Alaska Flour Co. shares tips for cooking with barley flour

As part of the UAF Chancellor's Student Food Committee local foods symposium, the Wrigley family from Delta Junction conducted a cooking with barley flour demonstration.

Held at the Tanana Valley Community Food Bank on March 6, the workshop highlighted the proper uses for barley flour. Alaska Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station researchers developed Sunshine Barley, which Bryce Wrigley and his family grow on their farm. The family owns and operates the state's only commercial flour mill.

Jan Wrigley, left, and Priscilla Rice make barley flour banana cinnamon chip muffins.

"Barley is the new rice," Bryce Wrigley said.

"We want to share how easy it is to cook with barley and barley flour," Jan Wrigley said. She compared the family farm to the children's story book, "The Little Red Hen."

"We do it all; we plant, harvest, mill and grind the barley," she said.

Following is a summary of her advice:

Stir up and aerate the flour before using. Put the lid back on the container right away.

Barley flour will give a wonderful, moist product if you don't overcook the baked goods.

Keep out enough barley flour for a week's use and freeze the rest in an airtight container.

When the dough is rising set the pan on a heating pad at medium seting.

Try hot barley cereal with butter, salt and Cajun seasoning for a side dish.

Substitute 100 percent barley flour for other flours in quick breads, muffins and cakes.

For yeast breads, mix 1/3 barley flour, 1/3 white flour and 1/3 wheat flour.

Jan Wrigley said, "Be careful and don't over bake and you will have a great product."

"Barley has lots of fiber and B vitamins," Bryce Wrigley said. "One serving has 20 percent of the fiber needed per day. Barley gives you lots of energy."

Alaska-grown barley flour can be purchased at Alaska Feed, the Co-op Market and Sunshine Health Food in Fairbanks and the IGA in Delta Junction.

For barley recipes, visit UAF Cooperative Extension Service's publications section and the Alaska Flour Co.website.

Azara Mohammadi of the UAF Chancellor's Student Food Committee shows off the barley flour scones Jan Wrigley made at the workshop.