Flour Treatise Part 4
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Addendum to The Flour Treatise and The Flour Test There have been many advances in the flour industry relative to artisan bread baking since The Flour Treatise was first written. The Introduction to The Flour Treatise includes the following: “Many reading this treatise may find it disheartening that the flour quality indicators available to European are not readily available here. One company does provide information. It is Cooks Natural Products .” We are pleased to say that this is no longer the case. Information such as flour specifications and baking test results are currently available to a much wider audience, via flour purveyor websites and knowledgeable technical and sales personnel. The Artisan was informed that General Mills Gold Medal flour was about to launch a new consumer product, Harvest King flour. We contacted General Mills and they graciously agreed to send us flour prior to its availability to the consumer. We have been using this flour to make many of the recipes posted on The Artisan (including the recipe used for The Flour Test), as well as recipes from our favorite bread making books; Artisan Baking Across America, and Bread, A Baker’s Book of Techniques and Recipes. The Conclusion to The Flour Treatise states, “Our preferred flour is an unbleached all-purpose flour, ranging in protein content from 9.8 - 11%. This unbleached, all-purpose flour is a blend of hard red winter wheat flour and soft winter wheat flour. This flour has proven to be the most dependable relative to performance characteristics and consistency. It is our flour of choice when making Italian style bread.” As a result of our working with Harvest King flour, it has become our preferred flour when making bread. For your convenience we have included a copy of a news release posted on the General Mills website: Harvest King Flour Fuels a Baking Renaissance Flour formulated for artisan baking now available to home bakers: Dateline - 05/23/2006 MINNEAPOLIS — An artisan bread renaissance is emerging with an emphasis on quality ingredients, proper fermentation, hand shaping and craftsmanship. And now, artisan breads aren't achievable just by professional bakers. They can be created at home as Gold Medal brings Harvest King flour, specially developed for the artisan bread industry, to consumers in September 2006. "With Harvest King, we created domestic flour that is perfectly suited to the discerning style and methods of artisan baking," said Tim Bennett, Gold Medal marketing manager. `We are excited to offer Harvest King to the growing number of home bakers who want to participate in this rich tradition and create perfect, beautiful loaves of bread every time they bake."
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Examination of Flour as ingredient
Transcript of Flour Treatise Part 4
Addendum to The Flour Treatise and The Flour Test
There have been many advances in the flour industry relative to artisan bread baking since The Flour Treatise was first written. The Introduction to The Flour Treatise includes the
following: “Many reading this treatise may find it disheartening that the flour quality indicators available to European are not readily available here. One company does provide information.
It is Cooks Natural Products.” We are pleased to say that this is no longer the case. Information such as flour specifications and baking test results are currently available to a much wider audience, via flour purveyor websites and knowledgeable technical and sales
personnel.
The Artisan was informed that General Mills Gold Medal flour was about to launch a new consumer product, Harvest King flour. We contacted General Mills and they graciously
agreed to send us flour prior to its availability to the consumer. We have been using this flour to make many of the recipes posted on The Artisan (including the recipe used for The Flour
Test), as well as recipes from our favorite bread making books; Artisan Baking Across America, and Bread, A Baker’s Book of Techniques and Recipes. The Conclusion to The Flour Treatise states, “Our preferred flour is an unbleached all-purpose flour, ranging in protein content from 9.8 - 11%. This unbleached, all-purpose flour is a blend of hard red
winter wheat flour and soft winter wheat flour. This flour has proven to be the most dependable relative to performance characteristics and consistency. It is our flour of choice when making Italian style bread.” As a result of our working with Harvest King flour, it has
become our preferred flour when making bread.
For your convenience we have included a copy of a news release posted on the General Mills website:
Harvest King Flour Fuels a Baking Renaissance
Flour formulated for artisan baking now available to home bakers: Dateline - 05/23/2006
MINNEAPOLIS — An artisan bread renaissance is emerging with an emphasis on quality ingredients, proper fermentation, hand shaping and craftsmanship. And now, artisan breads aren't achievable just by professional bakers. They can be created at home as Gold Medal brings Harvest King flour, specially developed for the artisan bread industry, to consumers in September 2006.
"With Harvest King, we created domestic flour that is perfectly suited to the discerning style and methods of artisan baking," said Tim Bennett, Gold Medal marketing manager. `We are excited to offer Harvest King to the growing number of home bakers who want to participate in this rich tradition and create perfect, beautiful loaves of bread every time they bake."
Harvest King will now be available to home bakers. Previously available only to professional artisan bakers, Harvest King is specially formulated to produce wholesome, full-flavored artisan breads. Harvest King flour is milled from 100 percent select hard winter wheat. In addition to imparting a golden crust, winter wheat provides the perfect balance of strength and tolerance required for artisan
baking's long, slow fermentation process. Harvest King wheat is specially milled to the ideal ash and protein level, which provides optimum baking characteristics and delivers the desired crumb structure and crust texture. And Harvest King flour is unbleached and unbromated, making it ideal for the unique techniques that are the key to artisan baking.
Preserving a Tradition
Gold Medal set out to create a flour that would enable American bakers to create European style artisan breads with a domestic flour. To achieve this, the Gold Medal team visited the National Baking Center to better understand the process of artisan baking and the needs of artisan bakers. Because artisan breads are hand-formed and slow-fermented, they require a flour with unique characteristics and specifications. After learning from master artisan bakers and conducting numerous tests, Gold Medal found that its Harvest King flour, available to professional bakers on the West Coast for many years, offered the perfect characteristics for artisan baking.
As a result, Harvest King flour became Gold Medal's professional artisan baking brand. After decades of use by professional bakers, Harvest King flour will now become part of the home baker's pantry, delivering the consistency of professional baking in every loaf.
About Gold Medal
Gold Medal is "America's No. 1 Flour." Founded in 1881, it was the first product of General Mills, delivering unsurpassed consistency and quality for generations. The tradition continues today in 2006 with more than a dozen Gold Medal products, formulated specifically for perfect results in every type of baking.
Gold Medal® and Harvest King® are registered trademarks of General Mills, Inc.
Gold Medal Harvest King will replace Gold Medal Better for Bread as stores across the country order flour to replenish their inventory. Please let us know whether or not you agree that Harvest King is a welcome addition to the pantry of artisan bread bakers. Our special thanks to General Mills, to those who helped
