I finally DID IT!!!! I ground wheat and made bread!!!

[Marianne]

Good for you, Baymule!

 

[k15n1]

I made one loaf of bread and at supper tonight, it was a big hit! It was much heavier than store bought, it had crunchy wheat chunks in it, it was chewy in a satisfying way, and it was GOOD!!!!

Congrats!

After you eat real bread, the stuff from the store seem... weak. A friend from Croatia didn't know what Wonder bread was and he described it as "spider webs".

A couple of notes:

The bread just won't rise well when you use fresh-ground flour. This has to do with the biochemistry of the gluten. But you can grind flour and put it aside for a few weeks and that seems to do the trick. Commercial sources of flour use vitamin C and other oxidizing agents to speed up the process, which is called bleaching. Some people talk like the flour's chi evaporates immediately and you need to cook with it right away. This isn't the case. There isn't much oil and it won't go rancid for weeks.

Use fresh or aged flour to your advantage. Some foods don't call for a well-developed gluten network. Make biscuits, cookies, cakes, etc with fresh-ground flour.

White flour is super high tech and amazing. Try making white flour and you will be equally impressed. The energy and effort of making white flour is why it was a symbol of status during the industrial revolution. But times are changing and health is becoming a symbol of wealth/means. Whole-wheat-berry bread may "come back" and be a status symbol again. Me, I just want to be able to spread butter on my bread without initiating its self-destruct mechanism.

I have a WonderMill Junior and I like it a lot. However, it's a lot of work and we use less flour now. It's time consuming and a workout. I think my family is better off now, eating less carbs and more vegtables.

Plan on buying a bag of flour every now and then. This is baking, not sanctification. Using a little white flour now and then isn't a sin and it won't change your identity, either.

 

[baymule]

The bigger issue is that DH doesn't think there is any need to prepare for SHTF.

Does your DH believe in saving money? Catch things on sale and stock up, thus "saving" money! Buy bulk bags versus the 12 ounce box and gloat how much you "saved". Shop with coupons and double up because you "saved" money. Brag on yourself a little bit......after all, you are not working and saving a few dollars on "things we're going to use anyway" is just plain smart. ..........do ya' get the drift? And I bet you could find or make an empty shelf in YOUR closet to store the extras. I think we are now actively conspiring against your DH.........for his own good of course.

 

[so lucky]

The bigger issue is that DH doesn't think there is any need to prepare for SHTF.

Does your DH believe in saving money? Catch things on sale and stock up, thus "saving" money! Buy bulk bags versus the 12 ounce box and gloat how much you "saved". Shop with coupons and double up because you "saved" money. Brag on yourself a little bit......after all, you are not working and saving a few dollars on "things we're going to use anyway" is just plain smart. ..........do ya' get the drift? And I bet you could find or make an empty shelf in YOUR closet to store the extras. I think we are now actively conspiring against your DH.........for his own good of course.

Yup; Lots of things I have to conspire against him about, for his own good. Better me than someone else!

 

[opiemaster]

Well, I was able to find my mothers old book that came with her vitamix 3600. Gosh what a book! FULL of recipies and ideas! It can even make ice cream and sherbert's and a ton more things.
On the grinding wheat section this is what it says:

Grindin Grains -- or Coffee, Dried Beans, Lentils, Peas, Poppy Seeds, Etc.
Dry wheat or any other grain ( or dried beans, etc. as above) may be ground to any degree of fineness by
varying the length of time it is left in the Vita Mix 3600 to grind.
One cup of wheat grinds into approximately 1 1/3 to 1 1/2 cups of flour. Grind 2 cupfuls at a time.



FINE FLOUR: Allow grain to gring for 2 to 4 minutes on Up Position of the IMPACT LEVER,
High Speed. Grind Longer for extra fine. It never stops grinding or getting finer.



COURSE GRIND: For cereals and other recipies. Allow to grind on Low Speed, alternating every
5 seconds, on the Up Position of the IMPACT LEVER, then the DOWN POSITION, keeping this
up for about 30 seconds, only.
Using the IMPACT LEVER this way allowes the wheat to be pushed out of the BLADES on the
Up Position, and drawn in on the Down Position, to give an even grind. Grind 1 cup at a time.




NOTE: DO NOT GRIND GRAINS WHEN DAMP. If stored in a refrigerator of freezer, these will
tend to draw moisture, or "sweat", when taken out of the cold place. They may need
to be dried out in the oven (150 degrees with the door ajar) Before being ground.
Then , if to be used in bread making , since moisture content is affected, you will not
be able to depend on using the same proportion of wheat to water in the dough, each
time, and will need to pay careful attention to instructions for modifying moisture
content of the dough given in Tips for Making Bread. Be sure grain is completely dry
before attempting to grind in the VitaMix 3600. Wet grain will not circulate properly
throught the blades.

I hope this helps, if you have any questions I can refer to the book, just drop me a note.


Yes I am a guy, and yes, I hen-peck type. It takes awwhile for BIG subjects like this.
Give me a wrench , I can fix many things, give me a gun I can hunt anything , give me
a computer..... well it might take awhile..