We recently learned that March is National Flour Month, so in honor of that, we thought we’d provide some info on why we mill our flour fresh for every round of bread.
March 17th, 2024
Flavor
Simply put, freshly milled flour just tastes better. Think of the intensity of freshly cracked black pepper versus the months-old ground pepper you pull out of the pantry. A similar thing happens with flour: the closer to milling you eat it, the stronger the flavor and aroma.
Health
Freshly milled flour is more nutritious because of how it’s milled and the freshness itself. Wheat berries have three parts (bran, germ, endosperm) that provide complementary health benefits with their fiber, protein, oils, and essential vitamins and minerals. Stone-ground milling (what Daily Grains does) crushes the whole grain, leaving more of the nutrients intact. Most store-bought aka white flour is milled on a roller mill that leaves only the starchy endosperm, then adds nutrients back in to make up for the ones removed.
Why do commercial millers do something that seems so counterintuitive? The answer is shelf life. All-purpose flour lasts 6-12 months, depending upon how it’s stored, before quality starts to deteriorate. It can last that long because the oils that cause flour to go rancid more quickly are not present. Thus, stone-ground flour exchanges longer shelf life for more nutrition and flavor.
Sustainability
Because home mills use the entire grain (aka berry), there’s no waste involved. Even if the larger parts of the bran are extracted, we can use that bran in other baked goods. It can be added to pancakes, muffins, bars, or really any baked good where you’d like additional flavor, texture, and nutrition.
