Wheat Berries – A True Superfood!
Wheat berries are a true superfood! They contain extraordinary amounts of vitamin E, B vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients (plant based nutrients)! Unfortunately, the average baker has never experienced the joy of baking with freshly-milled flour. Once you bake with Ingrained’s freshly-milled flour, you will never go back to grocery store flour varieties!
Anatomy of a Wheat Berry
The wheat berry is composed of three layers: the bran (the hard outer layer), the endosperm (the middle starchy layer), and the germ (the inner layer containing the most fat, and the fat-soluble vitamin E.) Wheat berries encase their inner treasure within a hard outer shell called the bran. Protected inside the bran, the host of nutrients in the wheat berry will last indefinitely! Once the bran shell is shattered by milling, all of those valuable nutrients are exposed to oxygen and the rapid process of oxidation begins. (Oxidation is the chemical process that makes oils turn rancid, fresh fruit turn brown, and fruits and nuts develop off flavors and odors.) That means that in order for your body to benefit from all the nutrients in whole wheat flour, you need to cook/bake with it to seal in the nutrients, or it must be protected from oxygen exposure to prevent oxidation (destruction) of nutrients, particularly vitamin E. Our unique tri-ply packaging system, combined with our small batch milling process, allows you to reap the benefit of freshly milled flour in a convenient oxygen-resistant package.
Conventional milling practices sift the bran and the germ from the endosperm (the starchy part of the wheat berry) to prolong the life of the flour. “All Purpose Flour” that you usually find on a grocery store shelf is just the endosperm of the wheat with added synthetic B-vitamins to prevent common nutritional deficiencies in the general population. The manufacturers then add wheat bran back in to the white flour to make “Whole Wheat Flour”. This type of whole wheat flour is usually gritty and frustrating to use in baking or cooking. It usually must be combined with an all-purpose flour to be functional in most recipes.
Ingrained flour contains all three layers of the wheat berry — this is whole grain goodness at its finest! It can be used without addition of “all purpose flour” to make delicious baked goods. You will immediately notice the superior texture and flavor of our flour in your baked goods when compared to conventional whole wheat flours. That’s also the difference you taste in our Ingrained baking mixes and baked goods compared to traditional “whole wheat” flour products.
Bethany has found that she must tweak some recipes to allow for the unique properties of freshly-milled flour. She also has experimented with many different types of grains and grain blends to find the optimum grain for each cooking and baking application. Bethany would be happy to help you select the Ingrained flours that best fit your baking and cooking needs.
Take a peek at some of Ingrained’s Artisan Products made using different types of our freshly milled flour blends
Links to our products and recipes:
Freshly Milled Organic Hard White Wheat Flour
Freshly Milled Organic Whole Wheat Pastry Flour
Fluffy Whole Grain Pancake Mix
Artisan Organic Oatmeal Cookie Crate