Homemade Tortillas

Flour tortillas

Ingredients

3 cups of white all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp of salt

1 tsp. baking powder

1/2 cup of lard or vegetable shortening

1 cup of hot water

Directions

Mix the flour and salt. Mix in the lard by hand until the mixture resembles small peas. Add the water slowly until you have a soft elastic ball. You may need to add a little more or less water, but do it slowly -- you may not really need as much water as you think you do. Knead until smooth. Cover with a damp towel and then let rest 15 minutes.

Make about 7-9 equal size balls. Flatten and roll each ball into a flat round disk, using a tortilla press (put the dough between waxed paper) or a rolling pin. Cook on a very hot cast iron skillet. No oil is necessary. Flip when bottom side is golden, the top should be bubbling slightly when ready. Use a spatula to lift the edge and check for doneness before flipping completely. Keep the cooked tortillas warm by covering with a damp towel while you continue to cook.

To make whole-wheat tortillas, use the above flour tortilla recipe and substitute wheat flour for 1/4 to 2/3 of the white flour. Wheat flour is a little tougher, so the amount used is based on your personal taste. You may substitute, all the white flour if you wish but use less than called for.

Corn Tortillas

Unlike four tortillas, corn tortillas usually do not contain any added oil. They can be made with corn flour, but the traditional recipe uses masa harina or masa flour. Masa harina is made from corn soaked in lime and then dried and ground into a powder -- masa is a traditional ingredient in many dough containing Latin American dishes, such as tortillas and tamales.

Ingredients

2 cups masa harina or corn flour

1 1/4 cups hot water

Directions

Mix masa and water by hand until all of the tortilla mix is moistened and a dough forms. Add more water if necessary. Cover with damp towel and let rest 10 minutes.

Make a dozen 1-inch balls. Flatten and roll each ball into a tortilla. Cook on a very hot cast iron skillet. No oil is necessary. Flip when the edge starts to stiffen and the top looks dry. Use a spatula to lift the edge and check for doneness before flipping completely. Keep the cooked tortillas warm by covering with a damp towel while you continue to cook.

Some tortilla cooking hints:

* Practice making tortillas before you make them for guests. Its not difficult, but it does take a few times before you get the "feel" for the dough.

* Only flip once. For some reason, they do not taste good at all if flipped several times during cooking.

* Don't worry about a few burnt spots, they actually add flavor.

* Cast iron yields the best results for cooking.

* f the only tortillas you are familiar with come from Taco Bell, you may not be aware that not all tortillas are paper thin. You may roll your tortilla to about ? inch thickness. Any thicker than that and the outside burns before the inside cooks. Thin tortillas are used in fajitas and similar dishes. Thicker tortillas are common in soups and other dishes where they will be soaked.

* Don't have a rolling pin? Try using a wine bottle or even an old clean broomstick.

* When rolling out a tortilla, some people find it easier/neater to put the dough ball in between two sheets of wax paper. Another alternative is to put it in a small plastic bag and then flatten it out.

* Old stale tortillas go great in soup. (see following recipe).

Source: Geocities.com