Interesting article- it challenges some long held beliefs of mine about the superiority of whole grain flours and pushes my thinking into more complex questions and understanding.
How about adding wheat germ and/or wheat bran to white flour? Would that make bread “healthier”? Would those additions have any effect on hydration (assuming 2% of added bran/germ)?
Thanks so much for writing this sentence: “One of my goals in teaching is to coax people into being comfortable doing something that is unfamiliar and initially complicated, and in part this requires the results to be rewarding, so that people keep at it, rather than throw up their hands in frustration, never to try again.”
I’m a high school art teacher, and you’ve just perfectly summed up one of the most important aspects of teaching, especially subjects that have a complex process or a steep learning curve. I’m going to share this quote with all my high school art teacher friends.
Also, I agree with everything you said about flour here. I’d rather get my fiber from a bowl of steel cut oatmeal, a farro salad, a barley soup, or a German rye bread, than try to change a sourdough bread recipe to fit a misguided idea about what’s healthy
I am a bit confused. I use "Whole white flour" from Speerville Mills in New Brunswick. It is my understanding based on internet research that this is a whole grain flour without the red genes of other wheat. If this is right, then just referring to "white flour" in contrast to whole grain may be misleading.
Very interesting and important topic! For me I think we can’t think about removing bran from flour without having a general understanding of food waste. Is bran different from a banana peel? Although I’ve seen it suggested we need to eat banana peels most don’t. Instead we should worry what happens to food we waste (compost?). Of course with sifted flour that may be hard to know if it’s happening in the factory and not at home.
I also think in general we should not be trying to make whole grain versions of traditional foods. A whole grain flat bread with savory toppings might not be the same as NY style pizza but it might be really good.
Thanks for the follow up to Monday’s article, Andrew. I have yet to try high extraction flour in my baking, but hope to do so soon. In the meantime, I’m happy sticking with my whole grain repertoire for bread. It would surely be difficult to try to replicate breads that are traditionally made with white flour with whole grain, but the whole grain breads have their own charm, and I like to just lean into what it delivers. Kind of in the same way but I think it can be a fools errand to try to create plant based “meat” products. With a few exceptions, it’s typically a formula for disappointment. Your thoughts on the nutritional value of refined flour Are helpful, and perhaps will lead to me being less of a purist on the topic.
Thanks Andrew, I used to tell my customers that it wasn't that the white breads weren't nutritious, it's just that hey weren't quite as nutritious as the whole grain breads. We sold both of course! John Dale
Thanks for this explanation. There certainly is a feeling of assumed morality around choice of white vs whole wheat. I, too, can't help but put whole wheat into traditionally white flour recipes. I at tend do 1/6th white whole wheat in a pizza dough, just to add that touch. The more I add, the less enjoyable the pizza crust is. Unless, of course, you take some extra measures. One of the best pizza doughs we've ever baked with was a 40% white whole wheat and 60% bread flour dough that cold fermented in the fridge for 4 days (not on purpose, we just didn't get to it). Had that been a 1-2 day dough it wouldn't have been as good, I think. My wife makes pancakes with 1/3 white whole wheat, again, just for that extra bit of flavor or may even feel of it. The ethical sourcing of it is less familiar to me; for my environment and social circle it's around the overall health component. Speaking directly to what the actual issue is like you have, fiber or not, helps to bring clarity. From there one can pinpoint, which aspect of health? Is it (a) weight control in terms of calories consumed, and how fiber can play a role in filling one up to increase satiety and prevent eating as much? Or is it (b) the gut health benefits from fiber consumption? Or is it (c) the heart health benefits? If it's (b) or (c), you'd have to eat a good amount of foods made from whole grain flour to get the fiber needed for those benefits, but then do you creep into violating (a) because you are consuming too much energy from all the carbs you're eating? All this can be solved by what you mentioned of when it comes to fiber, that can just be had in other ways in one's diet, and the hyper focus on whole grains bEcAuSe fiBeR seems to be a bit much. In terms of sources on what summarizes the latest on fiber's health benefits, I did enjoy this recent one on fiber from Barbell Medicine's podcast: https://soundcloud.com/user-344313169/episode-109-fiber. Hope to hear more form whatever else you find in your follow up, as well.
Beautifully broken down and considered, Andrew. A lot to think about! But I love your inclusivity without compromising your passion for whole grains.
In regards to your 100% WW sandwich bread quest, have you ever tried the “Approachable loaf” from WSU Bread lab (I think KAF has a version of the recipe that they adapted from the original which is not publicly available)? It’s been on my radar but I’ve not tried it yet. I’m curious whether you’d suggest or give an option for adding vital wheat gluten, which I’ve seen before (and I think I’ve tried in recipes before) to add back some of that elasticity lost when going up to 100%WW. Looking forward to seeing your final result!!
I’m interested that you didn’t address the difference between stone milling and roller milling when referring to “white flour.” Doesn’t that affect the nutritional content of flour?
Thanks for bringing this up, Andrew! I do try to include more whole wheat (whole grain) in my baking for both flavor and health reasons. But I don't feel compelled to use it for *everything*. My concern with white flour is not so much for the fiber or nutrients, which as a vegetarian I get plenty of elsewhere, but for how our bodies react to very finely ground flour - specifically the blood sugar response. Substituting whole wheat pastry flour for white flour does not make your baked goods much healthier.
Thoroughly enjoyed this as I frequently obsess over whole grains. I love bread and rice and predominantly stick to brown rice, whom grain bread or quinoa & oat bread. I feel a greater energy slump when I eat white bread versus wholegrain. I am no longer used to eating sliced white bread except a baguette. But I have always been curious about the movement against white bread (processed flours as they are called) and whether they are as bad as we are told. Even though I eat quinoa & oat bread with a bit of wholemeal flour in it. As you pointed out, we can get fibre from other sources.
Interesting article- it challenges some long held beliefs of mine about the superiority of whole grain flours and pushes my thinking into more complex questions and understanding.
How about adding wheat germ and/or wheat bran to white flour? Would that make bread “healthier”? Would those additions have any effect on hydration (assuming 2% of added bran/germ)?
Thanks so much for writing this sentence: “One of my goals in teaching is to coax people into being comfortable doing something that is unfamiliar and initially complicated, and in part this requires the results to be rewarding, so that people keep at it, rather than throw up their hands in frustration, never to try again.”
I’m a high school art teacher, and you’ve just perfectly summed up one of the most important aspects of teaching, especially subjects that have a complex process or a steep learning curve. I’m going to share this quote with all my high school art teacher friends.
Also, I agree with everything you said about flour here. I’d rather get my fiber from a bowl of steel cut oatmeal, a farro salad, a barley soup, or a German rye bread, than try to change a sourdough bread recipe to fit a misguided idea about what’s healthy
I am a bit confused. I use "Whole white flour" from Speerville Mills in New Brunswick. It is my understanding based on internet research that this is a whole grain flour without the red genes of other wheat. If this is right, then just referring to "white flour" in contrast to whole grain may be misleading.
Very interesting and important topic! For me I think we can’t think about removing bran from flour without having a general understanding of food waste. Is bran different from a banana peel? Although I’ve seen it suggested we need to eat banana peels most don’t. Instead we should worry what happens to food we waste (compost?). Of course with sifted flour that may be hard to know if it’s happening in the factory and not at home.
I also think in general we should not be trying to make whole grain versions of traditional foods. A whole grain flat bread with savory toppings might not be the same as NY style pizza but it might be really good.
Thanks for raising the issue.
Thanks for the follow up to Monday’s article, Andrew. I have yet to try high extraction flour in my baking, but hope to do so soon. In the meantime, I’m happy sticking with my whole grain repertoire for bread. It would surely be difficult to try to replicate breads that are traditionally made with white flour with whole grain, but the whole grain breads have their own charm, and I like to just lean into what it delivers. Kind of in the same way but I think it can be a fools errand to try to create plant based “meat” products. With a few exceptions, it’s typically a formula for disappointment. Your thoughts on the nutritional value of refined flour Are helpful, and perhaps will lead to me being less of a purist on the topic.
Thanks Andrew, I used to tell my customers that it wasn't that the white breads weren't nutritious, it's just that hey weren't quite as nutritious as the whole grain breads. We sold both of course! John Dale
Thanks for this explanation. There certainly is a feeling of assumed morality around choice of white vs whole wheat. I, too, can't help but put whole wheat into traditionally white flour recipes. I at tend do 1/6th white whole wheat in a pizza dough, just to add that touch. The more I add, the less enjoyable the pizza crust is. Unless, of course, you take some extra measures. One of the best pizza doughs we've ever baked with was a 40% white whole wheat and 60% bread flour dough that cold fermented in the fridge for 4 days (not on purpose, we just didn't get to it). Had that been a 1-2 day dough it wouldn't have been as good, I think. My wife makes pancakes with 1/3 white whole wheat, again, just for that extra bit of flavor or may even feel of it. The ethical sourcing of it is less familiar to me; for my environment and social circle it's around the overall health component. Speaking directly to what the actual issue is like you have, fiber or not, helps to bring clarity. From there one can pinpoint, which aspect of health? Is it (a) weight control in terms of calories consumed, and how fiber can play a role in filling one up to increase satiety and prevent eating as much? Or is it (b) the gut health benefits from fiber consumption? Or is it (c) the heart health benefits? If it's (b) or (c), you'd have to eat a good amount of foods made from whole grain flour to get the fiber needed for those benefits, but then do you creep into violating (a) because you are consuming too much energy from all the carbs you're eating? All this can be solved by what you mentioned of when it comes to fiber, that can just be had in other ways in one's diet, and the hyper focus on whole grains bEcAuSe fiBeR seems to be a bit much. In terms of sources on what summarizes the latest on fiber's health benefits, I did enjoy this recent one on fiber from Barbell Medicine's podcast: https://soundcloud.com/user-344313169/episode-109-fiber. Hope to hear more form whatever else you find in your follow up, as well.
Beautifully broken down and considered, Andrew. A lot to think about! But I love your inclusivity without compromising your passion for whole grains.
In regards to your 100% WW sandwich bread quest, have you ever tried the “Approachable loaf” from WSU Bread lab (I think KAF has a version of the recipe that they adapted from the original which is not publicly available)? It’s been on my radar but I’ve not tried it yet. I’m curious whether you’d suggest or give an option for adding vital wheat gluten, which I’ve seen before (and I think I’ve tried in recipes before) to add back some of that elasticity lost when going up to 100%WW. Looking forward to seeing your final result!!
I’m interested that you didn’t address the difference between stone milling and roller milling when referring to “white flour.” Doesn’t that affect the nutritional content of flour?
Thanks for bringing this up, Andrew! I do try to include more whole wheat (whole grain) in my baking for both flavor and health reasons. But I don't feel compelled to use it for *everything*. My concern with white flour is not so much for the fiber or nutrients, which as a vegetarian I get plenty of elsewhere, but for how our bodies react to very finely ground flour - specifically the blood sugar response. Substituting whole wheat pastry flour for white flour does not make your baked goods much healthier.
Thoroughly enjoyed this as I frequently obsess over whole grains. I love bread and rice and predominantly stick to brown rice, whom grain bread or quinoa & oat bread. I feel a greater energy slump when I eat white bread versus wholegrain. I am no longer used to eating sliced white bread except a baguette. But I have always been curious about the movement against white bread (processed flours as they are called) and whether they are as bad as we are told. Even though I eat quinoa & oat bread with a bit of wholemeal flour in it. As you pointed out, we can get fibre from other sources.