Steve, Grainlady posts a lot on the Cooking Forum. You might have better luck catching her attention over there.

"Healthier" is so subjective....so you'll have to define that for yourself. Yep, you can use coconut oil. I use it all the time in baked goods. Without a peek at the entire recipe you could probably start with reducing the amount by 25%. When I first started using coconut oil (in the 90's) the label suggested you could generally reduce the amount of vegetable oil in a recipe by 25% if you substituted it with coconut oil, and get the same results. If a quick bread recipe calls for 1 cup of fat/oil I'll generally reduce it by 50%, but more reduction than that and I may need to add something like flaxmeal, chia seeds or chia seed gel, unsweetened applesauce, agave nectar, or kefir/yogurt/buttermilk, to help maintain moistness. Low-fat or fat-free baked goods tend to dry more rapidly. Your other option is to choose low-fat recipes. ZUCCHINI LEMON BREAD (Note: I have also used this recipe for muffins and reduce the baking time.) 1 c. all-purpose flour (I substitute freshly-milled spelt) 1-1/3 c. whole wheat flour 2 t. baking powder 1/2 t. baking soda 1/4 t. salt 1/4 t. ground ginger 1/4 t. ground nutmeg 2 large eggs 3 T. vegetable oil 1 c. sugar (I use 3/4 c. palm sugar or 1/3 c. agave nectar) 2 T. lemon juice 1 c. packed shredded zucchini (1 med. zucchini) 1 T. grated lemon peel 1. Heat the oven to 350-degrees F. Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan. 2. In a large bowl, mix both flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, and nutmeg. 3. In a medium-size bowl, beat the eggs, oil, sugar, and lemon juice until well blended. Stir in the zucchini and lemon peel. 4. Add the zucchini mixture to the flour mixture, stirring just until moist. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. 5. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Set the pan on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Turn the bread out onto the rack and cool completely. Makes 16 slices. Per slice: 148 cal, 3g pro, 26g carb, 4g fat, 27mg chol, 143mg sodium. I make this recipe a lot in the summer when zucchini are plentiful. MICROWAVE ZUCCHINI BREAD RING (source: Pillsbury \- Summer\-Sational Side Dishes) 2 T. dry bread crumbs (I use almond flour.) 3/4 c. Pillsbury's BEST All Purpose or Unbleached Flour (I use spelt) 3/4 c. Pillsbury's BEST Whole Wheat Flour 3/4 c. sugar (I use palm sugar or 1/4 c. agave nectar) 1 t. baking soda 1 t. cinnamon 1 t. salt 1/4 t. nutmeg 1/8 t. cloves 1/2 c. milk 1/2 c. margarine or butter, softened (I use 1/4 c. coconut oil) 1\-1/2 c. (1 medium) shredded zucchini\* 2 eggs Grease 6\-cup microwave\-safe ring mold.\*\* Sprinkle evenly with bread crumbs. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off. In medium bowl, combine flour and all remaining ingredients. Blend at low speed until moistened. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed. Pour into greased and crumb\-coated ring mold. Place in microwave oven on inverted microwave\-safe plate. Microwave on MEDIUM for 10 minutes, rotating 1/2 turn halfway through cooking. Rotate pan 1/4 turn. Microwave on HIGH for 2 to 5 minutes or until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean and bread begins to pull away from sides of ring mold. Set stand directly on counter top 5 minutes; unmold onto serving plate. 16\-servings TIPS: \*If zucchini is very moist, drain on paper towels before using. \*\*A 2\-quart microwave\-safe casserole can be substituted for ring mold. Place heavy\-bottom drinking glass, 2 to 2\-1/2 inches in diameter, in center of casserole. Nutrition: 150 calories, protein\-3g, carbohydrates\-19g, fat\-7g, cholesterol\-27mg, sodium\-190mg, potassium\-80mg Hope that helps you out... :\-) \-Grainlady

Before going gluten-free, I nearly always used a 100% extraction - medium-fine grind (Nutrimill) for bread. I used an overnight sponge, which softens the bran, for making 100% whole wheat flour yeast bread. That is another way to lighten the loaf. Using a soaked flour method (Sue Gregg or "Nourishing Traditions") is another method to lighten the loaves because it softens the bran. Tempering the grain before milling, as well as bolting the flour, is yet one more method. The only tempered wheat I've worked with was called "heavy-bran" (from a local stone mill), and it was more like oatmeal. I developed several recipes for the mill with this product, but they decided not to continue production due to expense and hassle. I would sift the bran from flour milled for making "cake" flour (a 3:1 mix of soft white wheat and whole oat groats OR spelt), although softer wheat doesn't bolt as efficiently as hard wheat. I don't own a standard flour "sifter", but I use a series of food-grade mesh sieves I've collected over the years for bolting. I'm not even sure of the micron size of them. You can get sets that have 3 (or more) sizes to the set. Start with a large one and continue with smaller ones until you have achieved the extraction rate and particle size you'd like. If you make your own cereal or cereal blends for making cooked cereal (Cream of Wheat, Rice, Barley, Rye, 5-grain, 7-grain, etc.), that's another place you will want to sift the finer particles from the mixture before cooking it. If you don't sift it out, you will end up with "glue" for cooked cereal. Same thing if you make cracked wheat or bulgur. It is my understanding that flour is generally in the range of 35-70 micron opening mesh. Naturally, it depends on the grind from your mill. If you start with a coarse grind, you will get different results than if you mill your grain on a medium or fine grind. You will get a finer grind on many mills if you run the grain through on a coarse grind, then run the coarse flour through on a finer grind a second time. Yet one more option. I'm not sure what the sizes are for the various grinds of corn, but I might have something in my files and will post it if I find it. The finer the cornmeal -- the texture of the cornbread will be more cake-like. This would be the "coarse" setting used for milling cornmeal on the Nutrimill. You can't get a true coarse grind using an impact mill. I use a Corn Mill - steel burrs - for coarse grinding. Coarse cornmeal will be coarse and heavy when used for cornbread. Neither is right or wrong - just a choice. ;-) Sorry I couldn't be more help.... -Grainlady

WOW!!! What's old is new again..... ;-) dian57, your recipe looks great! I have a new-and-improved add-in choice since this thread - it's High-Maize Resistant Starch. High-Maize would be a good substitute for wheat germ (measure-for-measure) in the Cornell Bread Recipe. Wheat germ is unnecessary in the Cornell Bread Recipe IF you use at least a portion of freshly-milled whole wheat flour in the recipe to begin with...fresh wheat germ is already available in whole wheat flour. Milling your own flour will also assure the highest amount of nutrients from the wheat. This is why I find it amazing the Cornell Recipe didn't use whole wheat flour in the first place. The nutrients in freshly-milled whole wheat flour begin to degrade within 3-hours of milling, and the wheat germ oil oxidizes quickly. You will find wheat germ purchased as an individual ingredient is basically a rancid product - which means it's a free-radical, which is destructive to the body. The rancidity in the wheat germ purchased commercially is covered by the toasting they do to the raw germ. Rancid oils don't have to smell rancid to BE rancid. If they smell rancid, then they have been rancid for a VERY long time. If you want to add wheat germ to a recipe, add freshly-milled whole wheat flour - it's in there... I add High-Maize Resistant Starch to all my recipes for baked goods anymore. Here's a bit of information from King Arthur Flour: -Natural dietary fiber is derived from corn. It's an easy solution for adding fiber to your gluten-free diet. -One serving of Hi-maize (about 1 1/2 tablespoons) contains 6g of non-soluble dietary fiber: about 20% to 25% of your suggested daily requirement. -Substitute for up to 1/4 to 1/3 the flour in your baked goods; adjust up or down to taste. -Add to soups, sauces, and smoothies. -Wheat-free, soy-free, nut-free blend is packed in a dedicated gluten-free facility. King Arthur - 12-ounces for $6.95. I buy High-Maize 5-in-1 Fiber from Honeyville Grain. $18.49 for 5-pounds. http://store.honeyvillegrain.com/hi-maize5-in-1-fiber.aspx Here's what Honeyville Grain has to say about Hi-Maize: Hi-maize has some real health benefits. Hi-maize is lower in calories than the flour it replaces. Hi-maize delivers between 2-l kilocalories/gram while flour delivers 4 kilocalories/gram. Hi-maize also helps your body burn more fat and may lead to lower fat accumulation. Hi-maize helps maintain healthy blood sugar levels in healthy individuals because Hi-maize increases insulin sensitivity in healthy people. Hi-maize helps balance your energy in the hours following a meal. It has a lower impact in blood sugar and blood insulin than the flour it replaces. For individuals following a "carbohydrate-control" diet, it lowers the "net" or digestible carbohydrates in foods. Hi-maize promotes digestive health. The fiber in Hi-maize is fermented within the large intestine and encourages the growth of friendly bacteria (a "prebiotic" fiber). It reduces harmful compounds such as ammonia, while producing beneficial compounds such as short-chain fatty acids like butyrate, the preferred fuel for colon cells. Hi-maize is ideal for use in a gluten-free diet. Hi-maize is well tolerated. It is slowly fermented and does not produce the uncomfortable digestive side effects sometimes found with fiber. I add a heaping tablespoon to my morning smoothie (homemade kefir, 100% fruit juice, flaxmeal, High-Maize and a nutritional supplement. I also substitute up to 15-20 percent of the flour in a recipe with High-Maize. Another good substitute for wheat germ in the Cornell recipe is amaranth (I believe I mentioned it above in an earlier post). You could add whole amaranth seeds or amaranth flour (amaranth is so tiny it needs to be milled in a seed mill or in a coffee/spice mill). The seeds look like golden poppy seeds and I like to add amaranth seeds to quick breads. Amaranth flour is high in protein, and protein is why wheat germ is used in the recipe. The fiber content of amaranth is three times that of wheat, plus good amounts of iron and calcium. Amaranth also contains vitamin E (also found in wheat germ). Amaranth is easy to digest. The Cornell Bread Recipe was a good start to improving nutrition, fiber and protein in bread, but there are a lot of other things you can add to your recipes way BEYOND what was used in this "old science" recipe. -Grainlady