Tuesday 29 April 2008

Product of the week - Teff flour

I read about the flour in a recipe for wheat free chocolate chip cookies. I wanted to try out the recipe so ordered a packet of teff flour over the internet from Bob's Red Mill. The cookies were awesome! I thought there were too many choc chips but Andrew disagreed with me and quickly ate 4 cookies when I wasn't looking. In any case here's the scoop on teff flour (though I find it hard to believe that is is grown in Australia):

Teff is an intriguing grain, ancient, minute in size, and packed with nutrition. Teff is believed to have originated in Ethiopia between 4000 and 1000 BC. Teff seeds were discovered in a pyramid thought to date back to 3359 BC. The grain has been widely cultivated and used in the countries of Ethiopia, India and it's colonies, and Australia. Teff is grown primarily as a cereal crop in Ethiopia where it is ground into flour, fermented for three days then made into enjera, a sourdough type flat bread. It is also eaten as porridge and used as an ingredient of home-brewed alcoholic drinks. The grass is grown as forage for cattle and is also used as a component in adobe construction in Ethiopia. Because the grains of teff are so small, the bulk of the grain consists of the bran and germ. This makes teff nutrient dense as the bran and germ are the most nutritious parts of any grain. This grain has a very high calcium content, and contains high levels of phosphorous, iron, copper, aluminum, barium, and thiamin. It is considered to have an excellent amino acid composition, with lysine levels higher than wheat or barley. Teff is high in protein, carbohydrates, and fiber. It contains no gluten so it is appropriate for those with gluten intolerance.

2 comments:

Katrinajulie said...

Do you use this instead of plain flour or self raising flour?? Looks like a good product.

Australian Health food worker said...

although not typically known in Australia, it is commonly found in parts of QLD Australia and is classified as a noxious weed that is usually fed to livestock, and spared human consumption. I am unsure why this is.