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A New Journey...making homemade bread
For a few years now I have been envious of some of my friends who have been making their own bread from freshly milled flour. I had eaten the bread on several occasions and it was delicious and filling. I finally broke out of my routine, took a bread class and tried baking my own bread! Why not, right?!?! :)
In today's world we are always looking at new food crazes and new health crazes! We are looking constantly at the labels of the foods we eat and trying to decipher the ingredients on the labels! One important factor that I found about freshly milled flour is that I can be assured that there have been no more chemicals or preservatives added to the flour I am using. Now, I know that you might be thinking....'there are probably lots of chemicals and preservatives in the other things she's using'...you are probably right, however I want to take one step at a time to try to change what and how my family is eating. :) Its all about baby steps to a better eating pattern! In my class I learned that after the wheat kernel is milled a process called oxidation starts. 24 hours after being milled (exposure to air) 45% of the vitamins and minerals are lost and after 72 hours 90% of the vitamins and minerals are lost. A great example they provided is an apple. When the skin of an apple is broken the apple begins to brown; that browning is a result of oxidation. The apple is losing nutrients from the exposure to air.
So that is a little background to explain why I decided to break out of my 'bread' routine and try something new! It certainly has been an exciting adventure and I have enjoyed the process so far! I have not purchased a mill yet; I am using a friends. I did purchase a starter kit which contains organic and natural ingredients to use. I felt that this would give me a good feeling of whether I truly can make my own bread and if I like the process. I plan to document my ups and downs of bread making and baking with milled flour. I have really enjoyed how the bread actually fills you up. I find myself eating less :) A great bonus!!
Pictured below is the starter kit I purchased. To date I have made 6 loaves of bread and 1 dozen muffins and I will have lots of ingredients left to create more yummy things! I am very excited that I decided to make a change to my everyday routine and try something new! The best part is I had a positive outcome! LOVE IT!
