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bluesgardenI have an automatic grain mill! It's a bit of a long story, but the short version is that there was some money that I didn't know was mine. I knew it was there, just not that it was mine. It's eBay related, so I'd inadvertently been saving up for 5 months, which meant more than enough for a refurbished WonderMill. YAY!
I've tried it out and it works beautifully! The resulting flour (from hard white spring wheat berries) is lovely and the first loaf I baked turned out very tasty. It's a 100% whole wheat bread recipe I've used numerous times before, so it was a good basis for comparison although I mixed it by hand on a whim instead of by mixer as I usually would. I remembered why once I started kneading - 1/4 cup molasses = sticky dough. Still enjoyable, though! I ended up using nearly a cup more flour than I would in the mixer and didn't even think of adding vital wheat gluten until it was going in the oven, but it had just the right amount of rise with very nice density to the bread. Honestly, I think D might even approve.
The mill itself works very fast; grinding a hopper full of berries into a canister of flour takes only a couple of minutes. The start-up and shut-down noise is loud and high pitched, but when it's actually grinding, it's much quieter (which is where it actually gets the other name of WhisperMill). Plus, like I said, only a few minutes and you can store the flour right in the canister, which I made space in the freezer for so the flour stays as fresh as possible.
(It occurs to me that there's something ironic about posting this on the first day of Passover. *waves sheepishly at Jewish readers*)
In other food news - I have honey again! Two quart jars of it, actually, which should last me... 2 or 3 months? I'm not really sure, but honey! I have it!
The weather outside is miserable with cold and rain and thunder but the shopping is done and I'm curled up under the covers so my aching legs can rest a bit. There's laundry to be done and eBay things to deal with, but, first, I'm taking a tea break. :)
ETA: Reusable shopping bag win - "It's bigger on the inside."
I've tried it out and it works beautifully! The resulting flour (from hard white spring wheat berries) is lovely and the first loaf I baked turned out very tasty. It's a 100% whole wheat bread recipe I've used numerous times before, so it was a good basis for comparison although I mixed it by hand on a whim instead of by mixer as I usually would. I remembered why once I started kneading - 1/4 cup molasses = sticky dough. Still enjoyable, though! I ended up using nearly a cup more flour than I would in the mixer and didn't even think of adding vital wheat gluten until it was going in the oven, but it had just the right amount of rise with very nice density to the bread. Honestly, I think D might even approve.
The mill itself works very fast; grinding a hopper full of berries into a canister of flour takes only a couple of minutes. The start-up and shut-down noise is loud and high pitched, but when it's actually grinding, it's much quieter (which is where it actually gets the other name of WhisperMill). Plus, like I said, only a few minutes and you can store the flour right in the canister, which I made space in the freezer for so the flour stays as fresh as possible.
(It occurs to me that there's something ironic about posting this on the first day of Passover. *waves sheepishly at Jewish readers*)
In other food news - I have honey again! Two quart jars of it, actually, which should last me... 2 or 3 months? I'm not really sure, but honey! I have it!
The weather outside is miserable with cold and rain and thunder but the shopping is done and I'm curled up under the covers so my aching legs can rest a bit. There's laundry to be done and eBay things to deal with, but, first, I'm taking a tea break. :)
ETA: Reusable shopping bag win - "It's bigger on the inside."
