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Tuesday, January 14, 2014

Flour Tortillas

One of the simple, basic things I learned to fix when we lived in bush Alaska was flour tortillas. It took me a while before they were edible, but now I am pretty consistent. We have tried them with whole wheat flour and a mixture of white and wheat flour. When the time comes that we are dependent upon whole wheat flour, that is what I will use. But for now, we prefer them made from white flour. So here they are.


I make them fresh for a meal without making any extras. I have tried making extras and keeping them in the frig, which is okay. But, we prefer them fresh and they are quick to make. I only make four at a time and they aren't very big, so if your family requires more, you will have to increase the recipe accordingly.



Start off with 1 cup of flour.

Add 1/2 tsp. salt and 1/4 tsp. baking powder.

For the liquid add 2 tbsp. 
olive oil and 1/3 c. water.





Mix well. The dough will be rather moist.




Turn it out onto a floured surface, knead and add flour as needed until it is just barely not sticky. That sounds odd, but I have added too much flour before and the tortillas turn out rather stiff. 


So just get the dough to where it won't stick to the counter or rolling pin. Still put a little flour on the counter when you roll them out to help prevent sticking.



Now to cook them. The problem I initially had was not keeping the skillet hot enough and cooking them too long. So, put a little oil in the skillet, get it good and hot, then put in a tortilla. They don't need long to cook on each side, maybe 45 seconds to a minute. Flip them over, cook the other side, then place them in a towel or tortilla bowl to retain the remaining moisture and keep them warm while you cook the rest.














We like to have one with only butter and salt. They are great. This is one of the ways Frank ate them as a child.




Then I put together a variety of things to eat with them. It just depends on what we have on hand. Sometimes I just scramble up a few eggs. The possibilities are endless. This time I browned up some sausage, used some of the lettuce and green onions left from the layered salad, then got out some salsa. It was great!


This is one of those simple things that I definitely didn't succeed at when I first (and second and third and fourth) tried it. What's the old saying, "If at first you don't succeed, try, try again."? Well, I finally got it right and can have everything ready at once, most of the time. Try something new for your family. Make something from scratch instead of buying it ready made. The more you teach yourself, the better off you will be, the more confident you will be, when all you can depend upon is yourself. It's coming. Practice everyday, either mentally or physically, or both. You're in my prayers.


Until next time - Fern


10 comments:

  1. This is one of the things on my "to do" list! I love tortillas with black beans, lettuce, tomatoes and cheese! Yum! Thank you for the warning, however, that it might take a few tries until I get it right because that gives me encouragement to keep on trying!

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    1. Hi Vickie,

      I don't know if it takes most people several tries, but with some recipes and techniques, it does for me. Sometimes it is hard not to be discouraged, but persistence does usually pay off in the long run.

      Good luck with your tortillas. I hope they turn out great!

      Fern

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  2. We bake a lot with whole wheat. Sometimes, we want something a little less "wheaty" so we use a fine mesh sifter to pull out the bran. Ours sifter of choice happens to be an OXO strainer and the wire weave is fine enough that it catches regular granulated sugar. Depending on what final product we want we'll sift a few times. It never reaches the point of all-purpose but it's a lot closer.

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    1. Eric, that is a really good idea. I'm going to have to try it. Thank you very much.

      Fern

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  3. My favorite tip for tortillas. Keep the inner plastic lining from a box of cereal, crackers or whatever. Pull it open, and place your dough ball near the middle. Fold over so it's covered, and then roll it out. No flour needed. When it's thin enough, peel back the top plastic and peel the tortilla off. It never sticks!

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    1. This sounds very similar to using waxed paper. I hadn't thought of that. Thank you.

      Fern

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  4. Goofy question: do you use the whole cup for one tortilla or break off smaller balls and roll them out? Thank you!

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    1. No question is goofy. It's how I learn! The one cup of flour makes four medium to small tortillas. Hope yours turn out good!

      Fern

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  5. I have found it is very easy to cook the tortillas on a George Foreman grill. No need for oil or turning.

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    Replies
    1. Vonnie, thank you for passing along the idea. The more the merrier.

      Fern

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