
  • BarbaraHelen2013
    BarbaraHelen2013 Posts: 1,940 Member
    Definitely agree! I make a lot of bread by hand, the process, to me, is therapeutic and it helps that the results are better than 99% of the bread I can buy! If I lived a different life in a different place I don’t think I’d rule out grinding my own grain, for the satisfaction of 100% field to table! As it is though, I don’t because that would be too much hassle to source the necessary!
  • beckys19
    beckys19 Posts: 119 Member
    BarbaraHelen2013 wrote: »
    Definitely agree! I make a lot of bread by hand, the process, to me, is therapeutic and it helps that the results are better than 99% of the bread I can buy! If I lived a different life in a different place I don’t think I’d rule out grinding my own grain, for the satisfaction of 100% field to table! As it is though, I don’t because that would be too much hassle to source the necessary!

    yes.... there's something indescribeable about the physical feel of a good dough....... by the feel, I can just tell a specific batch will rise and bake into a nice fluffy loaf, lol.... it's more than cooking food, it's a hobby. Plus store-bought pizza dough isn't ideal for when we want to do pizza on the grill!!!
  • Annie_01
    Annie_01 Posts: 3,096 Member
    just_Tomek wrote: »
    BarbaraHelen2013 wrote: »
    Definitely agree! I make a lot of bread by hand, the process, to me, is therapeutic and it helps that the results are better than 99% of the bread I can buy! If I lived a different life in a different place I don’t think I’d rule out grinding my own grain, for the satisfaction of 100% field to table! As it is though, I don’t because that would be too much hassle to source the necessary!

    Yes cooking from scratch is one thing, but milling your own flour? Why? Just buy quality and there will be zero difference.

    My best guess is because they want to! Is it any different than someone wanting to grind their own coffee...make their own butter...etc, etc? You could after all just buy "quality". If she and her husband enjoy it...why not? Why give up what you enjoy doing simply because someone else might not understand why?
  • aokoye
    aokoye Posts: 3,495 Member
    just_Tomek wrote: »
    BarbaraHelen2013 wrote: »
    Definitely agree! I make a lot of bread by hand, the process, to me, is therapeutic and it helps that the results are better than 99% of the bread I can buy! If I lived a different life in a different place I don’t think I’d rule out grinding my own grain, for the satisfaction of 100% field to table! As it is though, I don’t because that would be too much hassle to source the necessary!

    Yes cooking from scratch is one thing, but milling your own flour? Why? Just buy quality and there will be zero difference.

    See my post above...
    One could also question why someone would brew their own beer, make their own wine (especially if they don't have a vineyard), maintain a sourdough starter, cure meat, grind and stuff their own sausage, grind any meat, make their own pasta (especially if it involves a die), and so on.

    Plus they've already invested in a mill, they may as well put it to use.
  • aokoye
    aokoye Posts: 3,495 Member
    just_Tomek wrote: »
    Ahhhhhhhhhh soooo this is more of a hobby then for you guys. Understood.

    For some people it is for others it isn't. If you you're including me into "you guys" then I'd have to go with a no. I happen to really enjoy cooking and baking, but I wouldn't call baking one of my hobbies, especially given how much I've cut back on baking compared to 5 plus years ago. Canning is another thing that would probably fit into your "buy why do this is takes so much time?" - I do it because it means I can have things like marionberry pie in December. When I have access to a pressure canner, I like to can double batches of bolognese sauce so I can have it on hand when I don't have time to make it or when I need a quick dinner option.

    I also wouldn't be surprised if it ends up being cheaper to mill your own flour than to buy it already milled, especially if you're buying good flour or wanting to use flour that isn't your typical all purpose or whole wheat flour.
  • beckys19
    beckys19 Posts: 119 Member
    edited August 2019
    just_Tomek wrote: »
    BarbaraHelen2013 wrote: »
    Definitely agree! I make a lot of bread by hand, the process, to me, is therapeutic and it helps that the results are better than 99% of the bread I can buy! If I lived a different life in a different place I don’t think I’d rule out grinding my own grain, for the satisfaction of 100% field to table! As it is though, I don’t because that would be too much hassle to source the necessary!

    Yes cooking from scratch is one thing, but milling your own flour? Why? Just buy quality and there will be zero difference.

    Same reason why some people grind their own coffee beans, it does taste a little bit fresher!!! Plus, grains store better longer term than ground flours. It is cheaper to buy the grains than the flour, though I don't know how long until I make up the "return on investment" from my mill. This year with our tax return my husband got a pellet grill (to add to his growing collection of grills/smokers), so I decided to finally buy myself the mill since I had been playing around with grinding the grains on a coffee grinder for years now......
  • tequila5000
    tequila5000 Posts: 128 Member
    Hi beckys19, I recommend the book “Bread Winners” by Mel London. The copy I have is copyright 1979. Maybe your library has it.
  • brightside4me
    brightside4me Posts: 2 Member
    Curious about which type of grain mill you’re using?
  • cyndimcd
    cyndimcd Posts: 106 Member
    Definitely tastes better with freshly ground wheat. I’ve been using this recipe for years:
    https://www.fivehearthome.com/the-very-best-homemade-whole-wheat-bread-plus-free-printable-kitchen-labels/

    With fresh ground you usually have to add more flour than a recipe calls for.

    I’ve played with dubbing sourdough starter for flour and water, and it gave a nice flavor but not as good of a rise.
  • corinasue1143
    corinasue1143 Posts: 7,464 Member
    If you talk to a farmer before harvest, you can probably buy the grain before they put the (necessary) bug killers, mold prohibitors etc on it if that matters to you. Keep it sealed in a cool dry place and it should keep a long time.
  • SoCalBeachWifeMom
    SoCalBeachWifeMom Posts: 48 Member
    I watched a documentary on Netflix about tacos and they showed a little town that ground the corn , then made tortillas. It seemed so easy!
  • aokoye
    aokoye Posts: 3,495 Member
    SoCalBeachWifeMom wrote: »
    I watched a documentary on Netflix about tacos and they showed a little town that ground the corn , then made tortillas. It seemed so easy!

    Ask (or mention) and you shall receive. Serious Eats has an article on this - of course. https://www.seriouseats.com/2016/04/how-to-make-fresh-nixtamalized-corn-tortillas-from-scratch.html
  • mmapags
    mmapags Posts: 8,934 Member
    SoCalBeachWifeMom wrote: »
    I watched a documentary on Netflix about tacos and they showed a little town that ground the corn , then made tortillas. It seemed so easy!

    I live in Mexico. Easy? Kinda but not without skill and laborious. You buy the corn, soak it in lime, mill it, make your masa (a whole skill unto itself) then form, press and toast on a comal.

    Personally, I can buy tortillas for 16 pesos (about 60 cents american) per kilo. I can buy masa and make my own for a little less than that.

    Trust me, those ladies you saw on that video? They leaned it at their mother's elbow and have been doing it all their lives. It is not as easy as they make it look without some practice.

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