Every time you eat, it’s an opportunity to nourish your body. We live in a society that’s been built on convenience foods, and our health has suffered as a consequence. Taking an intentional approach to your diet is a vital part of your health journey. In the words of Birke Baehr, “Pay the farmer or pay the hospital.”
While there is no one-size-fits-all approach to diet and lifestyle, for the majority of us, our health can improve dramatically if we switch to a clean-eating approach—choosing real, whole, organic foods whenever possible, eating a diet consisting of mostly vegetables, fruits, and whole grains, and eliminating most processed foods.
One of the most widely-consumed processed foods is flour (and the boxes and packages of processed junk foods created with it). Sadly, this once nutritious food isn’t the same grain our grandmothers baked with. According to the Broadbalk Wheat Experiment, wheat’s nutrient content started to decline from 1960, when modern wheat was created. Conventional white flour can also be bleached and include additives such as Azodicarbonamide and Potassium Bromate. These additives, among others in many conventional flours, are linked to health problems including hormone disruption.
Why Einkorn
Einkorn grain has grown alongside human civilization since ancient times. Thousands of years before supermarkets began selling highly processed flour, bread made from einkorn grain nourished and satisfied without ill effects.
Einkorn flour is derived from an ancient variety of wheat that has never been hybridized, contains lower gluten, and has higher levels of protein, potassium, vitamin B6, and vitamin A. The name Einkorn means "one grain" in German as the plant has a single grain attached to its stem. Other modern varieties of wheat have groups of four grains. Einkorn flour is prized for its compatibility with the human body. While einkorn does contain gluten, einkorn wheat has never been hybridized or changed genetically meaning it has retained its primitive genetic code containing only 14 chromosomes—a huge difference from the 42 chromosomes in modern hybridized wheat—and gluten structure.* Einkorn wheat is also more abundant in vitamins and minerals than modern whole wheat, making it a must-have for your healthy kitchen. The uses for einkorn in cooking and baking are endless. It’s pleasing, sweet flavor makes it an easy substitute in recipes that call for modern, highly processed flours.
Einkorn flour subs easily for most recipes calling for white or all purpose flour—usually in the same measurements called for, no need to adjust! Since einkorn contains less gluten, some breads and doughs may need a bit more flour or more kneading for a better rise. In baked goods, add an extra teaspoon of baking soda for a better rise. All of our cookie and cake recipes have easily converted without any changes and no one has ever noticed that we swapped out the processed white flour for golden, buttery einkorn.
Why Young Living
Young Living’s einkorn is grown by artisan farmers and millers in small batches using traditional methods, making Young Living’s einkorn products perfect for those who support traditional farming practices and non-GMO crops. Young Living’s einkorn products are also free from artificial flavors, colors, and preservatives, just as they came from the earth.
Making Your Own Bread
If you thought that the “wheat” bread you’re purchasing from the grocery store is a whole food, you may be in for a surprise—we sure were! Have you ever read the list of ingredients on your sandwich bread? Not only is it typically made with a processed white flour—yes, even your “whole wheat” varieties, but it’s also full of preservatives and fillers. If you were to make bread at home, what ingredients would you need? Most bread recipes only require a few, simple ingredients—flour, water, yeast, and salt. If the thought of kneading and waiting for homemade bread seems like too much, you have to try this recipe for easy homemade No-Knead Einkorn Sandwich Bread! In less than 5 minutes you can have a loaf of bread rising and the kitchen will still be clean! A few minutes later you’ll be ready to bake the perfect sandwich loaf without the fillers and preservatives.
Easy, No-Knead Einkorn Sandwich Bread
INGREDIENTS
3 cups einkorn flour (we prefer Young Living’s, but if it’s out of stock we also love Jovial Brand)
1 packet dry, active yeast (2 1/4 teaspoons)
1 Tablespoon organic sucanant
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups warm water
DIRECTIONS
Combine flour, yeast, sugar, and salt in a large bowl or in the bowl of an electric mixer with a bread hook attached. Heat water to 100°-115°F (no hotter or it will kill the yeast). Slowly mix water into flour mixture and mix for 3-5 minutes. Dough should be sticky and pull away from sides of bowl. Scrape down sides, cover, and let rise in a warm area for 25 minutes up to 1 hour. Place dough into a buttered bread pan, cover, and allow to rise in a warm area for another 25-30 minutes. Bake, uncovered, for 35-40 minutes at 375° F until golden brown. Allow to cool in pan. Turn onto cutting board and slice from the bottom side to avoid crushing the loaf.
*Although people with celiac should avoid einkorn (there is no accurate studies on celiac patients tolerance), studies show einkorn is well tolerated by a many people with gluten sensitivities.
