[Lindsey]

I just received my first stella style book from QVC - i'm excited!! do most of you MAKE your own almond flour or do you BUY your almond flour already made????

[crazywoman]

Welcome to the site, and our Stella Style family Lindsey!!!


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Lots of good info there.

As fort he almond flour, I have made my own, but I find it is cheaper (and much easier for me) to buy my almond meal/flour from Honeyville Grain http://store.honeyvillegrain.com/flour-specialty.aspx. (When you buy the 5# bag, i is cheaper than anywhere else I've found it, including grinding my own.) It is a very good almond meal/flour. Light & fluffy. Ground much better than I could ever grind it myself. I am signed up to get emails on specials or sales from them. I try to catch a sale or discount from them to buy my almond flour. (I do buy other products from them as well when I order.
But you can certainly grind your own, if you have a good blender or food processor. I think some use a magic bullet.
I do however grind my own flax meal in my blender.

That being said, if I couldn't buy the almond flour at Honeyville (and this price), I would probably grind my own.
_________________
Billie
4'8" Started LC WOL Aug 2003

BBcode

My mind not only wanders, sometimes it leaves completely.

[3_little_words]

Billie, do you freeze your 5# bag of almond flour? Every grain product I buy goes into the freezer for at least over night to kill off anything live that might be ( and probably IS) in there, and then if room allows in the fridge, I try and keep most of them in there , but I'm OUT of room! Does almond flour go bad ( rancid due to natural oils) after time, if not chilled?

On to blanched almonds... do you purchase these or the flour or try and blanch almonds yourself ( to remove the brown coating)? The reason I ask, is I've seen recipes asking for them.

Honeyville: I've ordered oatmeal from them to store and appreciate their high standards. Great company to order from. I'm on their mailing list, but NOW will be looking into the almond flour and flaxseed to grind. I bought some pre-ground flaxseed meal this week, and had paid $5 for almond flour at Krogers. WOW! It's a kick in the pants to get started in stocking some of these things! I was tickled with the result in the ONE time I've used the almond flour . It was DELICIOUS!!
_________________
I am responsible for my own happiness.
Nothing tastes as good as being healthy feels. ( Don't ask my pets. They live for the moment. I was there once upon a time, but I didn't get the t-shirt). sandi

[crazywoman]

Sandi, I do not store my almond flour in the freezer. (partly for the same reason you said, No room) That is a very good idea tho about putting it in the freezer at least over night! I should do that. I also don't have room at all to keep it in the fridge!!! Wish I did, but I don't. Yes, it can go rancid, but I have not had any of my almond flour go bad. I have a somewhat cool basement, and an old refrigerator (no longer working or plugged in) that I use for dry storage down there. That is where I usually keep my extra "flours". I pour up some to be using out of into pint "fruit jars", which I keep up in my kitchen.
I grind my own flax, and only grind smaller amounts at one time. I've found it goes rancid sooner (and have read it looses some of it's nutrients before that). I have in the past bought my flax pre-ground, but don't usually do it. I lived temporarily out of state in a large camper trailer a few years ago, and didn't have my blender with me, so I bought it pre-ground then. Not sure about the nutrients I lost, but I did not have any go rancid during that time.

I guess I have bought blanched almonds, tho I can't remember it, and have not blanched any myself either. Guess I have never made a recipe that used them (except for the ground). Or if I did, I just didn't bother having them blanched. The first bag (or maybe more) of the ground almonds I bought from Honeyville were the "natural" (not blanched). But I've started buying the blanched. That way if I "need/want" blanched almond flour (mostly for "looks") I'll have it. I don't want 2 big bags open!

The $5 price you found for the almond flour actually wasn't too bad as prices go tho! It costs me more than that for the nuts to grind myself around here! But, yes it sure is costly to get set up especially!!

I usually try to post here on the site (Anything Room) when I get an email about a sale from Honeyville. I do occasionally miss. (Busy, away from internet, whatever) They say we can share!
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Billie
4'8" Started LC WOL Aug 2003

BBcode

My mind not only wanders, sometimes it leaves completely.

[3_little_words]

Emergency Essentials is another place I've ordered from, bhut will go to Honeyville and check the grains. The reason I mentioned the over-night freeze is due to the summer I was visitng my sis in AZ and they had been away on vacation. When they returned every single Tupperware container was alive and crawling inside, if they had grains of any kind in them. We don't like to think of it, but they ARE in there..and we simply need to freeze upon purchase and kill off anything that could hatch or lay eggs. I'm determined to get my floirs back into the fridge oir freezer because I rarely use them and the expense!! For now, they are on one of the carts ( as of this AM) after gettiung tired of seeing them on the corner of a counter. I waNT THAT SURFACE clear BUT AFTER SHOPPING FOR VEGIES, THEY TOOK BACK SEAT AND LANDED ON THE COUNTER! Our almonds run around $6 per lb bag. I just bite the bullet and buy these things. I spent as much or more on junky funkies yrs before...so these are worth it.

I appreciate the info on Honeyville. Oh! and there is a product called DAMP RID, if ayone feels they need some moisture soaked up in sotrage areas. You can also use it in cars, but closets and in rooms near the laundry room are good places to use it. It's a crystal substance that is white and it absorbs moisture frim the air. You just pour the liquid down th toilet after the crustals have absorbed all they can. Then you add new crystals toi the container. I use it in the bathrooms downstairs and in the guest room down there since the laundry room is near. It helps keep the wooden draewrs opening easily and inhibits any mold .
_________________
I am responsible for my own happiness.
Nothing tastes as good as being healthy feels. ( Don't ask my pets. They live for the moment. I was there once upon a time, but I didn't get the t-shirt). sandi

[crazywoman]

Sandi, I know all to well about the bugs!!!! And I should have enough sense to put it in the freezer for a while when I first get it in!!
Thankfully we don't usually have a lot of trouble with bugs here, but like you said, they are often in the food when we get it. (the eggs - as much as we don't like to think about it) And they can and often do hatch out later!!!
Many people don't realize this, so it is good info for them (Even if they don't like "hearing" it!)

Yes, I have ordered from Emergency Essentials too. And they are a good company to order from. But I think the prices are better at Honeyville. I ordered the Provident Pantry instant milk from EE (Be Prepared). I don't use it often, but I like it. CarolynF came up with a recipe for "milk" similar to the Carb Countdown (changed to Calorie Countdown) milk which uses a small amount of powdered milk. I like the PP instant milk for that recipe. I've ordered a few things from them, but like Honeyville better for most things.

Damp Rid is not something I need here. But I have used in when I lived down south!
_________________
Billie
4'8" Started LC WOL Aug 2003

BBcode

My mind not only wanders, sometimes it leaves completely.

[3_little_words]

Agreed! so UNappetizing to think of bugs/eggs in our foods, but my sister and family were gone for wks... enough time so there was no opening of the tupperware and time for hatching to go on. It made MY eyes pop open to see that moving flour!! I decided right then and there to freeze it all from the day we got back to Texas on... every cereal, oats, cornmeal, flaxseed, ..just ANY grain product. Actually , now that I think of it, I once bought some Carnation Instant Breakfast and upon opening the first pouch, it was a wigglin;' and I was TOTALLY grossed out! EWWWWE

It's good to remember that after these bags or boxes containing grain in any form, are in the freezer over night and you get them back out to store in the pantry,.... anyone who hasn't done it before.... just allow it to come back to room temp on the counter where air can flow and dry the packaging, because moisture may be on or in the product which will need to dry out well.

I was considering buyiing some ff milk to store but didn't know which brand to choose. There was one with a free mixing pitcher, but I didn't order. and I don't remember where I was reading the offer .....Emergency Essentials more than likely. I was so put off by the flavor of the instant milk memories from my childhood, I was hesitant to buy. Do you think ANY brand of powdered milk tastes like fresh, once muxed and chilled, Billie?

The dehydrator has been my "toy... getting vegies dried and put away in dark cool storage with oxygen absorbers.. But I have much to learn. Buying in season is the best and just yesterday, I bought 10 red org and yellow huge bell peppers for $10. Thes ere NOT organic but are beautiful at a great prtce! I'm soaking these n vinegar and H2O2 to remove pesticides, and then will freeze some, dehydrate some and eat the rest.

Guess I'll stop rattling here .... Girl Scout cookies are whispering my name and this is a distraction. LOL
_________________
I am responsible for my own happiness.
Nothing tastes as good as being healthy feels. ( Don't ask my pets. They live for the moment. I was there once upon a time, but I didn't get the t-shirt). sandi

[crazywoman]

Good advise on the making sure the "flours" etc sit out after the freezing to "dry out" before storing!

AS for the powdered milk, I don't think most of them taste very good even cold. And I can't really remember now if I drank any of the PP instant milk reconstituted normally (full strength). But I think it does taste better in Carolyn's milk than others. I'm not positive I'd really like it (or any other) just as reconstituted milk to drink. But everyone's tastes vary.
_________________
Billie
4'8" Started LC WOL Aug 2003

BBcode

My mind not only wanders, sometimes it leaves completely.

[3_little_words]

Is Carolyn's recipe for milk the one made from almonds with the addition of powdered milk? I used to keep pow milk oin hand for making bread and to buy it to store, it would be for that same purpose, but I was curious bc hubby likes cereal and if we had no other source... wondered if any of it is more palatable now. They've had my lifetime to improve it! hahaha
_________________
I am responsible for my own happiness.
Nothing tastes as good as being healthy feels. ( Don't ask my pets. They live for the moment. I was there once upon a time, but I didn't get the t-shirt). sandi

[crazywoman]

[3_little_words]

I don't like powdered milk either except for baking. Good to know all options... and thank you for posting that milk link. sandi
_________________
I am responsible for my own happiness.
Nothing tastes as good as being healthy feels. ( Don't ask my pets. They live for the moment. I was there once upon a time, but I didn't get the t-shirt). sandi