I tracked this flour down at a local bakery supply wholesaler from an old TFL post. This was a 2010 post and the price quoted was $18 for the 50 lb bag. I paid $37! I was prepared for a little inflation considering it is an old post but wasn't expecting over double! I only bought the one 50 lb. bag so I am pretty sure there is a cheaper rate if you buy more (it is a wholesaler after all). Also, I have a sneaking suspicion that, as a walk in, I didn't get the same price as a regular... Still 74 cents a pound isn't bad for organic unbleached bread flour. Or is it?
I am curious to hear other baker's experience with this GM brand of flour. Not sure if this brand is regional or not - I am on the west coast in San Diego.
Anybody use this in naturally leavened sourdough? That is my intention. What has been your experience?
Best,
Mike
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Since you bought it, why don't you just try it out for a while and let us know?
I intend to! I'll post my first couple loafs soon.
Personally, I am happy with King Arthur flours, bread, all purpose, and whole wheat. I do not see any reason for buying "organic" foods, flour or any other.
Ford
Hi Ford, yes, I am a fan of KA flours too. I use their whole wheat in my sourdough and AP for my starter. I was just looking for a good quality bread flour and found this in my area. It's cheaper than what I can buy in the store and figured, if it has less pesticides, all the better. cheers!
Cost wise - you've paid $1.63 a kilo, that's £1.12 at todays conversion rate. Until recently I was paying 86p a kilo for organic white flour (all flour in the UK is unbleached) so I feel it's a little pricey, however a local mill here (well, 45 minutes drive each way) charges aout £1.50 a kilo for their organic stoneground (water mill) flour, so who knows.... (I stopped buying it as I really couldn't justify the cost and it was wholemeal only)
Can't make any suggestions about baking with it, but give it a go. I've recently changed mills for my flour and even though it's the same on paper (white, organic, 12% protein) it does handle differently to my previous stuff (it ferments quicker!), so who knows.
As for organic... I live in organic hippy central in the UK. Arguably the start of the organic movement here, so it's more or less on my doorstep, however for daily staples I do feel its worth it, especially with the current issues surrounding spraying (e.g. roundup, etc.) I do pick and choose though and I know several local farmers who are almost organic - use minimal chemical additives with animals grazed outdoors and so on.
-Gordon
Thanks for the feedback Gordon. Costco sells ConAgra flour on the CHEAP, however, it is mostly all bleached/enriched. Sourdough has really become a staple in our house now and so I figure why not pay a little more for less pesticides/additives. Plus, I've heard natural fermentation makes a lot of the vitamins more readily available and thus not as big a need for enrichment. I'll post some bread pics soon with the new flour. Cheers!