Whole-grain Corn Tortillas

It took me a while to try these out, as I was used to making my own whole-wheat tortillas, but Chad informed me last week when I made these that he wouldn't care if I ever made the whole-wheat ones again. He loved these corn tortillas that much.

So when your hubby tells you that, you know you've made something good! And boy, were they D-LISH! These are fun little tortillas that are flexible (the one complaint about freezing whole-wheat tortillas is that they aren't as flexible when you reheat them), so they fold up just like a taco shell. Although the thought of using a tortilla press sounds super inconvenient, it's really not. It's actually a pretty quick process.

As for Elle, I pulled one or two tortillas apart into pieces and made her dinner into more of a taco salad. She loved dipping hers in her sour cream (she's a dipper). I even saved the one I had left over for lunch the next day for her, which I made a hummus, cheese and cucumber sandwich. She loved it!

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups masa harina (you can find this at both Kroger & Whole Foods, in the baking isle. Not to be confused for corn meal)

• 1⅓ cup warm water

• Oil spray (I used olive oil spray)

• tortilla press (mine is from Crate&Barrel and it worked great, find here)

• preferably a cast iron skillet for cooking (LOVE my cast iron skillet, but haven't tried these on a regular skillet. If you do, please let me know how it turned out!)

INSTRUCTIONS

• Blend the masa harina and salt with a whisk or fork.

• Pour in the warm water. (I heated my water in a glass measuring cup in the microwave for 1 minute.)

• If you have a KitchenAid Mixer, use the dough blade to mix. I found I needed to add a little water, push down the sides, and finish mixing with my hands after it became crumbles).

• If you do not have a mixer, stir together the mixture with a wooden spoon until dough starts to form...not too sticky and not too dry. Add more water or flour if necessary. Finish mixing the dough with your hands.

• Make a log out of the dough. Cut it into twelve equal pieces by first cutting down the middle, then cutting each piece in half again, then cutting the remaining pieces into thirds until you have twelve pieces.

• Roll each piece into a round ball, then gently flatten each ball onto a cutting board then cover the entire board (and dough) with plastic wrap.

• Heat a cast iron skillet over med-high/high heat. It is important to let the pan heat up thoroughly before you start cooking the tortillas. So let the empty pan heat up while the dough rests under the plastic wrap for 10 – 15+ minutes.

• Flatten the dough balls into tortillas with a tortilla press by doing the following:

• 1. Cover the inside of the top and bottom of the press with plastic wrap,

• 2. Place one dough ball at a time on the bottom of the press, and

• 3. Close the top and push down on the handle as hard as you can.

• Spray some oil onto the hot smoking cast iron skillet and then toss in the first tortilla. It only takes a minute to cook on each side (be sure you flip it once). You don’t want the tortilla to cook too much longer than a minute or two because it will start to become stiff. Keep the tortillas warm and covered until all of them are done.

That's it! I kept them on a plate in the microwave to keep warm until they were all done.

#corntortillas #masaharina #tacosalad