First of all, It is much cheaper to grind your own grains, but if that is not an option, there are several brands that sell these. The grinder my mom has is the Wisper Mill. It is wonderful, but is very expensive. Until I have enough money to splurge, I will just have to use hers.
My first staple grain is white rice. Come case lot time I buy a big 50lb bucket of the cheapest white rice I can (usually long grain). This is the grain I use the most for baking. It is mild flavored and can be used for sweet and savory recipes. It is also the cheapest of the rices.
Other rices I use:
-brown rice. Brown rice is very similar to white rice. It bakes up slightly darker because it is the whole grain, unlike the white rice, which has been stripped of the germ and endosperm. I suggest for the new GF user, try brown rice sparingly at first. A lot o f gluten intolerant (GI) or celiacs have a hard time digesting the germ and endosperm. If you tolerate it well, use this in place of your white rice to get your whole grains in. I unfortunately do not tolerate it very well and therefore do not use it quite as frequently.
- sweet brown rice. Some people swear that all your baking needs to be done with a sweet rice, but to be honest it is super expensive and I can't tell a difference. I buy this only when I really want to impress someone. lol. Also, I have only found this at one store and it is not very close, so I rarely invest my time with this grain.
Here is how I store my grains:
Other grains that I use.
-Quinoa; this is a good grain both whole to eat or grind and add to a recipe for added nutrients and flavor. I also use it's flour to bake with. It has a high protein content, making it a nice leavening flour compared to some of the other GF grains. Its flavor is kind of nutty giving your recipe a fun edge.
Oats:
- I was specifically tested for an oat allergy and came back negative, so I use oats when ever I can because I LOVE the flavor it give. I almost can convince myself and others that it tastes too good to be GF. Here is my warning though. Several people who have celiacs or GI are also allergic to oats. And if that isn't enough, oats are usually grown in the same fields and processed on the same equipment at wheat. So I caution you, if you are extremely sensitive to wheat, to purchase oats that are completely grown and processed GF. Also it isn't a bad idea to get tested for an oat allergy too just to be sure!
Now, oats are confusing if you don't know much about them. I will explain briefly here the three stages that you find oat in at the store.
1. oats that have not been processed look very similar to wheat berries. These are called oat groats. I am unsure of the name origin. Here is a pic.
looks like wheat to the untrained eye, eh?
The oat groats are ideal for grinding into a flour. As I mentioned before I love this flour. It also has a nice nutty flavor and is lighter (gives a fluffier airier consistency) to bake with. This is hard to do with GF baking!
-Old fashion oats- rolled oats; this is when the oat groat has been rolled or smashed out into a flat version of its self. Unlike white flour or other processed grains. This is still considered a whole grain. You can grind this into a flour, but a grain grinder won't work. A blender or food processor is best. The end product is not as fine as a four from the grinder, but can be used just the same. Also you can use this whole to bake with such as oatmeal cookies etc. Just know that this oat takes more moisture to break down.
- quick oats or quick rolled oats; these are just one step further processed than the old fashioned oats. these are then run though a processor that chops them up into smaller pieces so that they can cook or breakdown faster. This is what we most commonly see in oatmeal packets such as quaker. I also prefer these for my baking because they seem to bind together better than the old fashioned oats. You can do the same as above to make a flour out of these oats.
-finally my indulgent oat treat is oat bran. It is a flour made specifically out of the bran part of the oat. It makes fabulous muffins etc. I used to love bran muffins or raisin bran cereal so when I discovered that this is just as yummy I jumped on the band wagon. It is also a very common item so every grocery store carries it in the hot cereal isle.
Happy grain and oat baking!
~Krista
