As luck would have it, our visit to the Methow Valley in north central Washington was bookended by two beautiful, sunny days. The day we had planned for photographing was cloudy and storms rolled in by late afternoon.
The Methow is home to BlueBird Grain Farm, where Brooke and Sam Lucy raise an ancient grain called emmer. Farming 200 acres, the Lucy family takes their grain from seed to the store shelf and controls the quality through every step.
Emmer was one of the first domesticated grains and was widely cultivated in the ancient world, but today, most commercially grown emmer comes from Italy.
Like einkorn and spelt, emmer is a hulled wheat and requires milling or pounding to release the grains.
Often used in bread and other baking, emmer is also well-suited for pasta.
With bags of various flours, cereals, and grain, in hand, I’ll be doing my own testing shortly. Watch for the results!