Fresh Milled Flour 101 – How To Make Bread

Fresh Milled Flour 101 – How To Make Bread. The Who, What Tools You Will Need, Where To Start with Milling Your Own Grains, When You Should Start, and Why You Should Mill Your Own Grains. I am going to dive in and answer all these questions and more.

I Am Here To Help & Encourage You Through This Learning Process!

Also, I have several video with tips and tricks on how to improve your dough, kneading tips, milling tips, sourdough tips, some hacks to improve yeast flavor. So, if you love all things Fresh Milled Wheat, I encourage you go Binge Watch My Channel, HERE

Or, finish reading this, then go Binge Watch Grains In Small Places on YouTube! lol. I welcome comments and questions, as my number one goal with my blog is to help people learn to mill their own flour, and enjoy it! Also, enjoy the foods they create for their family. There are no dumb questions here, and I don’t want anyone to feel embarrassed for asking a question. Every person is different, everyone learns differently, and each unique person is entitled to their own opinions.

How Did I Learn About Milling My Own Flour & Why I made The Choice To Switch For My Family?

I started this journey with the thought process of wanting a healthier life for my family. I always want the best for my family’s health, as I am sure you do as well. Then, I stumbled upon Sue Becker’s Bread Of Life Video. At first, I was going to turn it off, because I thought she was crazy, but then I just kept watching. Sue explained everything so clearly. She has so much knowledge, and the degrees to back it up. She explained the who, what, when, where, how, and why to me. I can respect that. What I can’t respect, is someone forcing their opinion on me, and just telling me I need to agree. She did not do this!

If you know me, at all, you know I LOVE research, and I want to know EVERYTHING about ANYTHING I am interested in learning about.

So, after I watched that whole almost hour and a half video. A lightbulb went off, and I understood what she was saying. I also wanted to put this new found information to the test. And, wanted to share this information with loved ones.

How I Convinced My Husband?

Well, the next morning, we had a long “travel day.” I asked Matthew, my husband, if he wanted to listen to this, because I had been raving all night about it. So, he obliged, and we listened to the whole thing. He thought he was going to be bored, but he actually enjoyed this information as much as I did. So, next thing you know, we ordered our flour mill. I didn’t know where to start really. There was not a lot of info out on the web about fresh milling your own grains. Not like there is today anyways. It is becoming more known again, and people are starting to write about it. Which makes me happy!

Where It Went From There For Me?

Well, after we started our journey in milling our own flour, I soon spread the word to my extended family. I sent them the same video I watched, and I told them what changes we were noticing, and that it may be able to help them too!

Soon, my sister & her family, my mom & dad, and my mother-in-law, all were definitely interested in this journey. So, they decided to give it a try. Then, I started hearing about the benefits this milling grain has done for them. Now, I am not a medical professional (well, not for humans anyways, I am a Registered Veterinary Technician, lol.) But, I do feel like I need to share some of the benefits switching to fresh milled flour, people in my family, whom I personally know and trust, have told me about! I am so excited to share this information, but I am not going to go into detail on the who’s and such, as to not embarrass anyone.

Benefits Of Switching To Fresh Milled Flour – Testimonies or Affirmations From People I personally Know & Trust (Including me)

I reached out to my family members who have been eating fresh milled flour to get a list of benefits that one or more of us have noticed only since switching to Fresh Milled Grains! Some of this is sensitive stuff, but I want to be real, and I want to talk about it, because these are very real issues. So, if you are squeamish or uncomfortable around “bathroom talk” then skip this list, and go to the next paragraph. And, I promise I won’t bring it up again!

• More regular bowel movements (no more constipation)
• Less painful bowel movements
• IBS – Diarrhea completely healed as long as grain is eaten every morning.
• Hair grows faster
• Nails grow faster & stronger
• Just Plain Feel Better After Eating Fresh Milled Food Products
• Got Rid Of a Wart That Was Previously There For 2 Years
• Feel Full Faster, So It Keeps Over Eating At Bay
• Reduced Blood Pressure So Much, Meds Were No Longer Needed
• Lowered Cholesterol
• Increased Energy
• An Overall Feeling Better

These are just a few benefits seen, and pretty much across the board, any digestive issue is definitely improved! I just hated that bloated feeling I would feel after eating any bread product with white flour, that doesn’t seem to happen with fresh milled wheat. In fact, I will eat something with fresh milled flour (even a cookie, ) if I ate something that made me feel bloated or sluggish, and it always helps! Well, that and my green tea of course, lol

Who Should Be Milling Their Own Wheat?

You.

Yes, You!

You can do this! If I can do this, you can do this! I believe in you! There are so many more resources out there now, as compared to when I started. And, new info and recipes coming out everyday! Yes, there is a learning curve to baking with fresh milled flour, even if you have been baking for years and years, you may find yourself struggling, or asking questions, like “Why didn’t this turn out?” or “Why did my bread turn out dense & heavy?” Believe me, it is a journey, but it is a very rewarding journey! But, this is why I am here, to help you!

What Tools & Supplies Do I Need To Get Started With Milling My Own Flour?

Ok, so I could probably write a whole other post about each of these subjects (And I might in the future, lol.) But, I want give the basics. So, I will go over the basics, and make some recommendations for different situations (because we are all different, what works for someone may not work for another.) First and foremost, you need a way to mill the flour. There are many different options on the market, the most common are electric stone mills and impact steel mills, and there are of course other options, commercial, and manual, etc. But, for the purposes of Fresh Milled Flour 101, we will cover the two more common types.

In all reality, all you NEED is a mill. But, there are other products that you will most likely want if you don’t already have, to make your life easier. These include a heavy duty mixer, and of course an oven to bake the product. But I am not sure how technical you want me to get.

Which Grain Mill Is Right For You?

Well, each grain mill will ultimately give you the same end result, and that is fresh milled flour. So, you have to decide if you want a Stone Mill or an Impact Steel Mill. The main difference between the two is how they each actually mill the flour.

Stone Flour Mill

The Stone Flour Mill is the kind of mill I use daily. It has earned a permanent place on my valuable, and limited RV kitchen countertop. A stone flour will works by two stones rubbing together to grind the whole grain into flour. There are many brands out there, but they all can pretty much do an endless amount of grain, in moderation, of course. What I mean by this, is the stone mill will generally mill into a separate bowl, and not be limited. (Yes, they can get hot, so there is a limit).

Steel Impact Mill

So, I have a little experience with the steel mills, because my first mill was a steel impact mill. I feel the benefits were that is seems to mill slightly finer, and the unit was all contained (the flour milled into an attached compartment. But, the unit was much bigger, and I just did not have room for it. Also, it had a higher pitch sound that was not pleasing to my ears in such a small space. All in all it was a great mill, but the company was kind enough to allow me to exchange it for my current mill.

Other Helpful Supplies

There are a ton of supplies, but it would be great to have a good strong mixer on hand, because fresh milled flour dough does take longer to knead. I am going to assume you already have an oven, I use a little countertop toaster oven for all my baking, and I LOVE it! It also has a handy dandy proofing function that is wonderful to have! You can see my oven HERE

Also, having a good storage solution to keeping your grain. I use 5 gallon buckets with Gamma lids for my bulk storage, and I have these amazing every day storage bins I use for daily use. HERE are my every day Storage Bins.

Lastly, you need your grains! I could also talk bout this all day in another post, but in attempts to keep this short and sweet. I recommend starting with a hard white wheat for your breads. Secondly, I would also recommend soft white wheat for cookies, quick breads, biscuits, pastries, etc. And, if you are interested in making pasta, I recommend Kamut for that!

When Should You Start Milling Your Own Grains?

This one is pretty easy, NOW! You should start milling your own grains now! The health benefits alone make it worth it, and you know what you are putting into your body. Once, you research the food industry, you will see that they do not always have our best interests in mind. (This has lead me down many rabbit trails! lol)

Where Can I Get My Wheat & Grains?

Ok, so there are many sources that sell whole grains and wheat berries, and honestly, it seems more are showing up each day! (which is a good thing) I don’t have a complete list of everywhere you can get grains, I am sure there are many other places. I just want to mention place I have actually purchased from, or know someone, whom I trust, has purchased from.

Where Can I Buy Wheat Berries & Whole Grain Locally?

If you are lucky enough to be near a Winco Grocery store, they sell many whole grains in their bulk bin area, I know they usually also carry hard white wheat & hard red berries. Also, another amazing source to find these grains are a local Amish grocery store, one of my favorite places to locate wheat berries and whole grains, even in bulk sometimes. Then, if you happen to be in the Woodstock/Atlanta Georgia area, you are in luck, because that is where Bread Beckers is located, and their selection is about the largest I have seen! I love it when we pass through Georgia, we get to stop and load up!

Where Can I Buy Wheat Berries if I Can’t Find Any Local?

So, if you can’t find any local sources, online will be the next option. There are a ton of places, and I have purchased from a lot of them. However, since we move around the US often, mail is not always an option for us. So, sometimes Amazon becomes a source for our purchases. I have purchased grains I am happy with, and I have purchased grains from there that I was not so happy with (and will never buy again.)

I have also purchase wheat berries from Breadtopia, and been pleased with my purchase.

These are my favorite Amazon grains I have used, and continue to purchase from.

• Hard Red Wheat
• Hard White Wheat
• Soft White Wheat
• Spelt
• Kamut
• Einkorn
• Rye

How To Mill Your Own Flour?

Milling your own flour is not as complicated or difficult as it may seem. Modern advancements have made milling flour at home a much easier and even pleasing process. Just choose the grain you are interested in milling from your recipe, then pour it into the hopper, and let the grain mill do the work for you. Within minutes, you have freshly milled flour ready to use for your recipe. I have many recipes on my site here that are written for fresh milled flour specifically.

I suggest you start with one recipe, and master it, then work on some others. HERE is an easy sandwich Bread Recipe to start with. And, I have a video that goes with it, I recommend to watch with tips HERE.

Why Would You Want To Mill Your Own Flour?

Milling your own flour is a life choice for healthier living, and cleaner eating. It is a step to get you to understanding how your food is made, and knowing what you are putting in your body. I have covered many healthy benefits above in this post. And, there are many more than that. But, the bottom line is, freshly milled flour retains all the nutrients of the whole wheat berry. And, a whole wheat berry contains 40 of the 44 essential nutrients that humans need to survive.

I talk about commercial flour in my blog a lot, and how it is stripped of all it’s healthful nutrients. I don’t want to sound like a broken record, but this information is crucial, and needs to be shared. There is so much misinformation on Gluten, Bread, and Wheat. So, take it from someone, and the thousands of others, who have switched to fresh milled wheat, and how it actually benefits us. Or, take it from someone who has never even tried it! That decision is ultimately yours to make.

Conclusion – Fresh Milled Flour 101 : How To Make Bread

I hope this information was helpful to you, and please feel free to share it with others. I welcome comments and questions, and I will try my best to answer them, or point you in a direction to get the answer. My passion and goal in this whole blog is to teach others about fresh milled flour, the benefits, how to do it successfully, and to share my recipes!

Fresh Milled Flour 101 – How To Make Bread

Checkout Some Of My Recipes

Easy Sandwich Bread

Kamut Pasta

Hawaiian Rolls

Spelt Waffles

Double Chocolate Chip Cookies

Fresh Milled Flour Recipes

Sourdough Discard Recipes

*This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you! As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. But I will only suggest items I actually Love and Have Used!