Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Homemade Tortillas

Found another version of tortillas on the Homestead in the Hills of Tennessee blog that I want to try
http://homesteadinthehillsoftennessee.blogspot.com/2013/12/homemade-tortillas.html

Homemade Wheat Tortillas
  • ¼ cup butter, softened
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp salt
  • 3 cups whole wheat flour
  • 1 ¼ cups warm water
     
    Mix 1 ½ cups flour, baking powder, salt, and butter in a medium bowl. Add warm water. Then mix in remaining flour and knead for a minute or so. Make the dough into 10 balls. Shape the balls into 2-3 inch circular disks. Roll out on a flour-sprinkled surface, turning and flipping the tortilla every few strokes of the rolling pin.
    Flip after 30-45 seconds
     

Homemade Flour Tortillas
Author: 
Ingredients
  • 2 cups flour
  • ½ tsp baking soda
  • dash salt
  • 2 T butter
  • ¾ cup milk
  • 1 tsp to 1T of honey
Instructions
  1. Combine the milk,honey and butter and heat until the butter is almost melted.
  2. In a large mixing bowl combine the flour, baking soda and salt.
  3. Turn on your mixer using the dough hook attachment* and gradually add the milk mixture to your dry ingredients.
  4. Allow it to mix until the dough has come together and pulls away from the bowl. You may have to add additional liquid or flour depending on the humidity of your house.
  5. Allow the dough to rest in a covered bowl for 20 minutes
  6. Divide the dough into approximately 12 balls and allow to rest, covered, for 10 minutes.
  7. Preheat a skillet on medium heat.
  8. On a floured surface, roll** one of your balls of dough into a circle 6-8 inches in diameter, making sure to turn the dough for even rolling and to prevent sticking.
  9. Place the rolled dough in your skillet and allow to cook about 1 minute on each side.
  10. While the first tortilla is cooking, roll your next tortilla, and continue this way until all are rolled and cooked.
  11. Place finished tortillas under a towel while the rest are being made.
  12. * if you do not have an electric mixer, add the milk a little at a time, stirring with a wooden spoon after each addition. Knead with your hands for a few minutes once the dough has come together.
  13. **You can also use a tortilla press to press the dough. Some presses do both the pressing and cooking.

This recipe doubles or triples well. I make triple batches often to save in the freezer. The recipe is also adaptable to different types of flours, and if you find yourself low on milk, you can use mostly (or all) water for the liquid. Once you get the hang of the rolling and cooking process, it goes pretty quickly and you should be able do a batch of 12 in less than 15 minutes. A couple of years ago, I bought the CucinaPro 1443 Flatbread and Tortilla Maker* which presses and cooks the tortillas. I would highly recommend it. I am not sure it saves me time, but it makes the process much simpler- especially when I get interrupted numerous times!
homemade tortillas
Tortillas are a staple at our house- they get eaten for breakfast, lunch and dinner. If you look at the ingredient list on the back of most store-bought tortilla packages you will see quite a long list of not-so-good things. I have been making homemade tortillas for years now and they aren’t as hard as you might think. And on the days that I am running short on a time and end up at the grocery store, a quick look at the package will get me right back in the homemade tortilla habit.
I started out with a very simple recipe, but over time I have experimented and finally landed on a favorite version.
homemade tortilla recipe
homemade tortilla recipe
From http://thefreerangelife.com/2013/10/12/homemade-tortillas/

Hot Chocolate Mix

Hot Chocolate Mix
2c dry milk
1 1/2 c sugar or splenda (or a little less)
1c non-dairy creamer
3/4c cocoa powder
1 pkg pudding
1/8t salt
cinnamon (optional)

Combine all ingredients in food processor or blender until powdered.

Store in an airtight container.

Put 2-3 T in a mug with water.

Thursday, November 21, 2013

Taco Seasoning

Adapted from many and I loosely measure these ingredients for 1lb of ground meat.

1T chili powder (if you don't have enough then you can make it) 
2t cumin
1t salt
1/2t paprika (I like to use smoked)
1/4t garlic powder
1/4t onion powder
1/4t oregano
1/4t cayenne (I use a dash and not near this amount)

Brown meat, drain fat, add seasoning and ~1/4-1/2c water to meat and simmer over medium heat until water is absorbed.

Chili Powder

from http://southernfood.about.com/od/seasoningrecipes/r/bl30420j.htm

Makes ~2.3T  Reminder 16T to 1c
2t cumin
2t garlic powder
1t paprika
1t oregano
1t cayenne (I use significantly less)

When I need Chili powder and don't need 2T  I add in these ratios.. and normally only a pinch of cayenne.

Ketchup

From http://allrecipes.com/recipe/in-a-pinch-ketchup/  Made with a few modification for our house.  I have not made this ketchup recipe yet.

Make 1 1/2c
2c tomato sauce
2T white or cider vinegar
1/3 sugar
2t molasses
1t garlic powder
1t onion powder
1t salt
dash of nutmeg, clove,  & cinnamon or 1/4 allspice
1/4 water (optional)

Mix together over low heat; simmer to desired consistency.  If water is added it might be 45min-1hr.

BBQ Sauce

Going to give this BBQ sauce recipe a try http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Big-Als-KC-Bar-B-Q-Sauce/

Here is the Ketchup recipe I used in place http://allrecipes.com/recipe/in-a-pinch-ketchup/

Make 6c (we will see)
4c tomato sauce
1 1/3c red wine or cider vinegar
1 1/2c sugar
2/3c molasses
1/2c water
4t hickory liquid smoke
1/2T garlic powder
1/2T onion powder
1t paprika
1/4t chili powder 
1/4t cinnamon
1/4t cayenne
dash nutmeg
dash cloves

Add above to a heave bottom pan, simmer 30min or until desired thickness.  Cool and transfer to BBQ sauce bottle and store in frig.

On reviewer made up extra and canned in pint jars in a hot water bath.

Ranch Dressing



Here is recipe from http://allrecipes.com/recipe/dry-ranch-style-seasoning-for-dip-or-dressing/  Or my suggestion to make 1c.  It has been modified to what I think it should be.

3/4c sour cream or plain yougert
1/4c milk or less
1t parsley
1/2t salt
1/2t onion powder
1/2t garlic powder
1/4t dill weed
1//4t pepper
1/8t thyme

Mix all above into jar, seal and shake.  Can store in refrigerator for 1 week.

-----
Here is a dry mix for ranch dressing http://mylampisfull.blogspot.com/2013/06/out-of-bottle-ranch-dressing.html

Ranch dry mix:
2/3c Dried Parsley
5t Garlic powder
5T minced onion or 5t onion powder
3t dried basil (optional)
1/2t pepper
1t salt

Store in container

To make Ranch Dressing, add 2-3t of mix to (how much??) sour cream and thin with milk to desired consistency.