Grandma Was Onto Something

Most of the time, the word eventually does not mean the next day.  However, circumstances being what they are, an exception is warranted.  Circumstances meaning, in this particular case, that my excitement levels are so high that I want to write this post right now, and I want to begin by sharing with you that my grandma drank straight vinegar on occasion.  That's a little strange, I know, but it's important, so stay with me on this one!

In my last post, I shared that my two-year-old son has a wheat allergy.  More specifically, he is allergic to the bran of the tribe Triticeae, which includes wheat, barley, and rye.  This presented an opportunity for me to branch out and experiment with new and different grains for baking and cooking.  I wasn't looking forward to the challenge as much as I could have, so I decided to go ahead and experiment with something I was already trying to incorporate into my new cooking style.  (And no, I was not experimenting with serving my family straight vinegar...)

We really like our whole wheat bread around here.  We like whole wheat flour in our cakes, cookies, pizza dough, tortillas, and cinnamon rolls, too.  It's the only kind of flour I use, actually.  Whole wheat kernels are full of good things, like vitamin E, four different proteins (albumin, globulin, gliadin, and gluten), B vitamins in abundance, fiber, and minerals.  The problem is that within 24 hours of grinding wheat into flour, up to 40% of those nutrients have become rancid, and within 72 hours, up to 80% of them have oxidized and turned rancid.  After I learned all this, I bought a grain mill, and it is amazing to me how much fresher and better tasting whole wheat flour is when it is freshly ground!

However, whether I use freshly ground whole wheat flour or not, my son is still allergic to the bran.

Shortly after my son was born, a friend introduced me to the concept of soaking different grains and flours before using them, and after I bought my grain mill this spring, I decided it was worth a try.  We loved the results, and I began to experiment with converting our favorite recipes to use the soaking method.  I hadn't gotten very far when we discovered my son's wheat allergy.  It was an issue I hadn't seen coming, and I didn't know how to best handle it.  I want him to be able to have the best food I can offer, including whole grains, but I don't want him to suffer, either.  As I was thinking about a day a few months ago that we'd spent at my friend's house, (the same friend who introduced me to the soaking method), I realized that I had given my son some of her freshly baked bread for lunch, and I couldn't remember him having an allergic reaction after eating it!

So I experimented on the poor kid.  I took a recipe that he had reacted to only a few days before we determined what exactly he was allergic to, and I soaked (for more than 12 hours) the freshly ground wheat flour in the buttermilk it called for.

He did not have an allergic reaction!

After a little more research into the soaking method, I know exactly why:

Phosphorus in the bran of whole grains is tied up in a substance called phytic acid.  Phytic acid combines with iron, calcium, magnesium, copper and zinc in the intestinal tract, blocking their absorption.  Whole grains also contain enzyme inhibitors that can interfere with digestion.  Traditional societies usually soak or ferment their grains before eating them, processes that neutralize phytates and enzyme inhibitors and, in effect, predigest grains so that all their nutrients are more available.  (Sally Fallon, Nourishing Traditions, p. 25)

She goes on to add that soaking or fermenting grains prior to consuming them has allowed many people who are allergic to certain grains to tolerate them well.  My son can attest to that, and my grandma, (the one with the wheat allergy), was onto something after all!

My grandma would drink straight vinegar as soon as she could after accidentally or unavoidably ingesting wheat, and her allergy symptoms were either alleviated or avoided.  It worked for her, and I think it's because vinegar is one of the acid mediums that can be used in soaking different grains and legumes!  (I'm thinking that pickles might do the same thing for a two-year-old, too, should he accidentally eat something he shouldn't.)

So, while my son is still allergic to wheat bran, if I soak the whole wheat before I use it, he can eat it anyway.  He will still have to be careful what he eats away from home, but my otherwise healthy, happy boy can still have his cake... and bread... and cinnamon rolls... and pizza crust... and tortillas... because his mommy has discovered a way for him to be able to eat them, too!