Recipes
The Roan Mills test kitchen is the heart of our operation. We research and develop simple ways to cook with whole grains and are inspired by the old ways that have sustained cultures around the world for centuries. Here are a few of our recipes to get you started with whole grain cookery.
Breads
Relying on the simple synergy of flour water and salt, our freshly milled whole grain flour is mixed with filtered water, raised with a sourdough starter and allowed to ferment for 24 hours before baking. After baking the bread continues to develop flavor for several days, achieving the complete flavor profile on the third day after baking. No recipes needed here but it’s worth knowing that Roan Mills bread is versatile.
We grow the wheat, we mill the flour, we bake the bread and after all that work we never want to see our Roan Mills bread get tossed into the trash because it didn’t get eaten.
Did your loaf dry out before you got through it? Try any of these simple methods to revive it.
Culinary Grains and Wheat Berries
Milled Goods
Roan Mills polenta is stone milled from California grown yellow dent corn. This versatile staple can be served as a savory or a sweet preparation and we include an example of each for you to try. Polenta can be served soft or poured into a sheet pan and allowed to firm up. Once firmed, sliced polenta makes a wonderful canapé topped with savory or sweet spreads. Try goat cheese and wild arugula or strawberries and mascarpone for a quick fix with drinks.
Roan Mills 60/40 porridge is milled on our stone mill into a coarse, cracked cereal from 60% Glenn wheat berries and 40% whole rye berries. This versatile staple can be served as a savory or a sweet preparation and we include an example of each for you to try.
Our Roan Mills organic emmer is an ancient wheat with 18% protein content, a deep mahogany brown color and a complex flavor. It can be cooked whole and used as one might use rice. Emmer can be flaked like oatmeal for a breakfast cereal or cracked in the coarse setting of our stone mill for porridge. This versatile wheat has been sustaining people forever.
Flatbreads
These are the oldest versions of bread, made from the various grains and legumes that define the foodways of a particular civilization. Flatbreads are found in one form or another in every corner of the world. They are a frugal and convenient answer to satisfying hunger. A basic food that stands in for an eating utensil, wraps around a meal to make it portable and can be enhanced endlessly with herbs, fats, levain and miscellaneous leftovers. At Roan Mills we pop up occasionally with a flatbread stand at our local farmer's market. We offer our stone ground, Sonora wheat dough, rolled out into a thin flatbread, piping hot off the griddle, with a choice of sweet or savory toppings to a throng of eager customers. It always looks like the United Nations at our stand, with folks from everywhere commenting, “these are like the breads from my country”. These simple flavors pleased people and reminded them of home. We offer our basic “pop up” recipe and a few other versions to inspire further kitchen adventures.