According to Steve Talmages "basics" book, processed bleached flour has no nutritonal value except for what was added. Is this true? And if so, should I bother storing pasta then? Most pasta seems to be made from durham wheat and semoina. What the heck is semolina? Is it also processed beyond use?

Where is a tofu eating tree hugger when you need one?

Watch six and keep your...

-- eyes_open (best@wishes.net), July 23, 1999

Answers

Semolina is a coarse pale yellow flour used in traditional pasta dough which is made from milling the whole kernel of durum wheat. The flour is high in fiber and protein and because it cooks up firm and absorbs less water, it gives pasta and pizza their chewy characteristic.

-- For (your@info.com), July 23, 1999.

:-). (James Talmage Stevens?) He does seem to be pretty authoritative on these types of subjects. Loved the example in the _making the best of basics_ book about the person who uses processed flour as an organic pest control. Bugs actually go out of there way to avoid it.

This I view as good news / bad news. bad news - no nutritional value. Good news - maybe I don't have to worry about infestation in my flour.

Pretty much every level of processing removes some of the nutrient value. And just sitting around in storage results in some % of nutrient value decrease.

I am not giving advice here, just a personal opinion and a little humor. I have lived to be this age (let's say middle 30's) not without problems, but not with the best nutrition either. Probably would have had few problems if I'd paid attention to good nutrition. I subsist on pasta and rice quite a bit already. (that's minute rice to you!) Never thought that might be an advantage. The bottom line for me is that if I'm hungry, my stomach will much prefer to have some pasta or flour byproduct in it, than nothing at all. Probably a fatal flaw in there...

Not sure about the semolina.

-- winter wondering (winterwondering@yahoo.com), July 23, 1999.

Eyes open--you can boost the protein content of flour fairly simply, I did this method for years when I baked my own bread. Also good to use for pancakes, muffins, cookies, etc. I also use this in cooked cereals like oatmeal.The 'formula' was developed at Cornell, you can find it in Joy of Cooking and other cookbooks. When you measure flour for your recipe, in the bottom of each cup put 1 Tbsp soy four (I have always used soy grits, you can use a little less. Soy grits are not always easy to find but they are a great quick way to throw extra nutrition into things w/o affecting taste), 1 Tbsp dry milk solids (non-fat instant OK, and there is such a thing as whole milk powder, again not so easy to find but much better taste altho harder to mix if drinking 'straight') and 1 tsp wheat germ.

Hope this helps

-- Deb (deb@needhelp.com), July 23, 1999.

Define "nutritional value". Some things, like prcessed flour or sugar, don't have many vitamins, minerals etc. but they do have carbohydrates - which means they provide ENERGY. Carbohydrates, fats, and proteins provide calories. Vitamins, minerals etc. are important, but if you don't get enough calories you starve.

-- biker (y2kbiker@worldnet.att.net), July 23, 1999.

Extra protein? You can get a protein supplement without soy or lactose for those allergic to both. The protein comes totally from peas and other veggies. Look in the Vitamin Shoppe. THey have an online catalog, too.

-- Mara Wayne (MaraWAyne@aol.com), July 24, 1999.

Quite true, white flour has all the goodness processed out of it. It's bleached too. Pilsbury told me their regular flour has a shelf-life of about 18 mos, their wholewheat about 9 mos. We're stocking up on regular flour but also have several huge jars of multi-vitamins. You can always add more goodness with chopped nuts and any vegetables you have left over. (But adjust the water added for watery veg like zucchini.)

Sam's sells canned bread machine mixes with the yeast already mixed in. With a little ingenuity, these long-lasting mixes could also be used in a dutch oven over a flame.

-- Old Git (anon@spamproblems.com), July 25, 1999.

Old Git

I saw the bread machine mixes at Sam's yesterday. Do you know how to bake these in a dutch oven? Since I have never baked bread before I will need a few hints. Any info will be appreciated. Thanks

-- max (xam01@aol.com), July 26, 1999.