Tortillas

[calendula]

What?! I noticed that the recipe section is empty!

I'll start off by posting recipes for flour and corn tortillas. I make homemade tortillas often because they taste soooo good and are cheap.

Flour Tortillas
Makes eight 6" tortillas

Ingredients:

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon lard or butter
3/4 cups water

In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, and salt.

Cut in lard or butter until lumps are gone.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.

Add the water, a bit at a time, and work the mixture into a dough. You may not need to add all the water, or you may need a little more. Knead until smooth. The dough should be slightly sticky and not hard.

Cover the bowl and set aside for at least 30 minutes (but I find the dough is easiest to handle if left to sit for a couple hours.

Divide the dough into 8 balls. Keep them covered with a damp towel while you are working to prevent them from drying out.

Heat a skillet on medium heat; do not grease the skillet.

Roll or flatten a dough ball into a 6 inch tortilla.

Place the tortilla into the heated skillet and cook about a minute on each side. It will be slightly browned and starting to bubble.

Continue in this manner until all your dough is cooked.

[calendula]

Corn Tortillas
Based on a recipe from Cast-Iron Cooking, by A.D. Livingston



-2 cups Masa Harina
-1 cup boiling-hot water
-coconut oil or cooking oil of your choice for greasing the parchment paper

Mix the Masa Harina and water, making a stiff dough.

Divide dough into 12 equal pieces and shape into balls.

Begin to heat your cast-iron skillet over medium heat so that it is hot by the time you are ready to begin cooking your tortillas. There is no need to grease your skillet.

Place a ball between two lightly greased pieces of parchment paper. Using a tortilla press, large plate, or rolling pin, spread the ball out into a circle about 6" in diameter and approximately 1/8" thick.

Once your skillet is hot, place the flattened tortilla inside and cook for 1-2 minutes on each side.

Continue in the same manner for the remaining balls. If you will be using them immediately, place the cooked tortillas in a tortilla warmer or damp towel to keep them soft and warm. Otherwise, place them on racks to cool.

[Farmfresh]

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[House Sparrow]

Those corn tortillas are pretty much the way I was taught to make them at the community garden. We put them on a large iron plate on the open fire pit. they are so much better than store bought! It does take a bit of time to make them. But it is worth it.
The dough is about the consistency of play dough. Having a bowl of water nearby helps, for washing your hands in between. You end up getting a bit sticky.
I am still trying to find organic masa flour. I want GMO free corn. I find I get an upset stomach when I don't eat organic corn products.

[Dragonlaurel]

Yay! Thanks for posting this. I was just thinking about trying to make some fresh tortillas. I've never done it yet, cause there are so many Hispanic people in central Fla, so it's just too easy to find tortillas at any grocery store. But I don't like the preservatives the commercial ones have, and the flour ones are kinda expensive. . .