This recipe is from Southern Plate and I first made it last year. They're super easy to make and quite tasty, my husband in particular likes them. You wouldn't think the ingredients are only Oreos and cream cheese with chocolate on the outside! I made little baggies of Oreo Truffles, Peanut Butter Truffles and Coconut Rum Balls for my husband to give his coworkers- all guys- and these Oreo Truffles in particular were a hit. They're great made dipped in either regular chocolate almond bark or white chocolate almond bark.
A few tips:
-Almond bark's other name is chocolate candy coating and it doesn't actually have almonds in it. It's basically low quality chocolate but is just fine for this type of thing. You can find it in the baking aisle next to the chocolate chips and it basically looks like a very thick chocolate bar and is scored so you can break it into pieces. The grocery store we usually go to doesn't always have it but WalMart does.
-Parchment paper is amazing. You can bake cookies (and biscuits!) on it without them sticking (even without greasing it) and truffles come off it perfectly! Buy some if you don't have it already.
-To speed things along you can put more than one truffle in the container of chocolate at a time.
-A plastic fork with the middle tines broken off is perfect for lifting the truffles out of the chocolate.
-A toothpick works great for nudging the truffle off the fork and onto the parchment paper.
Oreo Truffles
16 oz Oreo cookies
8 oz brick cream cheese at room temperature
16 oz almond bark/candy coating
chocolate sprinkles (optional but good if you're making Peanut Butter Truffles too)
Pulverize Oreos in a food processor until you have fine crumbs. Place them in the bowl of a stand mixer along with the cream cheese and beat on low until well combined. Form mixture into balls the size of walnuts and refrigerate for an hour or so. Tear off a big sheet of parchment paper and place it on your work surface glossy side up. Heat the almond bark according to the directions on the package. Place the balls in the chocolate and use a spoon to pour chocolate on top. Lift them out of the chocolate with the plastic fork and scrape the excess off on the side of the bowl/container. Place on the parchment paper and sprinkle with chocolate sprinkles if you're using them. Let the chocolate set then store in a covered container in the refrigerator. They'll keep for about 2 weeks.
Yield: about 24 truffles.
Saturday, December 24, 2011
Peanut Butter Truffles
Most people seem to associate Christmas with cookies but at our house we end up making other kinds of treats at Christmas, like these Peanut Butter Truffles, Oreo Truffles, Rice Krispie wreaths (which we regrettably didn't make this year) and the new but delicious addition of Coconut Rum Balls. Cookies are great but candies stay good longer and it's nice not to have only cookies. This is my third year of making Peanut Butter Truffles at Christmas because they're so good! You may have heard them called Buckeyes but we call them Peanut Butter Truffles because I dip the entire balls in chocolate instead of just the bottoms/sides (which is how Buckeyes are normally done) and Peanut Butter Truffle just sounds nicer. If you've never had them and love peanut butter, you should really give them a try. They practically melt in your mouth and are very tasty. Also I can't really attribute this recipe to anyone because it's the result of trial and error after looking at about 10 recipes.
A few tips:
-Weigh out the powdered sugar with a kitchen scale. I buy 2 lb bags and just weigh the bag, then add powdered sugar to the mixing bowl until I've added 14 ounces. Surely you will find a use for the rest of the sugar!
-Almond bark's other name is chocolate candy coating and it doesn't actually have almonds in it. It's basically low quality chocolate but is just fine for this type of thing. You can find it in the baking aisle next to the chocolate chips and it basically looks like a very thick chocolate bar and is scored so you can break it into pieces. The grocery store we usually go to doesn't always have it but WalMart does.
-Parchment paper is amazing. You can bake cookies (and biscuits!) on it without them sticking (even without greasing it) and truffles come off it perfectly! Buy some if you don't have it already.
-To speed things along you can put more than one truffle in the container of chocolate at a time.
-A plastic fork with the middle tines broken off is perfect for lifting the truffles out of the chocolate.
-A toothpick works great for nudging the truffle off the fork and onto the parchment paper.
Peanut Butter Truffles
1 stick butter at room temperature
18 oz peanut butter by weight (you can buy an 18 oz jar or scoop some out of a bigger jar)
1 t vanilla extract
14 oz powdered sugar by weight (I know, odd amount, but it's perfect)
16 oz package almond bark/chocolate candy coating
Place the butter, peanut butter and vanilla extract in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat with the paddle attachment until well combined. Add the powdered sugar and mix on low until the powdered sugar has been incorporated. The mixture will look crumbly but it should be easy to form it into non-sticky, non-crumbly balls. You can add a little more peanut butter if it's too dry or a little powdered sugar if too wet but it should be fine. Also you can probably do this with a hand mixer too or just a spoon but it will likely be more difficult.
Once the mixture is ready, roll it into balls the size of walnuts. Tear off a big sheet of parchment paper and place it on your work surface glossy side up. Heat the almond bark according to the directions on the package. Place the balls in the chocolate and use a spoon to pour chocolate on top. Lift them out of the chocolate with the plastic fork and scrape the excess off on the side of the bowl/container. Place on the parchment paper and let set. Store in a covered container in the refrigerator. They'll keep for at least 3 weeks or so.
Yield: 40-45 truffles
A few tips:
-Weigh out the powdered sugar with a kitchen scale. I buy 2 lb bags and just weigh the bag, then add powdered sugar to the mixing bowl until I've added 14 ounces. Surely you will find a use for the rest of the sugar!
-Almond bark's other name is chocolate candy coating and it doesn't actually have almonds in it. It's basically low quality chocolate but is just fine for this type of thing. You can find it in the baking aisle next to the chocolate chips and it basically looks like a very thick chocolate bar and is scored so you can break it into pieces. The grocery store we usually go to doesn't always have it but WalMart does.
-Parchment paper is amazing. You can bake cookies (and biscuits!) on it without them sticking (even without greasing it) and truffles come off it perfectly! Buy some if you don't have it already.
-To speed things along you can put more than one truffle in the container of chocolate at a time.
-A plastic fork with the middle tines broken off is perfect for lifting the truffles out of the chocolate.
-A toothpick works great for nudging the truffle off the fork and onto the parchment paper.
Peanut Butter Truffles
1 stick butter at room temperature
18 oz peanut butter by weight (you can buy an 18 oz jar or scoop some out of a bigger jar)
1 t vanilla extract
14 oz powdered sugar by weight (I know, odd amount, but it's perfect)
16 oz package almond bark/chocolate candy coating
Place the butter, peanut butter and vanilla extract in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat with the paddle attachment until well combined. Add the powdered sugar and mix on low until the powdered sugar has been incorporated. The mixture will look crumbly but it should be easy to form it into non-sticky, non-crumbly balls. You can add a little more peanut butter if it's too dry or a little powdered sugar if too wet but it should be fine. Also you can probably do this with a hand mixer too or just a spoon but it will likely be more difficult.
Once the mixture is ready, roll it into balls the size of walnuts. Tear off a big sheet of parchment paper and place it on your work surface glossy side up. Heat the almond bark according to the directions on the package. Place the balls in the chocolate and use a spoon to pour chocolate on top. Lift them out of the chocolate with the plastic fork and scrape the excess off on the side of the bowl/container. Place on the parchment paper and let set. Store in a covered container in the refrigerator. They'll keep for at least 3 weeks or so.
Yield: 40-45 truffles
Sunday, December 18, 2011
Coconut Rum Balls
Until today I'd never made rum balls, but they turned out so well that I have to share! I made this recipe from Allrecipes and all I changed was that I used coconut rum (because it's delicious) and rolled them in a mixture of powdered sugar and cocoa powder (because I'm not wild about the flavor of powdered sugar on its own). The recipe says to let them sit for a week before serving and they're already very good so I'm quite curious about how they'll be 7 days from now! In any case, I think these will become an annual tradition. Hopefully my husband's coworkers will like them too because I plan to send them these along with Oreo truffles and peanut butter truffles, which I plan to make tomorrow.
Okay, should I do it? It's a little embarrassing, but I DID announce this when I started to prepare the recipe, so... Let's get ready to rum ballllll!
Coconut Rum Balls
12 oz box Nilla Wafers (I used the store brand)
1 C chocolate chips
1/2 C sugar
1/2 C coconut rum
3 T corn syrup
1/2 C powdered sugar
1 T cocoa powder
Pulverize the Nilla Wafers in a food processor until you have fine crumbs. A 12 oz box should yield 2 1/2 cups of crumbs. Place the crumbs in a large mixing bowl. Put the chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 30 seconds, stir, microwave 30 seconds more and stir, then repeatedly microwave 15 seconds and stir until chips are melted. Be careful not to cook the chocolate too long or it will seize up and be unusable!
When the chips have melted, stir in the sugar, coconut rum and corn syrup until well combined. Stir into the cookie crumbs. Let the mixture sit at room temperature until it's pretty much solidified. You can stick it in the fridge to help along the process. When it's ready, the mixture should be quite stiff but easy to roll into balls slightly smaller than golf balls.
Combine the powdered sugar and cocoa powder, then roll the balls in the mixture. Brush off the excess sugar. Store in a covered container. You can start eating them immediately but the flavors meld more over time.
Yield: about 30 balls.
Okay, should I do it? It's a little embarrassing, but I DID announce this when I started to prepare the recipe, so... Let's get ready to rum ballllll!
Coconut Rum Balls
12 oz box Nilla Wafers (I used the store brand)
1 C chocolate chips
1/2 C sugar
1/2 C coconut rum
3 T corn syrup
1/2 C powdered sugar
1 T cocoa powder
Pulverize the Nilla Wafers in a food processor until you have fine crumbs. A 12 oz box should yield 2 1/2 cups of crumbs. Place the crumbs in a large mixing bowl. Put the chocolate chips in a microwave safe bowl and microwave for 30 seconds, stir, microwave 30 seconds more and stir, then repeatedly microwave 15 seconds and stir until chips are melted. Be careful not to cook the chocolate too long or it will seize up and be unusable!
When the chips have melted, stir in the sugar, coconut rum and corn syrup until well combined. Stir into the cookie crumbs. Let the mixture sit at room temperature until it's pretty much solidified. You can stick it in the fridge to help along the process. When it's ready, the mixture should be quite stiff but easy to roll into balls slightly smaller than golf balls.
Combine the powdered sugar and cocoa powder, then roll the balls in the mixture. Brush off the excess sugar. Store in a covered container. You can start eating them immediately but the flavors meld more over time.
Yield: about 30 balls.
Yummy Vegan Pancakes
There are some foods that I've tried many recipes for, trying to find exactly one that's exactly what I want. Pancakes is one of those foods. Over the years I've probably tried at least 10 recipes before I finally made up my own! I figured out that my issues with most pancake recipes are 1) they're too eggy and 2) they don't have enough salt. So the recipe I made up is eggless and has enough salt to give them a nice flavor all on their own. The recipe can also easily be made vegan by using juice instead of milk. I've had success with basically every fruit juice you can imagine and you should probably know that raspberry juice equals purple pancakes! You can also adjust the amount of liquid for how thick or thin you like your pancakes. My dude likes them on the thinner side so I use 1 1/4 cup of milk, but about a cup and 2 tablespoons will give you normal thickness pancakes.
I'd also like to note that I have a very thin spatula that is perfect for flipping pancakes. A lot of spatulas are quite thick and could mangle your innocent little pancake. Here's the one that I have, I love it to bits because it's the perfect spatula for everything! I'm a little confused because it has some terrible reviews that say it melts really easily but I've had my red one for 5 years and it still looks new even though it's the only spatula I own.
Enjoy!
Update: These are no longer our favorite pancakes. They're still good, and we make them if we're out of eggs, but our favorite by far is the basic pancake recipe from Cinnamon Roll Pancakes.
Vegan Pancakes
1 C flour
1 T sugar
1 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 cup plus 2-4 tablespoons juice (can use almond milk, or cow milk but it won't be vegan)
Whisk the dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl. Whisk in enough milk so that the batter is as thick as you'd like. Keep in mind it will thicken slightly as it sits. Heat a skillet over medium heat (or turn on your griddle) and spray with no stick spray or swipe on a little bit of butter. Pour some batter into the pan and make a pancake in whatever size you desire. When bubbles appear on the pancake and the edges are dry, give it a flip! Cook for another minute or so on the other side, until the bottom is lightly browned. Remove to a plate and keep warm in a 200 degree oven while you make the rest of the pancakes.
Yield: 6 good sized pancakes, enough for 2-3 people
I'd also like to note that I have a very thin spatula that is perfect for flipping pancakes. A lot of spatulas are quite thick and could mangle your innocent little pancake. Here's the one that I have, I love it to bits because it's the perfect spatula for everything! I'm a little confused because it has some terrible reviews that say it melts really easily but I've had my red one for 5 years and it still looks new even though it's the only spatula I own.
Enjoy!
Update: These are no longer our favorite pancakes. They're still good, and we make them if we're out of eggs, but our favorite by far is the basic pancake recipe from Cinnamon Roll Pancakes.
Vegan Pancakes
1 C flour
1 T sugar
1 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 t salt
1 cup plus 2-4 tablespoons juice (can use almond milk, or cow milk but it won't be vegan)
Whisk the dry ingredients together in a mixing bowl. Whisk in enough milk so that the batter is as thick as you'd like. Keep in mind it will thicken slightly as it sits. Heat a skillet over medium heat (or turn on your griddle) and spray with no stick spray or swipe on a little bit of butter. Pour some batter into the pan and make a pancake in whatever size you desire. When bubbles appear on the pancake and the edges are dry, give it a flip! Cook for another minute or so on the other side, until the bottom is lightly browned. Remove to a plate and keep warm in a 200 degree oven while you make the rest of the pancakes.
Yield: 6 good sized pancakes, enough for 2-3 people
Saturday, December 17, 2011
French Bread Pizza
Okay, this isn't a recipe as much as an idea for a quick, yummy and kind of fun dinner! French bread pizza. Exactly what it sounds like. Nice, thick crust that's crunchy on the outside and soft inside, topped with regular pizza fixings and ready to eat in about 20 minutes. You could also make it into a great appetizer by mixing lots of chopped pepperoni with the sauce and sprinkling the cheese over it, then cutting it into slices after it's cooked.
French Bread Pizza
1 french baguette
1 recipe pizza sauce (or 1 cup jarred pizza sauce if you'd prefer)
2 C shredded mozzarella cheese
toppings of your choice
sprinkle of garlic bread seasoning
Preheat oven to 400 and line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper or foil. Cut the baguette in half down the middle so the loaf isn't as long, then cut each piece in half lengthwise so you have 4 pieces. Arrange the bread on the cookie sheet and spread with pizza sauce, then top with cheese, toppings and a sprinkle of garlic bread seasoning. Bake in the preheated oven until cheese is melted, about 15 minutes. You can crank up the broiler for a bit at the end to get the cheese bubbly and golden, just don't walk away! Cut into smaller pieces and serve.
Yield: 6 to 8 servings
French Bread Pizza
1 french baguette
1 recipe pizza sauce (or 1 cup jarred pizza sauce if you'd prefer)
2 C shredded mozzarella cheese
toppings of your choice
sprinkle of garlic bread seasoning
Preheat oven to 400 and line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper or foil. Cut the baguette in half down the middle so the loaf isn't as long, then cut each piece in half lengthwise so you have 4 pieces. Arrange the bread on the cookie sheet and spread with pizza sauce, then top with cheese, toppings and a sprinkle of garlic bread seasoning. Bake in the preheated oven until cheese is melted, about 15 minutes. You can crank up the broiler for a bit at the end to get the cheese bubbly and golden, just don't walk away! Cut into smaller pieces and serve.
Yield: 6 to 8 servings
Thursday, December 15, 2011
Cranberry Meatballs
Earlier this year, my mother-in-law gave me a Christmas cook book from Gooseberry Patch that she found at a garage sale. I've liked Gooseberry Patch stuff since I was a little kid and my mom received the catalogs. It's so darned charming! I have a couple of their cook books and each one has a lot of yummy looking things in it.
The other night I decided to cook meat for the first time since I made Cincinnati Chili and whipped up Cranberry Meatballs (aka Tangy Barbecued Meatballs) from the Gooseberry Patch book. In the past I've made similar meatballs with jelly (grape on one occasion, currant on the other) and they were good but they're amazing with cranberry sauce! The meatballs themselves were great, too. Meatballs are one of those things I'm particular about and while I've tried many recipes, not a single one held a candle to the meatballs my mom makes (I will post that recipe sometime soon!). Her meatballs are so tender and have a ton of grated parmesan. These ones are cheeseless but also very, very good and perfect for a sauce that doesn't really go with parmesan. Next time I'm going to try them with ground turkey because I prefer ground turkey and turkey and cranberry kinda sorta go together :)
Update: I've made these with extra lean ground turkey and they are awesome, too. Next time I will probably experiment with whole berry cranberry sauce because I can.
Without further ado,
Cranberry Meatballs
Meatballs:
1 C crumbs (bread, cornflake, cracker, whatevs)
2 T dried minced onion or 1 t onion powder
2 t dried parsley
1 t salt
1/2 t garlic powder
1/4 t black pepper
2 T soy sauce
6 T ketchup
2 eggs
2 lbs lean ground beef
Sauce:
16 oz can jellied cranberry sauce
12 oz bottle chili sauce (the kind next to the ketchup, not the spicy Asian kind)
2 T brown sugar
1 T lemon juice
For the meatballs, preheat the oven to 350 and grease a 9 by 13 baking dish. In a bowl (or gallon plastic bag if you're me!), combine the dry ingredients for the meatballs, then add the soy sauce and eggs until well mixed. Add the ground beef and gently stir/squish until thoroughly combined. Form into meatballs and place in the prepared dish.
To make the sauce, add all ingredients to a medium pan. Mash with a potato masher to break up the cranberry sauce. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until cranberry sauce has melted. Pour over the meatballs. Bake, uncovered, until meatballs have reached an internal temperature of 160 degrees, which will take about 40 minutes. Enjoy over egg noodles or rice.
Yield: 8 servings, about 3 meatballs per person
The other night I decided to cook meat for the first time since I made Cincinnati Chili and whipped up Cranberry Meatballs (aka Tangy Barbecued Meatballs) from the Gooseberry Patch book. In the past I've made similar meatballs with jelly (grape on one occasion, currant on the other) and they were good but they're amazing with cranberry sauce! The meatballs themselves were great, too. Meatballs are one of those things I'm particular about and while I've tried many recipes, not a single one held a candle to the meatballs my mom makes (I will post that recipe sometime soon!). Her meatballs are so tender and have a ton of grated parmesan. These ones are cheeseless but also very, very good and perfect for a sauce that doesn't really go with parmesan. Next time I'm going to try them with ground turkey because I prefer ground turkey and turkey and cranberry kinda sorta go together :)
Update: I've made these with extra lean ground turkey and they are awesome, too. Next time I will probably experiment with whole berry cranberry sauce because I can.
Without further ado,
Cranberry Meatballs
Meatballs:
1 C crumbs (bread, cornflake, cracker, whatevs)
2 T dried minced onion or 1 t onion powder
2 t dried parsley
1 t salt
1/2 t garlic powder
1/4 t black pepper
2 T soy sauce
6 T ketchup
2 eggs
2 lbs lean ground beef
Sauce:
16 oz can jellied cranberry sauce
12 oz bottle chili sauce (the kind next to the ketchup, not the spicy Asian kind)
2 T brown sugar
1 T lemon juice
For the meatballs, preheat the oven to 350 and grease a 9 by 13 baking dish. In a bowl (or gallon plastic bag if you're me!), combine the dry ingredients for the meatballs, then add the soy sauce and eggs until well mixed. Add the ground beef and gently stir/squish until thoroughly combined. Form into meatballs and place in the prepared dish.
To make the sauce, add all ingredients to a medium pan. Mash with a potato masher to break up the cranberry sauce. Cook over medium heat, stirring frequently, until cranberry sauce has melted. Pour over the meatballs. Bake, uncovered, until meatballs have reached an internal temperature of 160 degrees, which will take about 40 minutes. Enjoy over egg noodles or rice.
Yield: 8 servings, about 3 meatballs per person
Holiday Mashed Potatoes
Who doesn't love mashed potatoes? My husband and I would basically be happy eating just mashed potatoes for dinner. These are the potatoes I make for Thanksgiving. They're absolutely loaded with heavy cream and butter so they're a once a year treat! I promise though that they're completely delicious and worth making.
Holiday Mashed Potatoes
5 lbs russet potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 t salt for cooking water
1 stick salted butter
1 1/2 C heavy cream
2 t salt
Place chopped potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil and then simmer until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Drain well and then add the butter. Mash with a potato masher until butter is melted, then add cream and salt. Continue to mash until potatoes are as smooth as you want. At this point you can also whip out the hand mixer to make them smoother, but we like lumps in our mashed potatoes! If you go the hand mixer route, just be careful not to beat them too much or the starch will break down and become gluey. Ask how I know this.
Yield: about 10-15 servings
Holiday Mashed Potatoes
5 lbs russet potatoes, peeled and chopped
1 t salt for cooking water
1 stick salted butter
1 1/2 C heavy cream
2 t salt
Place chopped potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Add 1 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil and then simmer until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Drain well and then add the butter. Mash with a potato masher until butter is melted, then add cream and salt. Continue to mash until potatoes are as smooth as you want. At this point you can also whip out the hand mixer to make them smoother, but we like lumps in our mashed potatoes! If you go the hand mixer route, just be careful not to beat them too much or the starch will break down and become gluey. Ask how I know this.
Yield: about 10-15 servings
Refried Beans
My husband and I love beans. We have them as a main dish at least once a week. Refried beans are of course one of our favorites, they're wonderful with homemade tortillas. If you have a slow cooker, they're super easy to make in addition to being cheap and delicious! They freeze well too so you can make a great big batch and freeze small containers. You'll never need (or want) to buy canned refried beans again! This is my variation of Terry's Texas Pinto Beans from AllRecipes.
Refried Beans
1 lb dried pinto beans, soaked overnight, then drained and rinsed
4 C water
3 large chicken bouillon cubes (I use Knorr, each is supposed to make 2 C broth)
3 T dried minced onion
1 t garlic powder
1 t cumin
1/2 t pepper
canned minced jalapeno to taste (I add a couple tablespoons)
Combine everything in the crock of a 4 quart slow cooker. Cook until beans are quite tender. The amount of time will depend on your slow cooker, but you can count on about 8 hours on low. When beans are tender, mash thoroughly with a potato masher. They won't be perfectly smooth like canned refried beans, but that's okay! Also don't fear, the beans will thicken up a lot as they cool.
Yield: about 8-10 servings.
Refried Beans
1 lb dried pinto beans, soaked overnight, then drained and rinsed
4 C water
3 large chicken bouillon cubes (I use Knorr, each is supposed to make 2 C broth)
3 T dried minced onion
1 t garlic powder
1 t cumin
1/2 t pepper
canned minced jalapeno to taste (I add a couple tablespoons)
Combine everything in the crock of a 4 quart slow cooker. Cook until beans are quite tender. The amount of time will depend on your slow cooker, but you can count on about 8 hours on low. When beans are tender, mash thoroughly with a potato masher. They won't be perfectly smooth like canned refried beans, but that's okay! Also don't fear, the beans will thicken up a lot as they cool.
Yield: about 8-10 servings.
Flour Tortillas
I haven't posted in a while because I went quite a while where I was reheating things from the freezer and using things from the pantry! I also made a few recipes that aren't worthy of sharing or that I still need to perfect. There are a few things I made though that I definitely DO want to share.
Let's start with tortillas! I always thought homemade flour tortillas would be hard to make, but they really aren't. It does take a while if you are making them by yourself because you have to make the dough, let it rest, roll it out, and cook each tortilla individually, but you can speed things up big time by having someone roll out the tortillas while the other cooks them. If you haven't made tortillas before, I really suggest you try it just once. They're SO good and significantly tastier than tortillas from the grocery store. We do still buy tortillas sometimes because it's much faster (and I don't want to waste beautiful homemade tortillas in a casserole or enchiladas or something), but have been happily making these guys for a couple of years now. I should also note that they freeze quite well when wrapped in foil.
The recipe is a slight variation of this one from AllRecipes.
Flour Tortillas
5 C flour
2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
2 T shortening
about 1 1/2 C hot water
Stir together flour, baking powder and salt, then cut in the shortening until the mixture looks like coarse cornmeal. You can do this with your fingers, a pastry blender, or a stand mixer. Stir in about 1 cup of the hot water, then add more a little at a time until you have a nice, sturdy dough that isn't sticky at all. Form the dough into a ball and coat it lightly with oil, then cover the bowl with a towel and let it rest for 10 minutes.
To make the tortillas, cut off small balls of dough and roll them out. I have never needed to flour the rolling pin or the rolling surface. You can make the tortillas as big or small, as thin or fat as you want. My dough balls are usually slightly larger than a golf ball. Just keep in mind that they have baking powder in them so they'll be a bit thicker after they're cooked. I suggest you roll them out pretty thin to start with. And don't worry if they end up shaped like Africa, you're not alone! They'll still taste good. After rolling out each tortilla, f I'm working alone, I just stack them on a plate, but if you have a helper you can have them roll out the tortillas while you man the stove.
To cook the tortillas, heat a large, ungreased skillet over medium. Cook a tortilla on one side until it starts turning white around the edges and has lightly browned spots on the bottom, about 30 seconds. Flip and cook on the other side for a little less time, until it has light brown spots as well. Remove to a plate and cover with foil. Repeat with the rest of the tortillas, stacking them up on the plate as you go. The tortillas may seem pretty firm when they come out of the skillet, but after being stacked together and covered with foil, they soften quite a bit.
Enjoy!
Yield: about 20 5 inch tortillas.
Let's start with tortillas! I always thought homemade flour tortillas would be hard to make, but they really aren't. It does take a while if you are making them by yourself because you have to make the dough, let it rest, roll it out, and cook each tortilla individually, but you can speed things up big time by having someone roll out the tortillas while the other cooks them. If you haven't made tortillas before, I really suggest you try it just once. They're SO good and significantly tastier than tortillas from the grocery store. We do still buy tortillas sometimes because it's much faster (and I don't want to waste beautiful homemade tortillas in a casserole or enchiladas or something), but have been happily making these guys for a couple of years now. I should also note that they freeze quite well when wrapped in foil.
The recipe is a slight variation of this one from AllRecipes.
Flour Tortillas
5 C flour
2 t baking powder
1/2 t salt
2 T shortening
about 1 1/2 C hot water
Stir together flour, baking powder and salt, then cut in the shortening until the mixture looks like coarse cornmeal. You can do this with your fingers, a pastry blender, or a stand mixer. Stir in about 1 cup of the hot water, then add more a little at a time until you have a nice, sturdy dough that isn't sticky at all. Form the dough into a ball and coat it lightly with oil, then cover the bowl with a towel and let it rest for 10 minutes.
To make the tortillas, cut off small balls of dough and roll them out. I have never needed to flour the rolling pin or the rolling surface. You can make the tortillas as big or small, as thin or fat as you want. My dough balls are usually slightly larger than a golf ball. Just keep in mind that they have baking powder in them so they'll be a bit thicker after they're cooked. I suggest you roll them out pretty thin to start with. And don't worry if they end up shaped like Africa, you're not alone! They'll still taste good. After rolling out each tortilla, f I'm working alone, I just stack them on a plate, but if you have a helper you can have them roll out the tortillas while you man the stove.
To cook the tortillas, heat a large, ungreased skillet over medium. Cook a tortilla on one side until it starts turning white around the edges and has lightly browned spots on the bottom, about 30 seconds. Flip and cook on the other side for a little less time, until it has light brown spots as well. Remove to a plate and cover with foil. Repeat with the rest of the tortillas, stacking them up on the plate as you go. The tortillas may seem pretty firm when they come out of the skillet, but after being stacked together and covered with foil, they soften quite a bit.
Enjoy!
Yield: about 20 5 inch tortillas.