I've started something new in my kitchen which has been fun, nutritious for the whole family, and also a little weird! In January of this year we started grinding our own grains (I know, I know, it sounds weird)! So stick with me ;) 

I interviewed Stacy a few weeks ago and we chatted about making bread, grinding our own wheat, and healthy living and eating. It was a fun chat and after it, I had so many of you asking question about the process. 

So today's episode is going to (hopefully) answer all your question and (hopefully) convince you how easy this is to incorporate into your kitchen! As a BUSY mo of 5 little ones, I couldn't handle anything that requires more than about 5 extra minutes. Thankfully, it doesn't even take that long. Listen in! 

Listen to the Podcast:

We also recorded this blog post as an audio podcast. If you want to listen in instead of reading, click play below or do a combination of both 

And don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast in iTunes. 

Right click here and save-as to download this episode to your computer.

An Introduction to Grinding Grains

To get the full scoop make sure you listen to my podcast episode above! The notes here are just meant to help you fill in all the links I mentioned in the episode :) 

The very first thing I get asked is "WHY would you want to grind your own wheat?" I know it sounds like something out of prairie days - but honestly it's very easy and doable wth an electric grain mill. 

We grind our own wheat because its: 

Much healthier (Listen to the FREE audio here called "The Truth About Wheat"

Tastes AMAZING compared to store bought wheat

Much cheaper per pound (after you pay off the grain mill)

Where you can learn more about grinding your own wheat: 

Bread Beckers FREE video classes (these are AMAZING) - Start with Bread Making 101

The Essential Home Ground Flour Cookbook (An excellent cookbook with over 100 recipes AND tons of information about the health of using fresh grains and the different types!)

Traditional Cooking School - Wardee is a WEALTH of information (and she is a Christian and ties all of our healthy eating back to bringing glory to God). You can search for blog or find classes and videos on bread making, grinding wheat, and so much more! 

Is this even practical?

So you might be convinced that this is healthier, tastes better, and might even be more economical...but is it even practical?? I thought there was no way that we could fit this into our already full schedule. But it seriously takes just 60-90 seconds to grind the wheat - so simple, fast, and easy! It doesn't add hardly any time to my baking routine. 

You can watch a "highlight" I have on Instagram right now of making a fresh loaf of sandwich bread, it shows how easy and quick the grain mill is. Hop over to Instagram to watch it (you might need to go to mobile to find the highlight. Or search @jamibalmet)

Where to Buy Grain

There are dozens (hundreds) of different grains to choose from. This part can be a little difficult to know what kinds to buy. Sue Becker's book does a GREAT job of explaining the main kinds of grains we use and what recipes to use them in. 

The three main types of wheat that I use (I order 50lb bags at once) are: Hard red, Hard white, and Soft white. If your budget is tight or you don't have room to store all of that, Hard white will serve almost all of your needs. 

I've also been using spelt a lot more recently and I keep small amounts of millet, buckwheat, and pearled barley on hand as well. I have also started looking into Einkorn grain and want to find an affordable source for it.