Stone grinding is one of the oldest methods of processing food. Grains are naturally difficult to eat whole, so turning them into a coarse meal made them more usable for early humans. Stone milling predates most other milling methods and was applied not only to grains but to nuts, seeds, spices and roots as well.
Why choose stone milling today when modern technology offers faster options? For many, there is an appealing romance to this old‑world technique. Stone milling also grinds more slowly and at cooler temperatures, which can help preserve delicate enzymes and flavor compounds. That slow, tactile process—adding a pound of grain to a hopper and receiving a pound of flour from the spout—feels reassuringly simple and honest.
This illustration outlines the basic parts of a traditional stone mill. Clean grain is fed into the hopper, then ground between slowly turning quartz millstones. The upper stone rotates against the lower, or bed, stone, and adjusting the gap between them controls the texture of the resulting meal. Historically, the drive pulley that turns the stones might have been powered by hand, animal, water, or wind; in contemporary mills it’s usually motor driven. At Bob’s Red Mill, flour is produced from 100% whole grains—what goes in the hopper becomes whole grain flour that exits the flour spout, ready for baking.
Oatmeal has deep roots in Scottish stone milling, and our recipe for Scottish oatcakes uses coarsely stone‑ground oats for authentic texture and flavor. These crisp, modest crackers are excellent on their own, lovely with jam, and make an ideal whole‑grain base for hors d’oeuvres.
Stone-Milled Scottish Oatcakes
Ingredients
- 1-1/3 cups plus 2 tablespoons Bob’s Red Mill® organic Scottish oatmeal, divided
- 1/2 cup Bob’s Red Mill® organic whole wheat pastry flour
- 3/4 teaspoon unprocessed sugar
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 cup melted butter
- 1/4 – 1/3 cup hot water
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. In a bowl combine 1-1/3 cups of the Scottish oatmeal with the whole wheat pastry flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Stir to blend.
- Add the melted butter and mix until evenly distributed. Using a fork, drizzle in the hot water and mix until a soft dough just forms. Shape the dough into a ball and flatten slightly.
- Sprinkle the remaining 2 tablespoons of oats onto a cutting board. Roll the dough to about 1/4 inch thick. Cut rounds with a 2–3 inch cutter, re-rolling scraps as needed. Place the oatcakes about 1/4 inch apart on a greased baking sheet.
- Bake at 325°F until the oatcakes are golden, about 25 minutes. Cool on a rack. Makes 12–15 oatcakes.
Nutrition
Carbohydrates: 4 g,
Fat: 4 g,
Saturated Fat: 2 g,
Cholesterol: 10 mg,
Sodium: 82 mg,
Potassium: 31 mg,
Vitamin A: 120 IU,
Calcium: 6 mg,
Iron: 0.2 mg