Whole Grain Tortillas | ifood.tv

Whole Grain Tortillas | ifood.tv

Luke 11:3 ~ "Give us this day our daily bread."

These words of Messiah are so well known in the Lord's Prayer. Yet much of the attitude behind this phrase may be lost on one who simply recites it from habit. This short sentence, has such great depth and far more meaning to it than asking for food.

Very few people realize that what Messiah was repeating was a scripture found in Proverbs. This simple phrase already had much attitude adjustment packed into it if we read it in context of a more Hebrew perceptive (which is always more deep reaching with idioms and colloquialisms than a Greek translation can convey).

Look at the attitude that the writer of this Proverb desired for the Lord to create in him because of his petition for 'daily bread':

Prov 38: 7-9
(7) "Two things I ask of you, O LORD; do not refuse me before I die: (8) Keep falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches, but give me only my daily bread. (9) Otherwise, I may have too much and disown you and say, 'Who is the LORD?' Or I may become poor and steal, and so dishonor the name of my God.

It was not a 'give me' prayer to expect provision, but a 'grant me', 'allow it' prayer that he wanted his heart right with the Holy One. Not only that but that he would be strong enough to be a righteous enough testimony to His Name.

Now when we pray or hear the words "Give us this day our daily bread" may the phrase also contain a request for an attitude adjustment.

Trying to live on bread alone...

Mark 4: 4 - But He [Messiah] answered, "The Tanakh says, `Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of ADONAI'"

The specific verse to which The Messiah refers in the Tanakh (Hebrew Scriptures or also known as the Old Testament) is found here: Deut 8:3 " He humbled you, allowing you to become hungry, and then fed you with manna, which neither you nor your ancestors had ever known, to make you understand that a person does not live on food alone, but on everything that comes from the mouth of ADONAI.

So often we think that we can provide for ourselves something that will be 'all that we need'. All I need is an iPad; All I need is a better job; All I need is more money.... the list goes on and on. When we look at the refering Scripture for why Messiah said what He did, it's obvious that often our 'need' has been orchestrated on purpose. It is caused to bring about a better understanding of exactly Who it is that fulfills our needs.


Today, Father, let me delight in the areas I feel 'needy' and not try to fill up on 'bread' alone, but on the Bread of Life that You supply.

Salvage Your Aluminum Foil

 

What is couscous?!

Couscous (pronounced kuskus or kooskoos) is a typical North African food that has become popular in many countries. Couscous is often confused with being a grain, but in fact is more of a pasta and not a whole grain at all. The couscous granules are made by rolling and shaping moistened semolina wheat, the same wheat from which most dry pastas are made. It is then coated them with finely ground wheat flour to assist in the tiny granules of pasta to keep from sticking.

Traditional couscous requires considerable preparation time and is usually steamed. In many places, a more-processed, quick-cook couscous is available and is particularly valued for its short preparation time. Couscous is traditionally served under a meat or vegetable stew. It can also be eaten alone, flavored or plain, warm or cold, or as a side dish.

If you thought you were eating a whole grain product (such as rice) when eating couscous, perhaps making the transition to millet will be of interests.  Millet is a whole grain, low in gluten and high in protein. When soaked overnight and then boiled (the same duration as couscous) it has a very similar end product as couscous, but all the benefits of whole grain and bonus benefits of protein. Use soaked millet exactly as you would instant couscous. It too can be flavored with stock or juice in the boiling and makes a fantastic side dish or main course with additions.

Bulk Food Storage

Building Food Storage on a Dime

By now you know me well enough that I am not a big fan of ‘cheap food’ but neither am I a fan of expensive food!

Some people feel as though they have to get shelves and shelves of food that is quick and easy to fix (cheap foods with preservatives and artificial colors and a shelf life of a cock-roach). Other people think they need to get the ready-to-eat meals that are simply the ‘add water’ foods (not many of them are healthy either, but they are often quite pricey as well) and are willing to pay more for the convenience.

Here are some ideas for stretching your food dollars while buying real food storage items:

Use coupons - this can be a simple start to saving so you can buy more each time. There are FREE sites on the internet for finding out what your best deals are when your store runs a sale at the same time as a coupon can be used. One of my favorites is Southern Savers.

Buy one get one (free or half price) – use one store the other. This way you know you will eat what is in storage. Some of the ready-meals may not even be to your pallet’s liking.

Find the scratch & dent isles - usually found at the ends of some longer isles in the store. Some items are still in great shape. It is still a good idea to stay away from dented cans.

Cook from scratch (often stretch ingredients due to the variety of uses vs. a one box mix food). One item can be used multiple ways instead of spending the same amount on an item that can only be mixed, used and eaten once.

Look for an alternative that costs less. For example, buy the store brand. If it is the storage rotation system that costs over $200 that has you down, there is a cheaper (and in my opinion much more versatile) option that you can find on our website.  You can also see how I personally used this option when I was short on kitchen space by watching the video: here.

 

There are many ways to stock up your food storage, long term workable pantry and not break the bank. In fact, if you end up in a slump, you’ll be happy you had even a little food storage on hand!

Best Blessings and enJOY the journey!

Whole Grain Baking Classes

 

Tips to remember when using freshly ground grains:

1. Rainy weather will have some effect on your bread rising.

 

The moisture gets trapped more easily in the wheat or grain that has just been ‘cracked’ by milling. It’s more susceptible to absorbing moisture than dead flour that has sat on a shelf for months. So you may need to slightly adjust the water amount in your recipe or add more gluten to the mix to get the bread to rise. I personally avoid bread on rainy days and focus on tortillas and other flat or quick breads.

 

 

2. Measure correctly to avoid excess flour after grinding.

 

One of the BIGGEST reasons for grinding grains is the immediate release of all those nutrients. If you end up with a cup or more of flour just sitting there, oxidizing, dying and loosing nutrients...it not only wastes precious fresh flour - it defeats the purpose. A good rule of thumb to follow is: Grains usually produce half again as much as you put in the mill. For example: 2 cups of grain will produce approximately 3 cups of flour. Write the amount of grain next to your recipe once you have perfected it. Waste not want not!

 

 

3. Different (wheat) grains work better for different recipes.

 

Freshly ground whole wheat is wonderful! But not all recipes work the same with one type of wheat. A brief list of wheat types and food types is: HARD RED is best for breads and items that require high rising. HARD WHITE will also rise well, but has a less heavy ‘taste’ and ‘look’ than the red. Both can be mixed equally to make a deliciously light bread. SOFT WHITE is best for pastries and flat breads such as pancakes, tortillas and biscuits. Biscuits hold together better with soft white wheat - just don‘t twist that biscuit cutter.

Milling and Cooking with Fresh Whole Grains - Tip #2 Part 2: The Waste Not Want Not War

Tip #2 - The Waste Not Want Not War - Part Two.

More and more people are looking at ways to stretch their budget and still provide wholesome, healthy food for their families. In some of my other tips I've discussed the benefits of using whole grain for the longevity of storage as well as the nutritional benefits. But what about dealing with the mistake of milling too much flour? Do we just toss it out if we don't use it or do we use it 'old' after it has sat there, milled, for days? Or, should I bake cookies right away to avoid wasting it? Actually, I like that one as a choice!!

 

Because milling and using whole grains was not taught to me as a child, it is by trial and error, I've found that the other way, aside from Tip #4, to win the Waste Not Want Not War with whole grains is the proper storage and use of any surplus flours. If we learn from our mistakes, we become smarter. Judging from the amount of mistakes I have made, I am a genius! Milling far too much flour has created a variety of choices for me to give examples of how someone can make the most of this error.

 

Let us say, you read the recipe wrong, your glasses were in the other room, you grabbed the wrong measuring cup (because the kids had finger paint in your usual one) or you just didn’t read Tip #4 previous to this one and you have left over flours. 

 

Here are two suggestions:

 

1. Keep a gallon zip lock bag in the freezer labeled ‘Misc. Flours’ and put all your surplus wheat flours (both hard or soft) in the same bag. When it reaches 2 cups - make muffins. By keeping it in the freezer, you slow the oxidation process and 2 cups is easy to get to in no time. Just remember if it is mixed hard and soft it will NOT make yeast bread.

 

2. Out of this same bag - thicken sauces and flour cake pans.

 

I’ve only focused on surplus wheat flours. When we discuss Corn and other grains, I have a few tips for those surpluses too!

Milling and Cooking with Fresh Whole Grains - Tip #2 Part 1: The Waste Not Want Not War

Tip #2 - The Waste Not Want Not War - Part One.

For some people, being a good or frugal steward of their resources is learned by example or it just comes naturally.  Not so for me.  Learning how to measure and gauge the amount of whole grains to mill each time I baked took some time and effort.  Along the way I wasted excess grain or used 'old' flour which had been milled days before only to keep from waiting it - all the while knowing the older flour was not what was BEST for us nor was using ’old’ four the reason I mill grains in the first place.  Because of my desire not to waste our supply of grain and to not eat 'old' flour, I had to devise a cunning plan to keep from wasting the flour once it had been milled. 

By trial and error, I found that there are two means of being sure to make the most of the grains and not waste the flour they produce.  Measuring accurately before milling is the first of my two weapons in this Waste Not Want Not War.

Let us look at how to measure properly before we mill those little kernels of nutritional 'gold'.  Most wheat, spelt and rye (kernels that are the size and shape of a grain of rice) will make one third again as much flour as the measured whole grain itself.  For example:  If I place 1 cup of the described type of grain in my Nutrimill and grind it on the finest ground setting, I will end up with approximately 1 and 1/3 cups of flour.  So to make my usual whole wheat bread recipe which calls for 3.25 cups of flour, I know that I can measure 2.5 cups of wheat (I mix 1 cup of Hard Red Winter and 1.5 cups of Hard White Spring) and end up with about 3 and 1/3 cups of fresh, ready-to-use whole flour. The tiny bit left that does not go in the recipe, dusts the counter for forming the loaf!  

The larger the grain the more flour/meal it will produce, up to half again as much.  Buckwheat and corn will mill almost half again as much flour per measured grain. After a little bit of figuring I have not had nearly any waste of fresh flour for most of my regularly prepared recipes. Also, don’t forget, I have another weapon in my arsenal of this Waste Not Want Not War.  That is your NEXT Tip!

Part Three of Tip 1 - Milling with Fresh Whole Grains, Milling Wheat at Home Tip 1 - Part 3, Whole Grain Milling Tip 1 - Part 3, Grain Milling from Home - Do It Yourself, Convince Yourself of the Benefits to Milling at Home

This is part three of tip #1 on why to bother milling your own wheat and grains at home. Many people may ask "You do WHAT?" and "Why bother?". This brief tip helps you convince yourself that you can do this and enjoy the benefits to milling grains at home.

Tip #1 - “You do WHAT?  Why bother?” - Part Three

Now that you have tried the previous tips and attempted to reason with friends and family that it is more healthy, and you can make a cheaper/healthier loaf of bread and that the storage life is longer, you may be like I was, trying to convince yourself that you can DO this (I can, right?). 

Here are a few more little tips I have learned to show myself ‘why to bother’:

• It takes no more time than grabbing a bag of dead flour.  Throw the grains in the Nutrimill, turn it on and by the time I’ve gathered the other ingredients for the recipe, the mill is done.

• Even the Nutrimill has saved us money!  We eat pizza every Friday night.  We used to order 3 Large pizzas from Papa Johns, Dominos or Little Caesars.  At the tune of between $30-$40 any given Friday.  Now I make pizza crusts ahead of time and use fresh ingredients (and I might add less fats/grease) and make 3 16 inch pizzas for $10.00 total!  In less than three months, we had paid for the mill on pizza nights alone!

•  Last but not least, you don’t have to start out as a purist.  If you HAVE to add, change or substitute a pinch here and there to get your family to eat the freshly milled grains that are so packed with nutrients, then just do that until you have experimented enough to use only the grains you mill.  Using even 3/4 of a cup of freshly milled wheat vs. the usual ‘dead bagged flour’ gives your family more fiber, E and other phyto nutrients than they can get from fast foods or frozen waffles. 

Relax.  EnJOY it!

Now not only are you convinced because of these little tips, but your friends and family will see the confidence in you and not worry that you will soon begin brushing your teeth with sugar or go back to believing the world is flat, just because you mill grains at home.  Milling grains at home is not old fashioned, it just makes good sense.