Or as we like to call it, a fun experiment with the end result being that it's just easier to buy them.
Now, our turn making them? LOTS OF FLOUR. Will started making these on his own and I'm fairly certain I was upstairs on the phone with my mother at the time. Then I heard cries for help, and I rushed downstairs only to find Will with dough stuck all over his fingers. So after taking the ten minutes it takes to get off the phone with my mother, my baking instincts rushed in and threw flour all over his hands and the dough. This is my solution for anything that slightly resembles baking. There can never be enough flour! So after helping Will by flouring everything in the kitchen (no seriously, me + flour = allll over the kitchen: floor, stove, washer/dryer...) we got the tortilla dough under control. From there the process was fairly simple and straightforward and things turned out okay. We had some weird shaped tortillas, but they tasted alright.
At this point, we can't remember for the life of us why we made them, but we do recall that they made tasty lunches as quesadillas after the fact. I'm sure we just used them for tacos or something along those lines.
And here is one of our tortilla attempts! The lesson learned is that you can never have enough flour when it comes to bread-like bakeable items!
Flour Tortillas (adapted from Budget Bytes; serves 10-12)
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 cups all-purpose flour
5 tbsp lard (we used Crisco)
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup warm water
Combine the flours in a large bowl and stir until evenly mixed. Add the lard/Crisco and work it in with your hands until the flour is coated in lard and you have an even, crumbly mixture. Dissolve the salt into the warm water. Add the salt water to the flour/lard a little at a time until a cohesive ball has formed. You may need more or less water depending on the moisture content of your flour.
Once you have a rough ball of dough, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead it for a minute or two, until everything is just evenly mixed. The dough will be fairly stiff and quite unlike regular bread dough, so don't worry if it's difficult to knead. Divide the dough into 8 pieces (for large tortillas) or 12 (for smaller, 6-inch tortillas). Do your best to shape them into balls and let them sit for 30 minutes, covered with a damp towel.
After the dough has rested, it will be easier to roll out. Roll each ball into a very thin circle (about the thickness of poster board). You can pile the tortillas on top of each other until you are finished rolling.
Heat a skillet over a medium heat. Once the pan is fully preheated, place one tortilla in at a time. Wait for it to bubble up and turn slightly golden before flipping it and cooking it on the second side in the same manner (about 30 seconds each side). When each tortilla is done, pile them on a plate and cover with a damp cloth to keep soft and warm.
Flour Tortillas (adapted from Budget Bytes; serves 10-12)
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2 cups all-purpose flour
5 tbsp lard (we used Crisco)
3/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup warm water
Combine the flours in a large bowl and stir until evenly mixed. Add the lard/Crisco and work it in with your hands until the flour is coated in lard and you have an even, crumbly mixture. Dissolve the salt into the warm water. Add the salt water to the flour/lard a little at a time until a cohesive ball has formed. You may need more or less water depending on the moisture content of your flour.
Once you have a rough ball of dough, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead it for a minute or two, until everything is just evenly mixed. The dough will be fairly stiff and quite unlike regular bread dough, so don't worry if it's difficult to knead. Divide the dough into 8 pieces (for large tortillas) or 12 (for smaller, 6-inch tortillas). Do your best to shape them into balls and let them sit for 30 minutes, covered with a damp towel.
After the dough has rested, it will be easier to roll out. Roll each ball into a very thin circle (about the thickness of poster board). You can pile the tortillas on top of each other until you are finished rolling.
Heat a skillet over a medium heat. Once the pan is fully preheated, place one tortilla in at a time. Wait for it to bubble up and turn slightly golden before flipping it and cooking it on the second side in the same manner (about 30 seconds each side). When each tortilla is done, pile them on a plate and cover with a damp cloth to keep soft and warm.
Recipe: Budget Bytes: Flour Tortillas
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