And I thought I knew something about grains, flours, beans and seeds.

In looking through the “Breakfasts” cookbook Bob Moore autographed when he gave it to me, I found an A-Z tutorial: where grains’ names came from, and what they mean, if it is a grain, seed, grass, how old it is, how it was used, what nutritious powers it has, and other recommendations.   This cookbook has 100 healthy whole-grain recipes and is a brand-new addition to Bob’s Red Mill Natural Foods library of resources.   Many of the recipes are gluten-free and include options, tips, and other useful information at www.bobsredmill.com/recipes.

What does “steel cut” mean, if Bob’s Red Mill is so famous for “stone-ground” grains?

Once harvested, oats are transformed into a wide variety of products.  The whole kernels (toasted and hulled after harvest) are oat groats (whole oats).  Chopped into tiny pieces, groats become steel-cut oats (Irish or pinhead oatmeal).  When stone-ground into coarse bits, groats are called Scotch oats or Scottish oatmeal.  Or, the groats might be “rolled” or “flattened” as in the cases of rolled oats or quick-cooking oats.  Bob’s Red Mill offers 5 Gluten-Free Oat products, and 10 additional oat products.

Oats are highly susceptible to contact with gluten-containing grains during planting, harvest, transport and milling.  Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free, dedicated buildings isolate the products and store them in dedicated silos.  Each shipment is tested throughout the process to ensure that their purity meets rigid international gluten free standards.