Recipe: Soaked Tortilla Shells

Homemade tortillas have to be one of the things I know I love so much more than their store bought counterpart. They have so much more flavor and are … well… just fabulous! They taste awesome fresh, but can be frozen as well. I normally make up a full batch (or even 2 batches) and freeze the excess for quick taco/fajita dinners later. Here’s how to do it.

You’ll need:

• 5 cups of flour (I now use spelt but we loved whole wheat as well)
• 2 teaspoons salt
• 1/2 cup oil
• 1 1/2 – 1 3/4 cup boiling water
• 2 Tbsp whey, kefir, yogurt, etc.
• random chemicals and preservatives (oh, wait! these are homemade so you can leave those out!)

Mix the flours and salt together and then hand mix in the oil and whey. Yes, you will need to use your hands! Mix and rub together until it kinda looks like oatmeal. (sorry no pic of this step) Make a well in the center and pour the boiling water in. Stir together until dough forms and is neither sticky or crumbly. Then roll into golf ball sized balls. For burritos, make them a bit bigger, for smaller tacos like we like around here, make just a tad smaller. Let sit, covered, for at least an hour or up to 8 hours.

Then we start rolling! (by the way – get your non stick pan started on a fairly high heat for about 5 minutes before you throw one on) You can go the easy way and buy a tortilla press for like 15 bucks, but as you can see – the el cheapo way works too! I like to roll a bunch at once, cook them, then roll some more.

Plop it down on a hot naked pan (no grease!) for about 10 seconds until you see it just start to bubble around the edges.

Flip over and let set for about 30 seconds. (Sometimes they puff up and I’ll either just leave ‘em or hold them down with a spatula, either way they turn out fine)

Flip over to the first side and cook for another 30 seconds. After doing a couple you’ll begin to see exactly how high your stovetop should be set. You want them to cook quick, but not burn. Leave them undercooked and they can get dense.

And of course, the end result:

It does take some time, as this particular day it took me about 2 hours to make a double batch, (60 or so tortillas) but they are so cheap to make and so much better tasting you’ll never want to go back to store bought. And of course, it wouldn’t take near as long if I’d just get off my cheap butt and go buy a press already!

*update – I now have a press! Although the press does make thicker tortillas and theya re less pliable this way. So when I have extra time I do roll them out by hand.

** Please do not construe my posts as medical advice, because *ahem*, I am not a doctor or medical professional. I am but a student of Nourishing Nutrition and Natural Health. I only hope to ignite a passion within you to do your own research and begin your own journey to better health. And to make sure you don't miss a single post, you can add my blog's RSS Feed to your reader or you can sign up for free updates by Email.

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