May 30, 2020 - 8:08pm
Senatore Cappelli flour in the USA?
Hello,
I have been looking for Sen. Cappelli durum flour in the USA, but all websites I have found selling it only ship EU-wide.
Does anybody know who distributes Sen. Cappelli flour from reputable sources in the USA? The only one I have found is Full Belly Farms in California, who actually produce it, but they don't seem to have a consistent supply.
I wouldn't mind buying bulk from Italy if shipping is not outrageous.
Any hints would be highly appreciated.
Thanks.
Stefano
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I don't have any sources, but I just read about this flour in Living Bread! Is that how you heard of it? I was curious myself after reading that.
Check your local Indian (from India, not Native American Indian) and Middle Eastern grocery stores for durum flour. Real durum _flour_, not just durum semolina (gritty). It comes in 2 or 3 forms, refined/branless/germless ("Desi Style" is the name of Sher Brar Mills item). Temple brand makes a "reconstituted" durum with some bran added back in, along with fortifications (vitamins) added. And there is "Fiber Wala" durum flour from Sher Brar Mills, which has more bran than "Desi Style", but I don't know if it is 100% whole grain.
Sher Brar Mills is located in Canada, but their products are commonly found in Indian grocery stores in the US.
www.sherbrarmills.com
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Central Milling in Utah is likely out, but you can check here: www.centralmiliing.com/store
In normal times CM carries refined (branless/germless) and whole grain durum.
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General Mills distributors also likely still have durum in the commercial pipeline, but you'll have to buy a 50 pound bag, and go pick it up in person.
Go here: https://www.generalmillscf.com/products/category/flour/durum-and-semolina/extra-fancy-durum-patent-flour-enriched-50lb
and enter your zip code in the form on the right side, click the button, and you'll get a list of nearest distributors. Note carefully the 8 digit part number (actually, just 5 digits + '000') in order to make it easier on them when you call. Ask if they do "counter sales" to the public. You may have to schedule a specific pick-up time so they can bring it up from the warehouse for you.
General Mills durum flour is refined, as in branless and germless.
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This mill/farm has durum in normal times, and ships to consumers: https://www.montanaflour.com/store/flour/
It looks like they are out at the moment.
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If you are willing to deviate just slightly from real durum, please know that Kamut (Khorasan wheat) is "close" to durum. Not exactly the same, but close. Some places still have Kamut or Khorasan flour. It comes in refined/branless/germless, and whole grain variations.
Note: Kamut is a patented and licensed variation/variety/strain of Khorasan wheat. All Kamut is Khorasan, but not all Khorasan is Kamut.
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Note: "refined/branless/germless" could also be described as flour made from only the endosperm of the wheat kernal. In the US, this is also informally called "white flour", even though in the case of durum and Kamut/Khorasan, the color of the endosperm, and the flour made from just endosperm, is yellow.
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Good luck.
My typical sources these past years for durum/semola rimacinata had been Lorenzo's Italian Market for ~ 20lbs. per order, and an Italian bakery nearby. Last year Lorenzo's closed shop after 50 years, and these days I don't want to bug the bakery to order a 20K bag of semola rimcinata just for me, as they have their hands full maintaining life right now.
I stopped by a relatively new full sized supermarket not far from here that specializes in international fare as well as a full stock of typical American products. And I found this bag. After three full days of being quarantined in a corner, as anything coming into our apartment from the outside is subjected to these days, I opened the bag anticipating that it was what I expected. And it was. It is missing the absolute baby powder fine-ness of semola rimacinata, but pretty close, and nothing like what comes out of a bag of semolina #1.
And the price!. I felt like I was getting away with a major coup by paying a mere US$1 per pound before. This 20 lb. bag cost US$13.50. Of course the proof will be in the bake, so I'll have to wait until that first bake to feel that this is the true durum I sought. Golden Temple also makes a Whole Wheat Durum flour as well, but this in not it.
Thank you Dave! alan
And thanks for the feedback. Man, those Indian/International groceries are virtual gold mines for bakers and cooks. All sorts of flour, including non-gluten flours, and cheap spices galore.
I've also seen the Golden Temple brand at Middle Eastern (Arabic speaking) stores.
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Because India and the Middle East use durum for flatbreads, I tried some for pizza dough (the Fiber Wala variety from Sher Brar) and I thought it turned out well. I did not make it Napoletana thin, nor deep dish -- just kind of middle of the road, risen a little, with somewhat of a pita-like crumb. Anyway, I liked it.
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I think what the "reconstituted" or "blend" durum from Golden Temple is missing is the germ. If I remember correctly, the Golden Temple bag that I last looked at, had the usual B vitamins added back in. That's only done to restore something that is taken out. So, it's not whole grain, as far as I can tell. But if it has most of the bran added back, it's probably close enough.
This will be noticeably bran-ier than the branless semolina and semolina rimacinata.
I guess we have large East Indian and Middle Eastern communities here in Toronto because the Golden Temple brand of flour is available at most large grocery stores.
Benny
from: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistani_Canadian
"Toronto has the largest Pakistani-Canadian community in the country, with a majority living in the localities of Rexdale, East York particularly in Thorncliffe Park and also its western suburbs, Mississauga and Milton, Ontario. The commercial centre of Toronto's Pakistani community can be found on Gerrard Street East in East York. A large Pakistani population resides in this area, and is home to many Pakistani restaurants and stores. Popular days to visit the street are during Eid and Yom-e-Istiqlal. Toronto's Pakistani community is quite diverse with people from Punjabi, Muhajirs, Kashmiri, Pashtun, Memon, Baloch and Sindhi backgrounds. A small proportion also reside in the Greater Toronto Area, including Milton, Brampton, Richmond Hill, Pickering and Markham."
Quite satisfied with this durum. A Canadian wheat product, It seemed just a tad thirstier than my regular Italian durum. While French Folding, I just wet my hands twice to incorporate a little more moisture into the dough. And that's one of the things I love about mixing by hand as well as the subsequent letter folds. The dough is "talking" to me and I get to feel it as it progresses from a pile of unkempt goop to fully mixed dough and beyond.
While trying to shoehorn this into few of my empty buckets, I discovered that one of them was already filled with the old durum. So now in addition to this 20 lb. haul, I already had on board about 10 lbs. more. A little more riches doesn't hurt!
This is my first bake of the Hamelman Golden Durum Sesame Bread using the Atta Durum Flour I just bought. A formula that I latched onto years ago.
Looks great!
How did the bran affect the taste and crumb?
and regular semola rimacinata. As noted, the grain is just slightly less powdery and in the picture of the bag there is a sample of the flours on the blue cover, the color gradation didn't come through in the photo. Left is semola rimacinata and right is atta, which is just a shade darker, likely due to the bran. I'd mentioned that the flour seemed just a hair thirstier as well, with mere grams of water added on my hands during French Folding to correct the feel of the dough. Overall, that dough is 67% hydration plus the few extra grams during FFs..
I've worked with the European tritordeum flour , a hybrid (not a blend) of wild barley and durum wheats, that is somewhat close in character to a whole wheat, which exhibited a greater distinction than this atta does.
Thanks, alan
Heartland Mill (western Kansas) has some excellent products, both whole berries and freshly ground, including durum and semolina. They are working on their online platform for ordering right now, meaning you have to call them directly. Shipping is always going to be a killer when ordering flour or berries, but their product prices are very competitive given most if not all are organic. They'll even work with you to figure out the best value for money as far as shipping options. I've been getting my orders in about 3-4 days, couldn't be happier with the results of my bakes as far as texture and flavor, and their customer service can't be beat.
http://www.heartlandmill.com/product.html