Whole Wheat Berries

Wheat is packed with nutrients.  Among the list of nutrients, wheat contains high levels of  fiber, magnesium,  phosphorus, potassium, folate, and calcium. Wheat also stores very well and has an incredibly long "shelf life".  If stored properly, wheat can last 25+ years.

There are many types of wheat, but among them the most common are:

• Hard Red
• Hard White
• Soft Red 
• Soft White
• Durum 

Hard Wheat:

Hard wheat kernels/berries are smaller in comparison to the soft wheat kernels.  They are high in protein and gluten, making them good candidates for bread making.  Generally, hard wheat contains 15-16% protein.

Red Wheat

When baking your own bread, hard white wheat is most commonly used.  Hard white wheat is lighter in color and has a milder taste than hard red wheat.  Hard white wheat will give you a lighter, fluffier bread loaf.  Hard red wheat on the other hand, will produce a more dense loaf with a stronger, more robust taste.

Hard wheat can also be cooked in its whole kernel/berry form and can be used in chili, soups, casseroles, hot cereal, and just about any way imaginable. It has a nutty, chewy texture, similar to that of brown rice.

Soft Wheat:

White Wheat

Soft wheat is not nearly as hard and is a good wheat to use if wanting to roll/flake the wheat.  Soft wheat does not contain as much protein and gluten as its hard counterpart. Soft wheat contains about 9-11% protein. It is commonly ground to use as pastry and cake flour for making cookies, quick breads, cakes and other things not requiring a larger percentage of gluten.

Durum Wheat:

Durum Wheat

Durum is the hardest among all the wheat varieties. It also has the highest amount of protein, but it won't develop enough elastic gluten for baking. Durum is used to make pasta of all varieties.

Semolina is used to make pasta as well.  To help with the confusion, semolina is the endosperm (heart) of the durum wheat kernel. It is more nutritious to use the whole kernel versus the center of it. 

 Cost:
  
For some people, the expense of purchasing a grain mill to grind various grains at home is unrealistic. There are so many types of grain mills to choose from and they can be quite expensive. I fell into this category. We just couldn't afford to buy a grain mill with the hope that I would use it enough to get my money's worth out of it. I have never spent that much money on a small appliance before. The key here is to do the research, save your money, and use a different method in the meantime. From my research, I  narrowed my choice of grain mills down to three:

• Nutrimill
• Wondermill
• Country Living Grain Mill (hand grind with the option of adding a motor and by far the most expensive)

It took me a little over a year of saving, but I finally ended up purchasing the Nutrimill. At the time, the Nutrimill was priced at $239.00. I had a specific envelope label "grain mill" and would put $20-$30 in it every  feasible month. Meanwhile, I continued watching certain websites, and one day a private seller on Amazon listed the Nutrimill. It was brand-new, undamaged, in the original packaging for $180 (including shipping). Apparently she had several because even after mine had arrived, the listing was still up for another week or so.

My suggestion is this - don't settle for something else unless it is incredibly cheap.  In the long run you'll just be disappointed. I finagled with the idea of buying a $150 grain mill, but I'm glad I didn't. Unless the mill is super cheap, just save and wait.

Before I really started making food from scratch, I longed for the day that we could buy a Bosch or a Kitchen-Aid mixer (much cheaper than a Bosch). One summer I came across a yard sale that was selling an old (and I mean old) stand alone Kenmore mixer.  The price was only $4 so to take it home an find out it didn't work was no loss. I figured I could use it until it died. This would be a test to see how much I really would use such an appliance, and would justify the expense of a new one. Well I took it home and to my surprise, it worked. It has now been five years, and crazy enough it still works. I still would like to purchase a Bosch someday, but for right now I'm just fine.