The Pharaohs of ancient Egypt were entombed with jars of Barley grain to sustain their lives in the next world. The Greeks honored Demeter, the Goddess who gave (or didn’t give) an abundance of growing grain. The Aztecs built temples in which they stored grain. For 6000 years agrarian and nomadic cultures and tribes have built entire economic, spiritual, and political systems based on the power of the tiny grain. WHEAT is the backbone of most yeast breads. A wheat berry (the actual seed that is clustered on the stalk) is an edible power package. Within just one wheat berry is the near perfect balance of nutrients that so efficiently sustained our ancestors. Upto 19 percent of the grain is protein and the rest being nutritionally valuable complex carbohydrates. There are three main parts of the grain: the bran, the germ, and the endosperm. The bran is the thin shiny outer covering of the berry. It consists mainly of cellulose, an indigestible fiber that is good for our digestive system. The wheat germ is the embryo of the berry. It is rich in protein and oil. Since this oil can turn rancid very easily it is important that the germ is refrigerated or for that matter any flour that contains the wheat germ such as whole-wheat flour. The endosperm nourishes the berry and makes up the bulk of the grain. When the entire berry is ground, including the bran, the germ , and endosperm, the result is whole-wheat flour. When the bran and the wheat germ are removed the endosperm that remains is ground to make white flour. While the endosperm contains mainly starch, it also contains the proteins glutenin and gliadin. When these two proteins are moistened they form together a superprotein called GLUTEN. Gluten provides the muscle for a yeast dough, a highly valued baking quality. When the dough is kneaded the gluten develops, forming thin flexible web like strands in the dough. The muscular strands stretch and expand, trapping carbon dioxide as the dough rises during fermentation.Dough’s with well developed webs of gluten, will rise well , producing high expansive breads with good flavour. Wheat is the only grain which provides this proportion of gluten, therefore it is an essential ingredient in making traditional bread. Wheat has two growing seasons .The wheat that is planted in spring produces a hard red berry .Since this wheat has a long growing period it develops strength and is quite hearty. It is actually called hard red spring wheat eventhough it is harvested in early fall. The grain is very high in protein -from 12-14 percent. Wheat planted in winter and harvested in spring produces a softer berry with a lower protein content-10-11 percent. This grain is called soft red winter wheat. Whole wheat berries are available in stores and are usually added into bread dough’s to add extra protein, fiber and a strong wheaty flavour to the loaf as well as a substantially delicious chew to the crumb. They are usually softened by soaking overnight in water. Cracked wheat is exactly what the name suggests: the whole berry coarsely cracked. It can be added into the dough or sprinkled on the crust. It gives the loaf a final rustic look, a delectable habit forming chew, and an extra nutty flavour. (Don’t get this mixed up with bulgur which is cracked wheat that has been parcooked by steam, dried and packaged.) RYE has always been grown amid wheat, being a more heartier and insistent plant-like a weed. At one time the European farmers tried to remove it from cultivated wheat crops but they had to give up, because the rye persisted growing at a faster rate than they could remove it. So they simply started harvesting it with the wheat, and started calling it rye flour. Nowadays rye is grown separately and one can get 100 percent rye without the adulterating wheat. Rye contains very little gluten so rye breads are often created by a high proportion of gluten strong wheat flour to assure a well risen loaf. Breads that are completely rye will not rise much, but they will have a real hearty intriguing flavour. Be warned that dough’s with rye flour behaves differently from wheat dough’s; it will be very tacky and will rise at leisured not more flour if these dough’s appear sticky, or you will get a heavy, sodden loaf. Rye berries are dark brown whole grains. Although each grain delivers about 7 percent protein but virtually no gluten, the fragrant benefit of adding rye to breads is remarkable. One can even add the soaked softened whole grain and the cracked rye berries to breads for extra nutrition, distinct toasted aroma, and subtle bite in flavour. Some mills grind the whole rye berry, bran and all into a very coarse meal, which is often called pumpernickel rye flour.(Pumpernickel bread does not come from the pumpernickel grain. The name derives from a German, Herr Pumpernickel, who popularized this dark, hearty bread many years ago.) BUCKWHEAT is actually a grass like herb, related to sorrel, and has a slightly sour flavour. Buckwheat flour has an attractive tan colour speckled with dark brown. Substitute not more than 20 percent of buckwheat for regular wheat in the recipe. If you add more the taste will be too overpowering and too strong. OATS The grain is called Groat, and it is packed with B vitamins, vitamin E, minerals, and iron, a great deal of soluble fiber and a fair amount of fiber. One can use the familiar rolled oats which is often cooked into oatmeal, on top of some breads for the classic country appearance. CORN is native to the Americas. According to the archeologists the Aztecs grew sacred forests of these yellow grain. The kernel just like the wheat berry is full of complex carbohydrates. Cornmeal comes in a variety of different colours . Mostly one finds the yellow cornmeal, though one even gets the white variety as well as the blue cornmeal. The yellow and the blue are the most flavourful, but you may have to add a little more fat to the blue variety. Cornmeal adds a rich sweet taste to the crumb and gives a rugged look to the crust. MILLING In stone milling there are two round granite stones shaped like truck tyres. Each weighs hundreds of kilos and is cold to the touch. Fitted with hardware one rotates slowly while pressed heavily against the other. When the miller layers whole grains between the stones, the first turn produces great cracking sounds as the berries are broken into thousands of coarse chunks. The rough meal falls from the outer edges and down the center hole and are collected beneath. It is then ground again and again till finally one gets the desired texture. Stone milling is the oldest, slowest and the best method of grinding whole grains into dense and creamy flour. It is a gentle and cool process which preserves every good part of the grain- all the proteins, oils and vitamins from the germ, all the sugar and starches from the endosperm and tiny bits of bran are there in the final wheaty fresh flour. High in nutrients and rich in proteins, it has powerful bread making qualities. The stone mills however like the tortoise in the fabled race with the hare, do their work slowly and surely. The natural coolness of the stones do not rob the flour of its natural vitamins, or essential oils. The very existence of the stone mills were threatened in the middle of this century by the high speed roller mills commonly used by commercial flour makers. Steel rollers or hammers mill the grain at remarkably high speeds. Operating at high temperatures the mills destroy essential vitamins in the berry. The flour is bleached white with chemicals, bromated with potassium, enriched with minerals and vitamins lost during milling. This process guarantees a longer shelf life because the perishable oils in the flour have been removed. It also promises an abundance of flour on the supermarket shelves because roller milling is very fast. WHAT IS ALL PURPOSE FLOUR???? All purpose flour is named such because the miller wants to convince the baker that this particular flour will make all baked goods equally well. Theoretically it should make everything from breads to cookies to cakes to pies, and everything in between. Because it is a blend between the hard spring and soft winter wheat. WHOLE-WHEAT FLOURS are made from 100 percent whole-wheat berries creating a heady light brown flour. The flour feels gritty when rubbed between your fingers, and the bran is visible in flecks. During fermentation these bran flecks help the dough rise as they trap the carbon dioxide. BLEACHED AND UNBLEACHED FLOURS Unbleached flour is ground wheat flour with the bran sifted out, but with all the germ remaining . As the sifted flour is stored and aged it naturally starts bleaching and lightens in colour. It was found that the aged bleached flour was easier to manipulate into the dough’s, so commercial bakeries began to demand the whitened flour. To accommodate this need without the lengthy aging period, chemical methods of bleaching were developed. SEMOLINA is a granular flour made from Durum, which is a variety of hard wheat, with the bran and germ removed. The term Semolina refers to the texture, which is similar to finely ground cornmeal. Many believe that semolina flour makes the best pasta. ORGANIC FLOURS are flours that are grown in fields that are fertilized by naturally occurring substances-composted materials, aged animal manure, and green manure’s. The soil as a result becomes more loose and this allows the roots to grow deeper, and the plant structure is strong. When the grain is harvested and cleaned it is stored without the use of fumigants or synthetic agents. The result is a full bodied wholesome taste, like a tomato or a carrot grown in your own garden. Commercial fields are on the other hand treated with pesticides, to fight bugs, herbicides to combat weeds, fungicides to combat fungi and other synthetic fertilizers. The young crop is sprayed repeatedly during the growing season and sprayed again after it is harvested and stored. The flour is rather flat tasting and characterless in flavour.

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