Homemade Flour Tortillas

Is there really a reason to make homemade tortillas?  Especially when they sell the uncooked variety in the store now?  I really don't know if there is, unless you are an idiot like me or you live in a place where you can't find the stinking uncooked tortillas in the store (Hawaii).  Now that I am back on the mainland, I walk up, look at them and think to myself, "Do I really want to spend the 3 dollars on tortillas when I have everything I need to make them at home?"  Sometimes the answer is, "Yes! I really want to just buy them!"  But sometimes I decide I have time to make them.  They really aren't that hard to make, the question is mainly about time. I have made them a few times and this last time they were my best result so far.  I think I figured out a few tricks and tips that are worth sharing.

Flour Tortillas

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups flour

3/4 tsp salt

2 T melted butter or oil

1/2 cup warm water

Directions:

Add flour and salt to bowl of food processor with steel blade attached.  Turn on for 10 seconds to combine.  With water and melted butter in measuring cup, turn on food processor and slowly add liquid until it just looks like this:

You don't want it to be all in one ball or it will be too wet.  You should be able to form it into a ball with your hands, but it won't be sticky.  If it is, knead in some flour.  If it won't form a ball with your hands, add a bit more water.

Cover and let rest for an hour or two.  If you don't have an hour or two you can proceed, but the dough is easier to work with if you wait.  This dough reminds me a lot of working with the pasta dough.

Separate into 6 balls to make regular size tortillas or you could do 4 and make extra large ones.  I usually make 6.  Roll out, the big difference I noticed between this and the pasta is that you want to use flour sparingly with the tortillas, rather than having it everywhere like you would with pasta.  When I have made them in the past I have noticed that the flour just hangs around, even after cooking, it seems there is still a dusting of flour on the tortilla. I tried not to use any flour this time, but ended up using just a little bit.  You could also use some non-stick cooking spray to prevent sticking.  I used my mat to roll them out.  It's okay if it sticks to the mat a little bit, just pick it up a couple times and then roll again.  You want to roll them thin enough to see through the dough.  If you do 6 tortillas, they will be about 8 inches across.  Cook over high heat 1-2 minutes on each side.  If you don't cook them enough they will seem kind of tough, if you cook them too much, they will be crispy.  Look for these big bubbles.  If you are just getting tiny bubbles, you need to turn up the heat.

I was happy with the result, but if I calculate how much my time is worth, I hope it's more than 3 dollars an hour.  Even knowing that, I will probably still make them again.

Source: :How To Cook Everything: Simple Recipes for Great Food