Acorn Flour's final stage...

We knew that we would have to sift the acorn flour before we made bread. So that is where we started.

I immediately yielded the consistency I was after when I thought of sifting the flour.

SP took over and sifted fast and furiously...

until we knew just how much we would have to regrind...


and have made one loaf so far. I will be able to make 2 or three more. See my other blog for the recipe!
:)

After 24 Tally whacks ....

... we have flour!!!!

Now, since I spent the morning in the ER learning how children's scalps are better stapled than stitched, and then witnessed my 10 year old close a well deserved winning hockey game on the bottom of a pig pile(he's the goalie), I know I am smart enough to NOT start baking acorn bread this evening. So in the mean time, please enjoy this picture and celebrate my own personal victory!

$11.99 and a Tally-whacker

Dee this one's for you!


I caved in and went to my local Reny's and bought a new coffee grinder.

Mind you it does come with some disturbing directions:
Shall I paraphrase? "Do not attempt to defeat the cover interlock mechanism". Seriously.

So on my first grind I filled the little bigger with an entire ladle-full of the processed acorns.
But it was a bit too full, so I revised my plan.


And it ground much better.

Thus far, the process of grinding acorns to flour is occurring at a MUCH more tolerable decibel level. Now, the painstaking part is how many acorn fragments are actually being ground at one time. One grinder-full is barely making a dent in the bowl of acorns so this is a multi-batch step in the process. .

So, SP ran to the basement and brought his nifty yet archaic tally counter upstairs which I promptly called a Tally whacker and laughed so hard I took my final picture and came here to the computer to document this process. At 20 grinds the grinder became officially too hot to work anymore therefore we will reassess when it cools sufficiently. I wanted to let you all know that I am officially sustainably insane.

Grinding acorns to flour.

Just when I thought that shelling acorns would be the hardest part, I have now attempted to grind them into flour. Where, when and why did I think that this last and final step would be the easiest? First of all, the cacophony caused by the food processor demands ear plugs - or maybe that fancy pair of ear mufflers I wear while tilling the garden. Secondarily, my food processor has thrice now rejected it's blade. Yes, seriously, look closely at the photo above, my blade has popped off and over to the side ceasing to continue it's merry go round of abuse.

So I am stuck in the hard spot of not wanting to sully my only coffee grinder in the house, nor do I want my acorn flour to taste like coffee. I am also in one of my stubborn frugal moods where I can not fathom owning two coffee grinders at once nor do I want to buy a brand new one for this purpose. I have always wanted a coffee grinder for fresh herbs and the such, but have thought about getting a Magic Bullet instead since it seems so versatile for making salsas and the like.

So here I am stuck between a stubborn acorn and a stubborn wallet - two equally hard places to be right now! Bah hum bug!

Acorn processing

I think this post is long overdue to put up. I have put this step far behind me in my process of making acorns into flour. My problem is that I can't seem to follow through on the final step, but I will write more on that later! The acorns looked kind of cute in their bowl. They look all innocent and such as if shelling them wasn't such a tedious thing to do.


But now we had to determine how to increase the surface area so that they could boil and boil and boil, and remove as much tannic acid as possible. SP came up with a brilliant idea. I just can't figure out what the tool is called.

But honestly, this chopping worked much more efficiently when done on a cookie sheet. So, here is the picture of the shelled acorns that have been boiled, rinsed, and chopped; going into the 200 degree oven to roast.

See what happened was that I actually put them all in at once, on three different sheets, and that proved to give off far too much moisture at once and therefore not really work at all. I love learning by trial and error. I also know that the silly little book I am following lacks a lot of wordage that I know feel needs to be put into the book. I think starting with one cup of acorns would probably be the best direction I would add.

So now, I am left with a large bowl of very browned acorn bits. It is desperately screaming to be ground. I am trying to stifle it with a plate and a bowl, but I can still hear them calling me to finish what I started. I really wanted acorn bread for Thanksgiving, but you can see that that didn't happen! :)

Making Flour out of Acorns

At Jean Craighead George's encouragement, I am attempting to make flour out of acorns. On Thursday, my two year old and I gathered acorns that had fallen from a majestic oak at my daughter's preschool. We filled two lunch sized paper bags, brought them home, poured them into my large colander and gave them a thorough rinsing. My little guy was so proud of his accomplishments and I was proud of my resolve to live more sustainably and try new things to provide for my family. I had a long stare down with them on the kitchen counter realizing what work laid ahead for me.




Well the acorns and I continued our stand off until SP stepped in and took control of the situation. Thanks to his ingenuity, kitchen scissors work best to cut the tough acorn shells open and into quarters.

Then to pick the inner meat out of the remaining shell is reminiscent of those pesky filberts at Christmas time. Not the easiest process, but after trial and error, a corn cob holder seemed to be the perfect tool.

SP tells me there is such a thing as a nut pick, but I don't have one. So when using the corn cob pick, the best location to place it is between the shell and the meat. The movement is to try and lift the meat out of the shell. If you can stab the meat with the pick and lift it out easily, you are one lucky acorn picker. Please excuse the left over Halloween nail polish on my thumbs.

At the end of our Friday night efforts, this is how far we got on the colander of acorns. I pledge to get through these all of these acorns!


Well we got a fresh start on the process this morning, and even got the kids to help! They loved it! Our daughter is so proud that these acorns came from her preschool.


If any one wants to come over and help pick, you are more than welcome and we can use some help! It's a fantastic fine motor activity to boot! I'm taking a break from the process right now because we need SP to cut up the rest of the colander! Back to work!

My new favorite book...

We took this out from the library and I am in love.

I think my newest domestic project will begin with gathering acorns this week. I have never thought about making flour from acorns, but a local flour company has definitely been on my mind. I need to get in touch with a friend I saw at the Common Ground. She told me there was a flour company in Maine. All I can find is Buckwheat.

http://www.amazon.com/Acorn-Pancakes-Dandelion-Salad-Recipes/dp/0060215496

The Butcherman and my search for Flour

Today was brilliant. Well, on second thought it was not entirely brilliant because I did not bring the rain jackets even though I gave them a second glance this morning. The remainder of my morning, even though occasionally soaked, was well spent!

My plan was to deposit checks at the bank and then investigate local meat at the natural food store on my way home. But as I approached the back, a fast flying clue phone hit me in the back of the head. I found my Butcherman - he'd moved to the next town and had not dissappeared after all! He had all my answers about finding local meats. He gave me his card as I left.

I know he can hook me up with what I want, even if grass fed beef is a little trickier. If we eat beef it should be grass fed for my dear husbands poor cholesterol counts. Now it just comes down to costs. I love having a large freezer in the basement and have always wanted to fill it with the remains of a cow. That's a pretty shocking thing coming a 30 something ex-vegetarian of 15 years. I digress...

My spreadsheet is growing as I catalog and research local sources. One I stumbled upon was a New England Flour company, King Arthur Flour located in Vermont. As I perused the website, plotting a day trip over to enjoy lunch from their restaurant, I found their philosophy of flour. I quote their website: (http://www.kingarthurflour.com/flour/philosophy.html)
In addition to our ongoing commitment to providing consumers with all-natural, organic, and whole-grain products, we have become a member of The Whole Grains Council

http://www.wholegrainscouncil.org/

As usual I am also left with questions.

If this flour is milled in Vermont, where does the wheat come from?

With anything that has been produced, manufactured, even distributed - how do I follow it back to it's source. How far do I need to go?

Will companies actually answer this question for me?