Why I started milling my own flour

Is it possible for flour and wheat to be “healthy”?

After some eczema-like rashes over the past year on my face, neck, and arms (and even hives at times), I started digging into possible causes. Something that came up frequently in my research was allergies and sensitivities to wheat or gluten.

While I don’t personally know anyone with celiac disease, I do know people who avoid gluten when possible for digestion, skin issues, and overall health and weight control. With so many people in the world today having issues with gluten sensitivity and apparent weight-gain or “wheat belly” due to consuming carbs and flour-based products, it seems like wheat and flour are our enemy, right?

My research has just barely scratched the surface, but it actually turned in a direction I didn’t expect.

I’m NOT a doctor or a scientist — but I’m learning some fascinating stuff about flour, and how there is evidence that the current processes for creating the flour you buy from the store might be the actual culprit of many people’s wheat sensitivity. 🤯

First up — a lesson on the anatomy of wheat.
A “wheat berry” is the hard kernel of seed taken from a stalk of wheat. It consists of three parts: bran (fiber and nutrients), germ (oils, vitamins, proteins, minerals), and endosperm (starch).

When wheat berries are ground up to make flour, the oils are exposed to the air, and will turn rancid within about a month. Since packages of commercially-ground flour will often sit in warehouses, trucks, and grocery store shelves for many months at a time, something needs to be done to prevent spoilage.

When flour companies process wheat, they remove the bran and germ portions of the berry, leaving only the starch behind. However, in order for that flour to be legal to sell, companies need to artificially add some (though not nearly all) of the nutrition that has been removed (such as synthetic B vitamins) — thereby calling it “enriched flour.”

Research and first-hand stories have shown there are some people who experience gluten sensitivity (not celiac) who are actually able to eat things made with freshly ground flour instead of store-bought, because it is the whole, unadulterated grain.

Think of it like eating fruit.
You pick up a package of strawberries in the middle of winter from the grocery store. They’re fine. But they were picked before they were fully ripe (to ensure they stay more shelf stable for transport), possibly weeks before they arrive on the store shelves. Therefore they don’t have the amount of nutrition — nor the taste — like when you pick a fresh berry from a local farm at the height of the season and eat it immediately.

Those store-bought berries and flour aren’t BAD for you. They’re just not at their peak nutritional value.

What about whole wheat flour from the store?
Whole wheat flour is made from a different variety of wheat berry (red vs white). It has been milled in the same way as all-purpose, but then some bran is also added back in. This gives it more fiber and protein, but is often frustrating to bake with on its own since the texture is different. It also tends to go rancid even faster than all-purpose flour.

What about organic flour?
When a product is organic, it simply means it was grown without the use of chemical pesticides, herbicides, or fertilizers. Only natural methods have been used to protect the crop. The process of milling and separating the flour is still the same.

Isn’t it more expensive?
If you compare the cost of wheat berries to the cost of basic, store-brand, all-purpose flour — you’re right. It can’t compete with the 5 lb for $2 packages. But if you start looking at the cost of higher-end, organic, “fancier” flour at the store — now the prices are much closer.

I buy my wheat berries in 25-lb bags from Azure Standard (which keep nicely in a 5-gallon bucket), at about $1 or less per pound (hard white for breads and soft white for cookies etc). By contrast, unbleached organic all-purpose flour from Azure is $1.20-$2 per pound. Buying in bulk really pays off here — wheat berries can be stored for years, and even decades.

And yes, the initial cost of a grain mill isn’t cheap. (Follow this link for the mill I own and love.) But I saved up for mine, waiting and watching for sales for over 6 months before diving in. And if you think about it, it’s really one of those things that will pay for itself in the long run when you consider the health of your family.

There definitely is a bit of a learning curve to using freshly milled flour. Not only do you need to take into account the extra time before making your recipe (although it’s only a few minutes), also the amount of flour you will actually use in your recipe can vary. Fresh flour is more voluminous, because of air during milling, and it absorbs liquid more easily.

I’d recommend starting with a bread or cookie recipe you know well (what the texture and consistency is supposed to look and feel like), and be prepared to adjust how much fresh flour you’re using until it looks like it’s supposed to. I also started by using half fresh and half all-purpose in my recipes, to get the hang of it. Now I’m trying more and more of my recipes with only fresh flour, and also using a kitchen scale for more accuracy (a cup of flour should weigh approximately 120 grams).

One more rabbit-hole that intrigues me but I haven’t taken much time to look into yet: Einkorn wheat. It’s an ancient grain (10,000+ years old!) that is still in its pure, non-modified form. Modern wheat has been hybridized for higher yields and actually contains more gluten; it also has 42 chromosomes compared to einkorn’s simpler 14.

Even though the allergy testing I had done showed no reaction to wheat, I’m still convinced this will be the way my family consumes homemade wheat items going forward. Any time we can get closer to whole, simple ingredients is a step in the right direction for our bodies.

Did you know any of these things about wheat or is it as mind-blowing to you as it has been to me??

“‘When anyone brings a grain offering to the Lord, their offering is to be of the finest flour. They are to pour olive oil on it, put incense on it and take it to Aaron’s sons the priests. The priest shall take a handful of the flour and oil, together with all the incense, and burn this as a memorial portion on the altar, a food offering, an aroma pleasing to the Lord.'”

Leviticus 2:1-2