Milestone Mill

Uptown Kingston is looking absolutely lovely this morning, and it's a perfect day to visit! The Volunteer Fireman's Hall and Museum of Kingston is holding their 20th annual Antique Fire Engine Muster, which is always a treat for the kiddos. Afterward, stop by the to pick up your weekly haul of produce, specialty items, and of course, fresh, local flour!

Our team had such a great time at the 2024 Kneading Conference last week, held in Skowhegan, Maine. It's our second year attending, and we are already looking forward to next year.

We loved connecting with chefs, farmers, professional and home bakers, grain researchers, and food entrepreneurs as they shared their knowledge about the art and science of growing and milling grains and baking artisan breads.

Thank you and for organizing this wonderful event!

This delightful lemon ricotta peach tart whipped up by has summer written all over it! Julia used our all-purpose flour for the crust 🌼

These everything bagels made by are truly "everything". Stephen incorporated a blend of 80% Milestone Mill bread flour and 20% Milestone Mill rye flour in his recipe, resulting in a beautifully crackly crust and delightfully chewy center.

Keep an eye out for this recipe and many others on our soon to be launched recipe page at milestonemill.com! We can't wait to share them with you.

We took a quick day trip down to the city yesterday for a first look at the new New York State Regional Food Hub in the Hunts Point neighborhood of the Bronx. When completed, this new 60,000 square-foot facility will allow to greatly increase the amount of produce and other locally grown foods to their institutional partners, including New York based food pantries, soup kitchens, senior centers, public daycare centers, public schools, and farm stands. Milestone Mill is proud to work with by supplying our pinto and black beans to distribute to these partners.

Community Spotlight: Samosa Shack

Samosa Shack is a well-known and well-loved staple of the Hudson Valley food scene, known for their delicious plant-based samosas and traditional Indian dishes. Mini Dhingra, the effervescent owner and founder, made it her mission to incorporate local and seasonal ingredients into her recipes after moving to the area. "There were a few pieces we needed to complete that local puzzle," Mini explains. One of those pieces was sourcing local produce, and the other was finding local flour. For the past 3 years, Mini has been using Milestone Mill Whole Wheat All-Purpose flour for her samosa pastry with great success. "I really enjoy working with Milestone Mill flour, particularly the texture it adds to our samosas. It gives them a nice multi-grain feel. It's a great feeling to support the local food system in this way."

Thank you so much Mini!

Samosa Shack is open for lunch takeout Thursday-Saturday from 12-3pm at 129 Cornell Street in Kingston. Dinner takeout resuming soon. You can also find them at the and a number of other local farmers markets and pop ups.

Photos (slides 1-4) by

Join our team! Milestone Mill is seeking a part-time Market Coordinator to assist with our retail sales efforts through local farmers markets.

The Market Coordinator will report to the Distribution Manager and will work in close collaboration with other members of the Milestone Mill team. This individual will be responsible for coordinating the Milestone Mill farmers market stall and conducting sales at various local farmer’s market locations in the Hudson Valley region which will be focused on sales of grain products such as flours, dried beans, and grain corn products.

Learn more and apply here: https://goodfoodjobs.com/jobs/172478/market-coordinator.html

Mill update: We've got power! For the past few weeks, we've had electricians from Jaffer Electric on-site, along with the crew from working on getting our equipment up and running smoothly. Next up- equipment training and lots of testing with Milestone Mill Miller Jay Krauer and Production Associate Lucy Jones (slide 1). This is a big step towards being fully operational!

Milestone Mill is seeking an Environment, Health, and Safety Manager to join our growing team!

The Environment, Health, and Safety (EHS) Manager will lead the development and implementation of environmental sustainability and food and workplace safety policies and protocols to ensure the mill is operating in alignment with its values and goals as a safe and sustainable organization that prioritizes worker and community wellbeing. Additionally, the EHS Manager will lead quality control and compliance with various regulatory and certification requirements, such as 20-C food processing licenses, FDA food safety requirements, OSHA, organic certification, and others.

For the past year, we've had the pleasure of collaborating with and on a series of short films that delve into the work we do here at Milestone Mill. They also go beyond that by exploring the broader impact and significance of a local grain economy.

We are excited to share more soon! In the meantime, here are some recent behind the scenes shots of our Director, Sarah Brannen, being filmed at .

Happy New Year, everyone! 🎉 As we look ahead to 2024, we can't help but reflect on what a great year 2023 was for Milestone Mill. Swipe through to see some of the exciting moments we had.

We have some big things in store for 2024! We feel so fortunate to have such a wonderful community supporting us every step of the way. As we embark on this exciting new year, we would love to hear from you. What are some things you'd like to see from us? Feel free to drop us a line at [email protected] or leave a comment below.

Wishing you all an incredible 2024!

 

Slide 1: photo by Megan Spiro

Slide 2: In March, we officially kicked off the Milestone Mill Bake Test Project.

Slide 3: Also in March, we started working with , who through their zero-waste programs, help businesses develop effective strategies to eliminate waste and better organize, understand, and measure their waste programs.

Slide 4: In April, we introduced one of our customer favorites- tortilla chips!

Slide 5: In May, installation of our temporary mill began!

Slide 6: In June, we moved into our new office in the Kingston Plaza.

Slide 7: Rye in July! We loved sharing recipes made with our rye flour throughout the month of July!

Slide 8: In December, we hosted our first grains convening, which brought together bakers, farmers, maltsters, and many more in the local grains community.  (More on that soon!)

Slide 9: 2023 marked the year Milestone Mill became an independent project, supported by the NoVo foundation. Milestone Mill team photo by Sean Hemmerle

From all of us at Milestone Mill, we wish you a joyful winter season and a very happy new year!

We will be back in January with more recipes and some very exciting news! See you in 2024!

Not all flour feeds us well!

That's why we're dedicated to bringing sustainably grown, nutritionally complex grains back to the table. In a global market focused on maximizing shelf life and volume, it's a radical idea to feed local communities with local grains. Milestone Mill flours have no preservatives, no bleaching, just essential goodness, grown and crafted right here.

📸

We are so excited to take part in this year's Food + Design on Saturday, December 9th, from 11am-6pm. The market will spotlight over 50 regional vendors with expertise in food, drinks, home goods, and design. Hosted by

co

We will have our flour, beans, and cornmeal on hand as well as our sourdough bread starter kits and cookie kits, which are perfect gifts for holiday hosts or the baker in your life!

FOOD+DESIGN
Saturday December 9
11am-6pm
HudCo + Hudson River Landing
145 Palisade Street, Dobbs Ferry, NY

Guess what? Our sourdough bread starter kits are now available to purchase online! Just purchase through our shop, and we will ship it right to your door.

Our kit gives you
everything you need to go from sourdough novice to expert.

Kit includes:
-2lb bag of stone milled Milestone Mill Rye flour, made from
organically grown NY state winter rye
-2lb bag of stone milled Milestone Mill Bread flour, made
from organically grown NY state wheat
-Breadtopia sourdough starter, made from organic wheat
flour
-1 Knead Ace Sourdough Jar with feeding tracker, spatula,
and lid for foolproof sourdough starter maintenance.
-Traditional, natural fiber banneton with natural fiber linen
liner
-Wood-handled and stainless steel bench scraper
-Organic cotton, embroidered Milestone Mill baker's apron
-Step-by-step sourdough bread guide for beginners

Happy baking!

We had a blast this past weekend at the and meeting so many of you! So many great conversations were had about the benefits of sustainably grown, local grain and ways to use it. (We also loved hearing what everyone named their sourdough starter! 😊)

There are no markets this weekend but we will be back on December 2 at the and at the on December 3.

And on December 9, we are thrilled to be joining the Food + Design by Edible Market in Dobbs Ferry, NY!

.co

Hope to see you soon!

Packing up for a busy weekend! In addition to our sourdough baker's box, we will also have cookie kits available for the favorite baker in your life. Kits include a 2lb bag of Milestone Mill All-Purpose flour, an embroidered Milestone Mill apron, a cookie cutter, and one of our favorite cookie recipes.

We hope to see you at one of the many markets we will be at this weekend!

Friday 11/17, Christkindlmarkt, hosted by
37 Old DeGarmo Road, Poughkeepsie

Saturday 11/18,
and

Sunday 11/19,

Sneak peak of our limited edition sourdough starter kit! Just in time for the this weekend!

Have you checked out the November issue of yet? We are thrilled to be included in their annual Holiday Shopping Guide, which highlights the many independent creators and curators across the Hudson Valley, Catskills, and Berkshires. Pick up a copy today!

Our tote bags are roomy, eco-friendly, and sturdy enough to fill to the brim with your farmers' market haul. Pick one up this Saturday at the . We'll be there!

What's everyone baking this weekend? Stop by the on Saturday and the farmers market on Sunday, and stock up on all our pantry staples, made with local and organically grown ingredients. See you there!

📸 by

Yesterday may have been National Farmer's Day, but here at Milestone Mill, we celebrate farmers 365 days a year (366 in a leap year!) We wouldn't be anywhere without the incredible dedication, hard work, and resilience of farmers.

The farmers who care for our land and grow our food are increasingly impacted by climate change and developmental pressures. We work to support these farmers by establishing a local supply chain, paying them a fair price for their harvest, promoting sustainable crop production, and providing assistance with post-harvest handling.

Thank you farmers! Yesterday, today, and everyday. 🌾

Tomatoes are 🤌 right now in the Hudson Valley. Our tortilla chips are the perfect compliment, made with heritage Wapsie Valley corn grown right here.

Grab a bag this weekend! We will be at today, the on Saturday, and on Sunday. See you there!

We have some very exciting news to share with you all, our friends and partners over the years working toward a more resilient food system. You may have seen and heard about our new project, called Milestone Mill, over the past year. We launched Milestone Mill as a project of the Hudson Valley Farm Hub in May 2022 to address gaps in the local food system, support local farmers, and sustainably feed our community. This effort has been the culmination of ten years’ worth of research, learning, and collaboration with other organizations across the region working to rebuild our grain system in the northeast. Since last spring, we have been selling locally produced flour, beans, corn meal, tortillas, and tortilla chips at farmers markets across the Hudson Valley, using locally sourced ingredients and through partnership with copackers.

We are grateful for the continued partnership with these co-packers, Mid-Hudson Works, Tortilleria La Guadalupana, and Wild Hive.

The response to Milestone Mill from people at the farmers markets and from bakers and chefs has been encouraging and we have been adding new farmers markets and are continuing to grow this project.

After more than a year working on the launch of Milestone Mill, we are pleased to announce that Milestone Mill is now an independent project, supported by the NoVo Foundation.

This year promises to be one of change, growth, and learning. We are building a mill at a temporary location on the Hudson Valley Farm Hub, while planning for a permanent home in the area. This temporary mill is on track to be operational by the end of this year and we plan to be in the process of designing and developing the permanent facility over the next couple of years.

We have also moved into a new office in Kingston Plaza and will be launching an updated website soon. These beginnings and transitions are exciting and offer great promise to build on our progress. Our products will continue to be available in local farmers markets, including Kingston, Chatham, Stone Ridge, Phoenicia and Woodstock. We invite you to visit us there and to look for us in more locations in the future by visiting our website- www.milestonemill.com. Wholesale opportunities exist, too. Just reach us at [email protected]. We would love to hear from you and are happy to answer your questions. For general inquiries and other communications, drop us a line at [email protected]. You can also follow us on Instagram, and Facebook, and keep an eye out for our updated website coming soon!

We are proud to be rooted in the Hudson Valley and seeding change at the local level. Thank you for your interest and support. We look forward to staying in touch!



Warmly,

The Milestone Mill Team

Christina, Jay, Jeff, Jen, Luz, Meagan, Preston, Sam, & Sarah

Photo of the Milestone Mill team by Sean Hemmerle

Since this past June, we have been gradually settling into our new office, located in the Kingston Plaza. Today, our sign was installed! A real "milestone" if we do say so ourselves!

Thank you to and for all of your help in making it happen!

Mill update! Installation of our temporary mill is well under way, and the final pieces of equipment have been delivered! We are grateful for the crew from for their hard work and dedication to this project. Building a mill is no small feat!

Pictured above: Slide 1, mill installation in progress. Slide 2, newly delivered bagging machine. Slide 3, our Director Sarah and Spud, Field Supervisor for

Our August bake test was all about pastry flour! Our pastry flour is made with a soft white winter Medina wheat and has a protein content of 8.7%. The low protein content and fine texture of this flour allow for a lighter, flakier dough in baked goods, producing a softer, finer crumb.

As always, the bake test bakers knocked it out of the park. Scroll through to get hungry!

First photo: biscuits by .danis.writer Second photo: blueberry muffins by
Third photo: scones by .