Taking back the flour - something on my wish list

One of the things that has become apparent during the current Covid 19 pandemic is that the way our current life-styles are set up we have more or less given up a lot of kitchen skills in favour of buying something ready made from the supermarket.  Me included.  However the thing that grieved me the most was that I could not access yeast or indeed bread flour for over five weeks. In the end I was lucky to access a bulk buy of bread flour and fresh yeast from Shipton Mill.  I am quite happy to bake bread for my family, rather than having to buy it, but without the basic resources available that makes it very difficult and it takes the power away from you as an individual and as a mother, carer and provider for your family.  I am not sure that I am happy with that state of play.  It is not control per se, but I like to be independent and I certainly like to know what goes into my food.

For many years I have researched different techniques and ways of preparing things at home.  Principally in the preserving area as that provides a seasonal item that can stock the pantry up and be used through the winter months and bring a dash of spring, summer or autumn to a grey winter day and liven up your taste-buds.  That to me is being sensible, making my own food stuffs and providing different tastes and flavours (ones that cannot necessarily be bought) throughout the year.

I read a lot of American Blogs and many of these American housewives have not given up the mantle to the supermarkets but have retained the power to be able to have a full pantry, and feed their families well and in many cases cheaply.  Many of these ladies own flour mills and the one that has stuck out for many years is the "Wonder Mill" (By the way this is not an advert for the company, just something I am interested in).  It has not been available in the UK though. My thoughts being as they are and following on from flour itself, I went onto thinking about grinding my own flour especially after a blog I follow had just purchased a flour mill.  I therefore accessed the American website of Wondermill and it quite categorically stated that people in Europe and the UK should contact their own local provider as often buying direct from the parent company in the States could end up costing us more.  Up until that point I had not appreciated that Wondermill have a UK Branch which is here Wondermill Home Page

There are a couple of good videos one of which covers the use of the flour grinder which seems easy and it also offers you other options for grinding other grains as well. I suspect that this would be a godsend for those that are intolerent of certain foods or indeed gluten intolerent.  There are of course also grains that it will not cope with.  The link for the use of the machine is here Wondermill Grain Mill.  It is not cheap approximately £279, and they also provide the grain (wheat berries) for milling although at present do not have the machine in stock and only limited grain.  However it does strike me that this could be a very useful gadget to have in the kitchen armoury, especially after the recent problems despite the price.  For myself I shall do further research in the interim before diving in.  Times  may change, but at this specific moment in time this is the make and model that I am interested in.

However, I shall be buying from Shipton Mill again as I have had a very good service from them and I am delighted with the product as well.

The recent problems have led me to believe that the way I was storing food before is indeed a good way for keeping my family in food even when money is tight.  It is just the timing I got wrong by running down the stocks in order to replenish. We live and learn and next time I will listen to my inner voice and judgment rather than ignore it in future. That inner voice that tells it as it is and which will never do you harm.  The lesson here is that we have to learn to listen to it.

However, adjustments are going to be made now that I am home more or less full time to ensure a better quality of life all round.  I have always been one to buy in base ingredients in bulk in any event.  In the current circumstances, I am now intent on getting to grips with the garden and growing more foodstuffs to "preserve" for a rainy day whether that be by freezing, cold larder storage, dry larder storage, cellar, still room, fridge and other cold storage or indeed jam, canning/bottling, pickles, dried goods, chutneys, wines, beers, cider and Perry.  Time to get back to what I know best.  The Kitchen Garden is after all an extension/provider for the kitchen itself.  We all need to grow more in the long term to take responsibility for and provide to some extent for ourselves rather than being heavily reliant totally on the supermarkets.  It would do the environment some good too.

How has the current situation affected you and are there any strictures and adjustments that you are intending to make in the longer term with regard to food generally?  Would love to hear from you on this point.

Catch you soon.

Pattypan

x

P.S. Since writing this post I have also come across the Nutrimill grain mill - expensive and out of stock at the moment.  Going to have a further look at this one too.

Nutrimill Grain Mill

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