Flour Used to Nourish Us. What Happened?

My Grandparents Recipe Card for Macaroni

There’s something incredibly grounding about making pasta (or macaroni) from scratch. For me, it’s a ritual, pulling out my grandparents’ pasta machine, dusting off their handwritten recipe, turning on some music and losing myself in the simple rhythm of kneading, rolling and shaping dough.

It’s a moment of connection. To food, to memory, to place.

But over the years, I’ve realized that while the tradition remains, the ingredients have changed. Specifically, the flour. The flour available to most of us today is not the same as the flour our grandparents used.

A Lost Legacy of Grains

There was a time when flour was truly nourishing, rich in nutrients, flavor, and diversity. It was made from heirloom grains like einkorn, emmer and spelt, with each regional strain bringing its own unique character to the table. Thousands of wheat varieties once thrived across different climates and cultures, contributing to stronger soil, vibrant ecosystems, and more nutritious food. This diversity wasn’t just good for our health, it was good for the planet.

Learning new techniques!

From Nourishment to Neutral

So, what happened? With the rise of industrial agriculture, wheat began to be bred for yield, uniformity and speed, not for flavor or nutrition. Today’s modern wheat is designed to break cleanly in high speed roller mills which strip away the bran and germ, the parts of the grain that carry most of the nutrients and fiber. What’s left is a shelf-stable, ultra processed flour that’s consistent and cheap, but nutritionally “dead.”

To make matters worse, conventional wheat is often sprayed with glyphosate, a chemical herbicide used just before harvest to dry the crop quickly and uniformly. Glyphosate is classified as a “probable human carcinogen” by the World Health Organization and has been linked to endocrine disruption, gut imbalance and chronic inflammation. And because it’s absorbed into the plant, it doesn’t just rinse off, it can end up in the flour we eat every day.

We’ve traded soil health, crop diversity and nutrient density for convenience and scalability. In doing so, we’ve lost more than just flavor, we’ve lost integrity in one of our most foundational ingredients.

What I Choose Instead

Let me be clear, I’m not anti wheat. Bread is my love language. Pasta is my happy place. I simply believe that food should be real, grown and processed in ways that honor both our bodies and the earth.

So when I reach for flour, I look for:

• Ancient grains like einkorn, spelt, and emmer

• Stone milled flours that retain the whole grain’s nutrients

• Glyphosate free, organic certifications

• Small mills and regenerative farmers committed to soil health
  

Some of my go-to brands:

• One Degree Organic Sprouted Spelt

• Jovial Einkorn All Purpose Flour

• Maine Grains

• Farmer Ground Flour

  
  

These are the flours I trust in my kitchen, for pasta, muffins, my pie crusts (which are my pride and joy) and beyond.

Flour Should Still Nourish

Flour doesn’t have to be filler. It can be vibrant, nutrient-dense, and full of life, just like it used to be. By choosing better sources, we’re not only nourishing ourselves, we’re supporting a food system that values quality over convenience.

🌾 Let’s revive our grains and bring integrity back to the foods we love.

Be well,

Catherine xo

Sources:

1. Real Organic Project

2. Third Plate by Dan Barber 

3. Moms across America

4. World Health Organization (WHO)