Re: Such small bags of flour

[Guest guest]

Where are you located? Different parts of the country seem to have

very different types of flour available, and very different price points.

Here in Northern California, I shop at Asian, Mexican and Indian

markets, and pay far less in those stores than I do in health food

stores. The downside is I can't verify with the producers how they

clean their lines, but then again we've never had any reactions to the

flours I buy there.

If you order direct from Bob's Red Mill online, you can order larger

quantities of flour. Others may be able to suggest other low price

sources.

Maureen

p.s. think in terms of naturally GF meals for large groups - potatoes,

rice, sweet potatoes, etc. are all cheaper than G specially products

>

> I am fairly new to this, only been on this diet for a couple weeks. We

> replaced everything in the home to GF now. It makes it easy that my SO

> wants to switch to a GF diet as well. He has some kind of

intestinal issue

> and the docs haven't figured out what, but he is already feeling

better on

> the diet so we figure it cant hurt for him to stay on it. I love

cooking

> and baking so I read up on everything I can do to make this diet as

tasty as

> possible, I figure since this is a permanent thing I should try hard

to find

> foods to make this enjoyable. I have made breads, pastas and brownies

> recently, everything was delicious, I couldn't tell most things were GF.

> Here is my dilemma though, this is an expensive diet! I purchase

the bean

> flours, the sorghums, xanthan gum etc. all of the wonderful bean

flours and

> such to make tasty breads. I used to make bread weekly, and fresh pasta

> noodles, now we are trying to find ways to not each so much bread and

> pastas. I can't afford those tiny bags of flour. I purchase 1.6

pounds of

> (insert flour name here) for three to nine dollars at my local

health food

> store, and my local regular grocery store. It adds up quickly. I

search

> the internet and found authentic foods to have bags that are 3

pounds, but

> it is still expensive. Does anyone have a good place to order

larger bags

> of flour? I am baking for me and my SO however my father who was

recently

> diagnosed with Celiac's as well is a terrible cook, so I am trying

to make

> extra for him and his wife. We also have dinners here for the whole

family

> often (6-10 people) and we make only GF dinners for everyone. At

any rate

> this is expensive, and with the medical bills we are paying off to

discover

> this was the problem I am getting quite tight on money! Any advise

on where

> larger bags for reasonable prices are would be appreciated. I

understand I

> will always end up paying more than a regular 20 pound bag of bread

flour

> (used to pay $5 for that) but anything slightly cheaper than what I am

> paying now would be wonderful!

>

>

>

> Thank you )

>

>

>

> JudyLynn

>

>

>

> http://www.tomatothyme.com

>

[Guest guest]

The cheapest I found was at Ener-g foods, which you can buy online or

if you live in Seattle/ have friends there can pick up at their

warehouse and skip the shipping fee. http://www.ener-g.com

You can buy their 5 lb packages (white rice=$7)(tapioca starch $9.29)

(brown rice $8.19)(potato starch $10.39)

The only problem is shipping so you may want to buy in serious bulk.

I am going to be brutally honest and say their breads make me want to

barf (sorry to anyone who likes them), and are only palatable

toasted. But you can always try them... or try their pastas, which

are not tooooo bad. (white rice is pretty plain but ok in a mac 'n

cheese type recipe). Their cookies are full of weird ingredients, and

don't get me started on the sweets like cinnamon rolls. Do

Kinnikinick instead for prepared packages. But, I'm sure your

homemade things rock! Let us know if you come up with any brilliant

recipes.

Like many people have said, you can buy sweet rice flour, potato

starch (katakuriko in japanese), and even tapioca starch, at asian

markets. Anywhere with indian selection as well has chickpea flour

and other bean flours for cheaply. Unfortunately I have no idea of a

cheap source of sorghum or xanthan gum.

Some people save a lot of money by grinding their own flours- but

it's a little too much work for me. You might also try asking at

health food stores like whole foods or vitamin cottage if they would

sell you a big bag of their bulk flour, before it is opened and

possibly/ probably contaminated.

You can also try to buy some pasta, possibly cheaper than making it,

depending on the flours you use. The cheapest and tastiest I've found

is Trader Joe's brown rice pasta or spaghetti ($1.99 a bag)- even

PICKY dh likes it. Lots of people rave about Tinkada but it is over

$3.60 in my area, and I didn't like it more than trader joe's.

Debolles no bake brown rice lasagna is also usually reasonably

priced, as is one of the boxed mac 'n cheese.

And, like people said, you can always make non-flour oriented things

for a crowd without sacrificing taste. There are tons of super yummy

potato dishes, rice dishes (like risotto, VERY crowd pleasing), corn/

tamale dishes using mexican ingredients that are a STEAL... or for

that matter dishes using corn tortillas... enchiladas for a crowd

anyone? Or how about Japanese sushi? mmmm....

> Here is my dilemma though, this is an expensive diet! I purchase

the bean

> flours, the sorghums, xanthan gum etc. all of the wonderful bean

flours and

> such to make tasty breads. I used to make bread weekly, and fresh

pasta

> noodles, now we are trying to find ways to not each so much bread

and

> pastas. I can't afford those tiny bags of flour. I purchase 1.6

pounds of

> (insert flour name here) for three to nine dollars at my local

health food

> store, and my local regular grocery store. It adds up quickly. I

search

> the internet and found authentic foods to have bags that are 3

pounds, but

> it is still expensive. Does anyone have a good place to order

larger bags

> of flour?

[Guest guest]

I am in southern Az. Thanks for the ideas! For larger

groups that is a good idea, that would be easier, when I first learned about my

diagnosis I was crushed since I love bread and pasta so much lol, now I am

learning to bake/cook with the bean flours and such, life has been wonderful.

We have several Ethnic markets here, I don’t

know why I didn’t think of them, I always get my rice flour at the Asian

market down the street… I will browse for other flours around the markets

too. Thank you )

Judy Lynn

From: SillyYaks [mailto:SillyYaks ] On Behalf Of marcianar

Sent: Thursday, February 16, 2006

9:05 PM

To: SillyYaks

Subject: Re: Such

small bags of flour

Where are you located?

Different parts of the country seem to have

very different types of flour available, and very

different price points.

Here in Northern California,

I shop at Asian, Mexican and Indian

markets, and pay far less in those stores than I

do in health food

stores. The downside is I can't verify with the

producers how they

clean their lines, but then again we've never had

any reactions to the

flours I buy there.

If you order direct from Bob's Red Mill online,

you can order larger

quantities of flour. Others may be able to suggest

other low price

sources.

Maureen

p.s. think in terms of naturally GF meals for large

groups - potatoes,

rice, sweet potatoes, etc. are all cheaper than G

specially products

>

> I am fairly new to this, only been on this

diet for a couple weeks. We

> replaced everything in the home to GF

now. It makes it easy that my SO

> wants to switch to a GF diet as well.

He has some kind of

intestinal issue

> and the docs haven't figured out what, but he

is already feeling

better on

> the diet so we figure it cant hurt for him to

stay on it. I love

cooking

> and baking so I read up on everything I can

do to make this diet as

tasty as

> possible, I figure since this is a permanent

thing I should try hard

to find

> foods to make this enjoyable. I have

made breads, pastas and brownies

> recently, everything was delicious, I

couldn't tell most things were GF.

> Here is my dilemma though, this is an

expensive diet! I purchase

the bean

> flours, the sorghums, xanthan gum etc. all of

the wonderful bean

flours and

> such to make tasty breads. I used to

make bread weekly, and fresh pasta

> noodles, now we are trying to find ways to

not each so much bread and

> pastas. I can't afford those tiny bags

of flour. I purchase 1.6

pounds of

> (insert flour name here) for three to nine

dollars at my local

health food

> store, and my local regular grocery

store. It adds up quickly. I

search

> the internet and found authentic foods to

have bags that are 3

pounds, but

> it is still expensive. Does anyone have

a good place to order

larger bags

> of flour? I am baking for me and my SO

however my father who was

recently

> diagnosed with Celiac's as well is a terrible

cook, so I am trying

to make

> extra for him and his wife. We also

have dinners here for the whole

family

> often (6-10 people) and we make only GF

dinners for everyone. At

any rate

> this is expensive, and with the medical bills

we are paying off to

discover

> this was the problem I am getting quite tight

on money! Any advise

on where

> larger bags for reasonable prices are would

be appreciated. I

understand I

> will always end up paying more than a regular

20 pound bag of bread

flour

> (used to pay $5 for that) but anything

slightly cheaper than what I am

> paying now would be wonderful!

>

>

>

> Thank you )

>

>

>

> JudyLynn

>

>

>

> http://www.tomatothyme.com

>

[Guest guest]

I just looked on Bob's red mill and there are some great deals!

25 lbs of white rice flour for $16! Shipping is $10.83 for 25 lbs of

anything to Ca, and it increases from there, but you can still save

money. I may buy with Bob's instead of Ener-g foods next time, who

would have thought it! Thanks for the tip Maureen

[Guest guest]

Consider starting or joining a food co-op/buyer's club. The place I order from

is United Natural Foods www.unfiw.com.

Here's an example of prices on some GF flours:

25 lbs brown rice flour $15.81

25 lbs corn flour $11.10

25 lbs garbanzo bean flour $19.79

5 lbs potato starch $7.22

25 lbs tapioca starch $18.61

25lbs white rice flour $10.97

I buy some things from the Asian/Indian markets as well....especially sweet rice

flour.

> Any advise on where

> larger bags for reasonable prices are would be appreciated. I understand I

> will always end up paying more than a regular 20 pound bag of bread flour

> (used to pay $5 for that) but anything slightly cheaper than what I am

> paying now would be wonderful!

[Guest guest]

>

> I just looked on Bob's red mill and there are some great deals!

> 25 lbs of white rice flour for $16! Shipping is $10.83 for 25 lbs of

> anything to Ca, and it increases from there, but you can still save

> money. I may buy with Bob's instead of Ener-g foods next time, who

> would have thought it! Thanks for the tip Maureen

>

Hmm, aren't you in Sunnyvale? I buy rice flour at Ranch 99 on Wolfe

for 33¢/lb - beats Bob's prices!

Maureen

[Guest guest]

Would you mind explaining a little more about this? How do you join,

and is there a monthly/yearly fee? And with this company, do you have

to pay a shipping fee, and if so, how much is it? i don't know of any

co-ops in my area- how do i find them? Maybe we can all end up

saving money!

>

> Consider starting or joining a food co-op/buyer's club. The place I

order from is United Natural Foods www.unfiw.com.

>

[Guest guest]

Originally (like 14-15 years ago), I heard about co-oping and called around

until I found them and asked how to set up a buyer's club. They gave me all the

info I needed regarding their policies, ordering info, delivery times, etc. You

are probably able to find that all on their website, but here are a couple of

phone #'s just in case:

Office Phone

Order Desk

Customer service hours are 1am-5pm M-F

What I set up was once a month bulk orders. There was a minimum order (not sure

what it is currently). I ordered together with family and some friends so we

could meet the order minimum. Everything is ordered in bulk so you need to order

with other families unless you can use 12 boxes of cereal or 12 bottles of soy

sauce,etc w/i a reasonable amount of time. I have no problem ordering in bulk

now because we are a family of 12 (dh, me and 10 kids). Needless to say, we

don't have much problem with food sitting around too long.

This place is like a health food store in a catalog. You can buy Amy's meals,

Bob's Red Mill, Glutino, Gluten Free Pantry, Pamela's and many other GF brands

as well as dried fruits, sauces, nuts, bulk flours and grains, coffee, vitamins,

body care products, cheese, yogurt, kefir, ice cream, butter, GF waffles,

tofu.....you name it.

With the body care and vitamin products you can usually buy single bottles.

There is no fee to join/set up an account. I've not " operated " a co-op in some

time now. Currently, I order with an existing group in my area once a month. The

only " shipping " we pay is a fuel surcharge (this just started a few months

back). It is a flat $10/delivery so we split the cost among those ordering and

it ends up being just a few dollars. You can call and ask if they know of an

open group in your area. Or just start asking around....especially if you have

any health nut/earthy type friends. The group I am currently a part of is

actually a wholesale group. The policies vary depending on the type of group you

set up. I don't know the specifics on each type.

Another co-op source is http://azurestandard.com/. I haven't checked it out

personally, but my friend just started a group and said they will deliver for

free for any order over $200.

HTH and feel free to ask more questions.

Re: Such small bags of flour

> Would you mind explaining a little more about this? How do you join,

> and is there a monthly/yearly fee? And with this company, do you have

> to pay a shipping fee, and if so, how much is it? i don't know of any

> co-ops in my area- how do i find them? Maybe we can all end up

> saving money!

>

>

> >

> > Consider starting or joining a food co-op/buyer's club. The place I

> order from is United Natural Foods www.unfiw.com.

[Guest guest]

judy, my local health food store just ordered in a 25# bag of rice

flour and a 25# of tapioca flour for me. i also just ordered a grain

mill and will start grinding my own flour. since you love to bake,you

might want to consider grinding your own flour.

christine

[Guest guest]

To find a coop, here’s a link: http://www.coopdirectory.org/ In the

one I was in, someone in the group collects the orders, then the warehouse

delivers to one place once/month. It was a fun social event as well as good

food.

I also agree that the frugal way to stick

to this food plan is to let go of the need for breads and pasta and focus on

other kinds of food.

Laurie

lbilyeu@...

From: SillyYaks [mailto:SillyYaks ] On Behalf Of seamaiden399

Sent: Friday, February 17, 2006

12:00 AM

To: SillyYaks

Subject: Re: Such

small bags of flour

Would you mind explaining a

little more about this? How do you join,

and is there a monthly/yearly fee? And with this

company, do you have

to pay a shipping fee, and if so, how much is it?

i don't know of any

co-ops in my area- how do i find them? Maybe we

can all end up

saving money!

>

> Consider starting or joining a food

co-op/buyer's club. The place I

order from is United Natural Foods www.unfiw.com.

>

[Guest guest]

Buy a grain mill (about $200 for a good one) and grind your own from whole

grains. You can get popcorn for 21 cents/lb (make sure the mill will do

popcorn), field corn at $1, garbanzos and other beans $1 (or less), sorghum

at under $1, rice for 50 to 80 cents/lb (white is cheaper than brown). Not

only do you get fresher flour (that is whole grain), but you save money

after a very short time.

At Asian grocers, you can also get white rice flour and tapioca starch (and

other starches) for under $1/lb as well. Indian grocers often have garbanzo

flour for about $1/lb, if you have one in your area. Xanthan gum is quite

high - but at places like bulkfoods.com or similar locations, you can get it

much cheaper. You've probably already learned to buy yeast in bulk at

something like Sam's Club, rather than those expensive packets at the

grocery store (corn starch is cheap there also and they use to have cheap

baking powder).

-----Original Message-----

Here is my dilemma though, this is an expensive diet! I purchase the bean

flours, the sorghums, xanthan gum etc. all of the wonderful bean flours and

such to make tasty breads. I used to make bread weekly, and fresh pasta

noodles, now we are trying to find ways to not each so much bread and

pastas. I can't afford those tiny bags of flour. I purchase 1.6 pounds of

(insert flour name here) for three to nine dollars at my local health food

store, and my local regular grocery store.

---

[This E-mail scanned for viruses by Declude Virus]

[Guest guest]

And remember that chickpea flour is also

called Gram flour (not graham). I have a two pound bag with a $3.19 price tag

on it. Think I got it at WF, but I’m sure it would be in the “shop

the world” section of Shaw’s.

Laurie

lbilyeu@...

From: SillyYaks [mailto:SillyYaks ] On Behalf Of K. Oland

Sent: Friday, February 17, 2006

4:38 PM

To: SillyYaks

Subject: RE: Such

small bags of flour

Buy a grain mill (about $200

for a good one) and grind your own from whole

grains. You can get popcorn for 21 cents/lb (make

sure the mill will do

popcorn), field corn at $1, garbanzos and other

beans $1 (or less), sorghum

at under $1, rice for 50 to 80 cents/lb (white is

cheaper than brown). Not

only do you get fresher flour (that is whole

grain), but you save money

after a very short time.

At Asian grocers, you can also get white rice

flour and tapioca starch (and

other starches) for under $1/lb as well. Indian

grocers often have garbanzo

flour for about $1/lb, if you have one in your

area. Xanthan gum is quite

high - but at places like bulkfoods.com or similar

locations, you can get it

much cheaper. You've probably already learned to

buy yeast in bulk at

something like Sam's Club, rather than those

expensive packets at the

grocery store (corn starch is cheap there also and

they use to have cheap

baking powder).

-----Original Message-----

Here is my dilemma though, this is an expensive

diet! I purchase the bean

flours, the sorghums, xanthan gum etc. all of the

wonderful bean flours and

such to make tasty breads. I used to make

bread weekly, and fresh pasta

noodles, now we are trying to find ways to not

each so much bread and

pastas. I can't afford those tiny bags of

flour. I purchase 1.6 pounds of

(insert flour name here) for three to nine dollars

at my local health food

store, and my local regular grocery store.

---

[This E-mail scanned for viruses by Declude Virus]

[Guest guest]

KOLand?? I am not sure of your name, but I have a question. I like

your ideas of saving money on flour. However, are you nervous about x-

contamination with the rice flours etc at the Asian markets??

Thanks, Suzi

[Guest guest]

Some of the companies respond to email and do use only rice (or tapioca) in

their mills and packing plants. At least one south american company also

sells a rice flour (cheap) from a gf facility (available in mexican markets,

usually).

Mostly, tho, I buy huge bags of cheap rice and grind my own. That also lets

me have a wider choice (and we use mostly brown rice, not white, here).

> -----Original Message-----

>

> KOLand?? I am not sure of your name, but I have a question. I like

> your ideas of saving money on flour. However, are you nervous about x-

> contamination with the rice flours etc at the Asian markets??

>

> Thanks, Suzi

---

[This E-mail scanned for viruses by Declude Virus]

[Guest guest]

I'm a bit late on this thread (was out of town), but wanted to suggest

www.bluechipgroup.com I haven't ordered from them yet, but will once

I get my kitchen finished.

Sue in Denver

>

> Would you mind explaining a little more about this? How do you join,

> and is there a monthly/yearly fee? And with this company, do you

have

> to pay a shipping fee, and if so, how much is it? i don't know of

any

> co-ops in my area- how do i find them? Maybe we can all end up

> saving money!

>