Fresh Milled Flour Recipes - Archives - Page 8 of 9 (2024)

FAQs

Is fresh milled flour healthier? ›

Freshly Milled Flour Is Chock-full of Nutrients

The bran is high in fiber, has a good amount of proteins, and enzymes that help with digestion. The germ is the smallest part of the kernel, but it contains the highest density of nutrients—mostly fatty acids and a lot of vitamin E.

After 30-40 days it begins to lose the fresh milled flavor due to oxidation. However, as long as it is stored in a dry cool place it will not lose nutrition or go “bad” for up to 6 months. We do not recommend that you store fresh milled flour in the freezer.

So if the recipe calls for 1 cup of all-purpose flour (or pastry), increase the flour to 1 ¼ cups of freshly milled. If the recipe calls for 2 cups, you will need 2 ½ cups. This substitution ratio also works for spelt and rye.

Elevated Nutrition: Commercial mills remove 30 percent of the wheat kernel, removing the most nutritious part of the grain to make white flour. Milling your own flour not only ensures that your flour is as nutritious as it can be, but it also has a wonderful taste that is lost to commercially made whole-grain flour.

Essentially, the more you sift freshly milled flour, the “whiter” the flour becomes. Many different sifting screens can be purchased online, and these particular screens come in 40-mesh and 60-mesh varieties. The 60-mesh is finer than the 40 and will result in more bran and germ sifted away, resulting in whiter flour.

With freshly milled grains you run the risk of your flour going rancid quicker as the naturally occurring oils from the germ are not removed. Storing your flour in the fridge or freezer slows down this process. Keeping it cool in your fridge or freezer will guarentee freshiness and ultimate nutrition.

Storing Freshly Milled Flour: Freezer

You can keep your freshly mill floured in the freezer for up to 6 months. You will want to make sure your flour container is: freezer safe. moisture resistant.

The healthiest bread flour is 100% whole grain flour. Whole grain flour could be rye, barley, spelt, oat, or wheat flour - the key is that the flour is made from 100% whole grains. Whole grain breads provide essential nutrients that are lacking in bread made from white flour.

Seasoned bakers venturing into the world of freshly milled flours will notice a difference compared to baking with white flours: The dough is thirstier. It will absorb considerably more water than a dough made with conventional flour.

If you have milled your flour on the finest setting your flour will absorb more water than a flour that is slightly coarse. You may need to adjust your recipe accordingly. This is something to bear in mind if you are making cakes. It may need an extra splash of milk or liquid to get the right consistency.

Why is freshly milled flour yellow? ›

Contrary to popular belief, freshly milled flour is light yellow—not white. The grain takes it color from xanthophylls naturally present in wheat. Exposure to atmosphere oxidizes the carotenoid xanthophylls and, over a month or two, turns flour to a consistent white color.

On the “Bread” setting, 1 cup of berries makes roughly 1 1/2 cups of fresh flour. On the “Pastry” setting, 1 cup of berries makes roughly 1 3/4 cups of fresh flour.

Wheat is the most commonly milled grain. There are several types of wheat, including hard, soft, and durum. Hard wheat is high in protein and gluten and is used for bread flour. Soft wheat has a lower protein content and is used for cakes, pastries, and cookies.

When it comes to nutrition, refined flour does not come close to fresh flour in many ways. It loses nutrients from the bran and germ being separated out, has additional toxins (i.e. chlorine, bromine, iron, etc.) added back in, and then it oxidizes while sitting on the shelf.

The milling process removes many important nutrients when white flour is produced. The bran and the germ are relatively rich in minerals and the milled products contain less of these than the original grain.

Milling your own flour allows you to capture the nutrients in the bran and germ of the grain kernel to use in your baking. Grinding your flour as close to the time of baking as possible lets you enjoy the benefit of the vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and other nutrients that are released from the kernel by milling.

Flour takes two weeks to naturally oxidise, or it is oxidised artificially, and through this oxidation the gluten becomes more stable. Aged flour will have a stronger gluten matrix than freshly milled flour.