What to do with this stuff?? Gluten, bran and starch

Ok, so...we now have a container of bran and starch and a handful of gluten. NOW WHAT?

Well, if you don't want to fool with it, you can pour the contents of the fluid container down the drain. You are pouring off fiber and nutrition, but it's your choice as to what you want to do. No food police will come cart you off if you don't use it.

First off, the bran will last 4-6 days in the fridge or you can freeze it for later use. Do yourself a favor and sack it up in portion sizes. That way you only have to work with a portion worth and not unthaw the whole mess.

The starch water will spoil a WHOLE LOT quicker. It needs to be refrigerated as soon as possible.

To separate the bran from the water:
To use the bran and starch water you need to let the water settle for about an hour. I have a glass "sun tea" jar that I bought to separate some organic raw milk I was able to get. It has a large opening at the top and a small spigot at the bottom. I'm going to put my bran/starch water into it and let the bran settle out to the bottom. I'll then use the spigot to drain off the bran and some of the water. How liquid I take out much depends on how thick I want the bran or starch to be. The more water that goes with the bran, the thinner the bran will be and the thicker the starch water will be. The less water I let go with the bran, the thicker the bran will be and the thinner the starch will be. First draining will be to remove the bran. Then in another container, I will drain off the starch portion. The water that is on top will be used to water my plants with.

So you don't have a sun tea jar and don't want another do-dad in your house. If all you have are canning jars, a bowl or pot, then you will do it differently. Let it settle down so that the 3 layers (bran, starch and water) separate. The pour (or use a turkey baster or meat injector to suck off) the layer of water. Pour or suck off until you start to get some milky fluid. Now you're down to the starch layer. Put the water aside in another container. Now gently pour or suck off the starch layer. When you start to see the brown bran flakes, stop. Put the starch in another container and put the bran in another container. Unless your going to use the starch right away (as in NOW), put it in the fridge and work with it later (as in another hour or more). You may find that the starch needs to be separated from the water a couple of times (3-4) for a thicker starch or just let the water sit overnight in the fridge and you can do it in one pouring.

Water:
You can water your plants with it, pour it over the dog/cat/goat/pig/chicken's feed or use it in place of the water in your bread, powdered milk, soup or stew recipes.

Starch water:
You can also water your plants with it, pour it over the dog/cat/goat/pig/chicken's feed or use it in place of water in your bread or powdered milk recipes with this. You can also use it to thicken sauces, gravies, puddings, soups and stews or anything else that you would use flour, cornstarch, arrow root or tapioca to thicken with - with the exception of tapioca pudding - for obvious reasons. lol You can make drinks both hot and cold with it. You can also make hand lotion, floor wax, a paste for matting or hinging art work, a paste to fix torn archival papers and artifacts, and use it to bath the baby.

Thick starch:
Gravy: 4-5 tbs to thicken 2 cups liquid
Stews: 6-7 tbs to 2 cups liquid
Other: use as you would cornstarch. It has a clearer and more delicate flavor than using regular flour to thicken foods.

Tip: After the water has been poured off and before you use it, stir the starch well.



A little different way to make and use gluten and it's byproducts:
http://www.countrysidemag.com/issues/83/83-2/Countryside_Staff.html

I've searched for DAYS (well, since I starting this particular post) and can not find more uses for the starch - like how to use it on your floors. Perhaps someone can post that for us. So, I'm dropping the search for now and I'm going to continue on so this gets posted!

Ok, so now what to do with the bran? Well, you can freeze it to use or work with later.

Thin Bran:
Best for making bran flakes out of it. After the bran has settled, leave at a minimum 2" of the liquid on top of the bran.

Thick Bran:
Best for adding to other ingredients. Let the bran settle, then pour off as much liquid as possible or use a turkey baster or meat injector to suck the liquid from the top, leaving the brown flakes behind.

Dehydrated bran:
Dry on cookie sheet or in dehydrator. Powder in food processor, blender or nut mill. When ready to use, rehydrate or mix in with rest of ingredients.

Bran is good for crackers, cereals, and drinks. It's also good when used in breads, pies, pancakes, waffles, cakes, cookies, muffins and other baked goods.

Bran is good to use if you're "bound up" or if you have the "reverse". One of my girlfriend's twin daughters had GI troubles from the time she was born. The older ladies she knew kept telling her to give the child some bran muffins or bran cereal. She kept think, no! The baby has diarrhea and the bran will make it worse. Dr. after Dr. gave her prescriptions - to no avail. FINALLY, she gave up and tried what the old ladies told her to do. Guess what? A problem that the child had had for the first two years of her life went away! In a couple of days! For free. And the child would not have suffered for the better part of 2 years if mom had listened to the grannies who kept telling her what to do.

Moral of the story, many times Mamaw knows what she's talking about. Unless they're telling you to use something toxic, give it a try, can't hurt and will probably fix the problem. Granny didn't have the money to run the kids to the MD's every time they skinned a knee or had a stomach ache. How many of you remember how you're supposed to deal with a child with measles? Or mumps? or chicken pox? Yeah, the kids are all immunized against this stuff, but what's going to happen when, as they get older, the immunity wears off? My prediction is that we're going to see a whole lot of very sick people! Hopefully, I'll be wrong. I'll be thrilled to be wrong.

Bran can be used at 1/2 cup bran to 2 cups flour without altering the recipe. If it's already wet. If it's been dehydrated, then the bran will take up some of the liquid in the water. So look at your batter/dough as you're making your product. If it looks a little dry, add a tad more water - until it looks like is "should".

Pancakes

Milk group:
1 Cup fresh buttermilk (yoghurt or kefir will probably work too!)
OR
1 Cup sour milk
OR
1 cup water (+ recommended buttermilk powder to make 1 cup buttermilk will be added to dry ingredients. Saves you the time of mixing it together.)
OR
Put 2 tsp vinegar in the bottom of a 1 or 2 cup measuring cup and add milk, evaporated milk, reconstituted powdered milk or 1/2 and 1/2 to make 1 cup and let it sit for about 5 mins to sour.

Egg group:
1 egg
OR
1 Tbs Knox unflavored gelatin + 3 Tbs water. Mix together.
OR
1 Tbs ground Flax seed + 3 Tbs water. Mix together.

Oil Group:
2 Tbs Oil, Melted shortening, butter, margerine (Regular Mayo NOT Miracle Whip, may work. It does in biscuits)
OR
2 Tbs applesauce

To one of the milk group add one of the egg group and one of the oil group. Add 1/4 cup thick, raw bran.
Stir in the following ingredients into the wet mixture:
If you used water above, now add in the necessary buttermilk powder
1 cup whole wheat flour (AP flour will work too)
2 Tsp Baking Powder
1/2 Tsp soda
1/4 tsp salt

Stir until just barely blended.

Cook on heated griddle.

Waffles
2 cups from Milk group above
Add to milk:
1/2 cup from Oil Group above
3 eggs or equavelent from above
1/2 cup thick raw bran
2 1/2 ww flour
1 cup powder whey (from Health food store OR use your own whey from cheese making and reduce milk choice by 1 cup)
3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp soda
3 tsp baking powder

Mix all wet ingredients with electric mixer/beaters. Add dry ingerdients. Stir well but don't overmix. It should still have little lumps

Bake in preheated waffle iron.

TIP:
When I make pancakes or waffles, I use more than one pan/appliance. If I'm making pancakes or waffles, I double or triple the recipe. I cook pancakes in 4 cast iron pans (all going at one time). If I'm making waffles, I use both of my waffle irons. I cool and freeze leftovers for later breakfasts or snacks. This lets me get done faster! (Is anyone else bored to DEATH watching pancakes or waffles cook?)

Cold Cereal:
2 cups thin raw bran
1/2 tsp salt
2 Tbs sugar (raw, brown, white, honey, Blue Agave, whatever you like)

Mix ingredients. Pour a bit of the mixture paper-thin onto an oiled cookie sheet or on the fruit leather tray of your dehydrator. Tip cookie sheet pan from side to side to coat pan evenly. Bake 20-25 minutes at 300 degrees. Lfit sheet of bran from pan right away. Let it cool and break it into pieces. If using dehydrator, tip tray and make a thin layer of batter on it. Put tray(s) into dehydrator and let dry. Remove dried bran from trays, let cook and break it apart.

Part-way through drying times, you can sprinkle cinnamon and sugar over pan/tray, or other topping of your choice over partially dried batter. (jello would work too!)

This is good for cold cereal or for use in granola.