Today I sat down and skimmed Laurel's Kitchen Bread Book. I couldn't believe that this book, given to me by my mother, was just sitting around for so long, and I had no idea how wonderful it was! You should get this book. Seriously. Not only does it have amazing whole grain recipes, but it has instructions on everything to do and tips for ingredients and they are so healthy! After getting to the section about milling flour yourself, I decided to sit down and really do some research on which one to save up for.
This site helped me rule out pretty much every model that I thought would do well. The only one that they listed that they liked was WAY over anything I'd ever spend. It cost more than our mattress did! They did mention, though, that their absolute favorite mill, which they somehow forgot to actually review, was the Country Living Grain Mill. I went to their site, read a ton of reviews, and fell in love. For my purposes of milling flour to make bread, this is the best and most affordable mill out there. They even sell 'blemished' mills for a huge discount. The only problem: where to get the money to buy it. I haven't even been able to afford to get new glasses (the frame is held together in the middle with industrial adhesive and the end of an art pencil, thanks to Jon!). Money is scarce right now, and I can't justify using a credit card on this when I am having trouble paying my half of the rent. Translating has been very slow recently, which is fine, but I'm going nuts.
This grain mill is going to be beautiful, produce more healthy flour because I will grind it as I need it (the most nutrient rich part of the wheat berry starts to loose nutrients right away), and I can finally stop relying on store-bought flour that has been sitting. I can't wait to post all about my experiences grinding my own flour and finding local sources of grains! If I start saving up my change now...
Well, for today, I am baking a split wheat and whole wheat bread, made with all whole wheat flour, bulgur, and dates as the sugar.
This site helped me rule out pretty much every model that I thought would do well. The only one that they listed that they liked was WAY over anything I'd ever spend. It cost more than our mattress did! They did mention, though, that their absolute favorite mill, which they somehow forgot to actually review, was the Country Living Grain Mill. I went to their site, read a ton of reviews, and fell in love. For my purposes of milling flour to make bread, this is the best and most affordable mill out there. They even sell 'blemished' mills for a huge discount. The only problem: where to get the money to buy it. I haven't even been able to afford to get new glasses (the frame is held together in the middle with industrial adhesive and the end of an art pencil, thanks to Jon!). Money is scarce right now, and I can't justify using a credit card on this when I am having trouble paying my half of the rent. Translating has been very slow recently, which is fine, but I'm going nuts.
This grain mill is going to be beautiful, produce more healthy flour because I will grind it as I need it (the most nutrient rich part of the wheat berry starts to loose nutrients right away), and I can finally stop relying on store-bought flour that has been sitting. I can't wait to post all about my experiences grinding my own flour and finding local sources of grains! If I start saving up my change now...
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Well, for today, I am baking a split wheat and whole wheat bread, made with all whole wheat flour, bulgur, and dates as the sugar.
Bulgar, soaked in boiling water
Dates, cooked to a mush with water
Dough before rising
Done! This is seriously the BEST tasting bread I've ever made.
House model taking up half of my work space. After trying to cut half-lap with a knife, I slipped and sliced my finger open...No nerve damage, thank goodness, but I do have a new scar! Jon's teaching me tool safety now while we are still at model stage, before I get to use big scary things like chisels.
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