I just read Pat's article about getting a grain mill and making your own bread from complete scratch. Can someone (Pat especially) recommend a good hand mill that's not expensive?

I've made bread in the past using flour from the store (and once organic grains from Whole Foods) - the breead was good but the crust exposed on top was unbelievably hard to cut through. Anything I can do to keep the whole loaf soft while baking?

 

 It's really hard to recommend a hand mill that's good and not expensive - depending on your definition of expensive. I bought mine from Lehmans.com somewhere between 15 and 20 years ago and it's still going strong. If you can find them locally, try one out and see what it feels like. Don't buy one that looks flimsy or that is hard to turn. It should have good bearings or you'll wear yourself out quickly. If you can get one with steel and stone burrs, it will be more versatile. Also, the size matters. A small mill will do for most singles and small families, but plan on getting the kids or spouse to help, because it's a labor intensive project.

As to the crust being hard, I've had that trouble myself, but it may have baked too long, (whole grains often bake faster than white flour) or may not have risen enough before you put it in the oven, or it may not have been kneaded enough to develop the gluten, or it may not have had enough fat in it, or may have had too much other liquid. That helps a lot, huh?   Baking with whole grains is an art - don't give up, try it again and you'll soon get the hang of it.

 

 I have never had a problem with a hard crust but one thing you could try is putting a dish of water in the bottom of the oven while cooking your loaf.  That would give a moist air in the oven during baking.  HTH.

A good friend of ours insisted we try out his new Nutri Mill over the weekend - and it's great!  It's not a small machine that you could leave on your contertop, but it sure does the grinding at lightning speed.  You only have to wipe it out to clean it, too.  I would love to have one, but it's a little out of our price range right now.

We made some bread which we weren't pleased with at all (still working on the proportions...), and made some cookies and pancakes which turned out wonderful.  There is a huge difference in the taste of freshly ground flour vs. shelved flours...Liz 

 I have a Nutri Mill, and it is great, but I would not say it grinds fast....I use it for grinding rice (so far)...because I cannot eat wheat, rye, barley, oats, or corn... It takes about 25 to 30 min to grind 2# of rice.....

Wow, I wonder why rice takes so long?  Is it because it's hard?  We had all the w.w. flour we wanted within 5 minutes, but we haven't tried to grind anything but wheat yet.  I see there's a list in the instructions of the grains they suggest you don't try in the mill, mostly the oily ones.  We'd like to make cornmeal next...Liz

I got the Family Grain Mill to use by hand, and loved it- except that it took so long with my carpal tunnel, and hurt so much, I knew it would never be practical.

So, I went back to Lehman's website and bought the electric attachment- presto, chango, super quick flour for super bread!

The lesson for me was to make sure of what you want before buying- I thought I wanted a hand mill, but that was the wrong decision for me. I could have saved a little by buying the right combo the first time. BUT- should the power ever go out, I have the hand mill attachment, and maybe I can convince some neighbor kids to turn it in exchange for some freshly made cookies!

I would highly recommend the Family Grain Mill. It is so easy to put together, and really does a great job.

 This sounds like a great idea.  Do you think it would be possible to grind the grain in a food chopper/processor instead of a grain mill?  I can't find the original article, do you have a link to it?

How does the cost compare when buying unmilled grains vs. processed flour? 

 Thanks,

Liz
 

I, too, would like to try to gtind grain wothout a mill.  What about a coffee grinder?

 Coffee grinders don't mill grains fine enough for flour, but you can make things like corn meal with them. The best way I know of to mill without a mill is to use a mortar and pestle, the real old fashioned way.