Tortillas, chips, bean dip, nachos, taco salad and sopapillas

Ok, I also promised Lib I'd post a recipe for tortillas. I usually make flour tortillas, but I recently bought some Masa Harina to make corn tortillas. I've yet to try it but when I do, I'll let you guys know how it worked out.

Also, please note. I've been cooking alone since I was 9 years old. I'm now 54. I don't do a lot of measuring of spices in my recipes. I just know how much of something we like in our food. I've tried to estimate amounts for those that like to be able to measure. These measurements are a jumping off point. Remember that you can change the seasonings around in any recipe - especially if you know what your family likes. For instance, many people love fresh cilantro in their salsa and dips. I HATE the taste of cilantro, so I don't use it. My family and I don't like black pepper, so I regularly delete it from any recipe I receive. Feel free to add in what your family likes, remove what they don't like. Add more of less of a seasoning until it's got the flavor that makes your family happy. I'm of German descent. We like vinegary things. So if the salsa recipe sounds like it's too much vinegar, use less. Don't want to use olive oil, don't. Like cider vinegar instead of wine, use it instead. It will give the food a different flavor, but if you like it, use it instead. In other words, make these recipes yours.


Flour Tortillas

4 cups flour (I've used both white and whole wheat. Next time I make them with whole wheat, I'm going to add 1 Tbs of vital wheat gluten to make them more pliable.)
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup lard (we've been using shortening. But take your pick - transfats or animal fat. I'll bet olive oil will work too, but I haven't tried that yet.)
water

Mix the flour and the salt. Cut in whatever you're using for fat. Mix in enough water to make a pliable dough. Start with 1/4 cup and add more as needed. (I've never measured the amount, I just add water and mix like pie dough until I have a pliable dough.) Knead dough until soft enough to stretch well. I break the dough into about 7-10 balls. (The fewer the balls of dough, the bigger each tortilla will be.) Let stand 30 mins, covered with a damp cloth. Then roll out paper thin or press in a tortilla press (mine was a whopping $5.00 from a friend with family in Mexico)
Cook in a medium hot skillet or griddle until tortillas start to bubble. If they start to stick, wipe the bottom of the pan with oil. I wipe my cast iron skillets with a cloth that I've dabbed oil on before I set them on the stove. (I have more than one skillet going for all things that I'm doing a lot of - pancakes, tortillas, grilling sandwiches, etc...) I preheat the skillets to medium and then bake the tortillas in them. If the tortilla get too big a bubble going, I will prick it with a fork.

These are so good, I have to double the batch! They also freeze well.

To make some really yummy chips out of these:
Brush the top of however many tortillas you want with oil or butter. If you wanted to you can spray them with no-stick spray. You can also sprinkle tops with salt, Parmesan cheese, etc., before you toast them. Cut them into 6th or 8th. Lay pieces in a single layer on a cookie sheet and bake at 350 for about 8-10 mins. or until toasted.

5 minute beans for fillings or dip

Grind either black beans or pinto beans in a grinder to make a flour.

2 1/2 cups water
3/4 cups pinto or black bean* flour
1/2 to 3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
pinch of garlic powder

Directions usually tell you to whisk the flour into the boiling water. This tends to result in lumps. What I do is take the flour and put it in a large cup. I then measure out some water and use part of that to stir into the flour. I make first a paste, then a slurry that will pour, into the rest of the water when it's boiled. So for this, I'd measure out 2 cups of water. I'll only use part of the water to make the flour into a slurry - perhaps 1/2 -3/4 cups of the water. When the slurry is made, put the rest of the 2 cups of water that didn't get used into a medium pot, with the remaining 1/2 cup of the 2 1/2 cups water called for and bring it to a boil over high heat. Turn the heat down to medium and add the bean slurry to the pot. Pour the slurry slowly into the water, stirring constantly - scrape the cup to get all the goodness out. Then bring the mixture back to a boil over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan and cook 4 minutes. You can add some Picante sauce, taco sauce or salsa to this if you'd like. I also like to add some cheese to it - any kind I have on hand - cheddar, Monterrey Jack, Pepper Jack, etc.
This will be a little thin, but will thicken on cooling and stay thick even if you re-heat it.

*Note about black bean flour
Black bean flour tends to look rather blue-grey-brown when it only cooks a short time. This is fine if your using it inside of a tortilla or taco shell. Plain, it doesn't look as appetizing. So If you're using this as a dip, nuke in a covered dish for about 5 minutes on high. It will turn a better shade of brown.

Refried bean master mix for fillings or dip
3 cups pinto or black bean* flour
1 tsp cumin
1 tbs chili powder
1/4 tsp garlic powder (opt)
2 tsp instant minced onions or onion powder (opt)
Mix this together and store in an airtight container. (I freeze all my flours so that they retain the vitamins, which tend to oxidize quickly after grinding. But you may choose to store this on a shelf or in your fridge.)

To prepare
Directions usually tell you to whisk the flour into the boiling water. This tends to result in lumps. What I do is take the flour and put it in a large cup. I then measure out some water and use part of that to stir into the flour. I make first a paste, then a slurry that will pour, into the rest of the water when it's boiled. So for this, I'd measure out 2 cups of water. I'll only use part of the water to make the flour into a slurry - perhaps 1/2 -3/4 cups of the water. When the slurry is made, put the rest of the 2 cups of water that didn't get used into a medium pot, with the remaining 1/2 cup of the 2 1/2 cups water called for and bring it to a boil over high heat. Turn the heat down to medium and add the bean slurry to the pot. Pour the slurry slowly into the water, stirring constantly - scrape the cup to get all the goodness out. Then bring the mixture to a boil again over medium heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pan and cook 4 minutes. You can add some Picante sauce, taco sauce or salsa to this if you'd like. I also like to add some cheese to it - any kind I have on hand - cheddar, Monterrey Jack, Pepper Jack, etc.
This will be a little thin, but will thicken on cooling and stay thick even if you re-heat it.

*Note about black bean flour
Black bean flour tends to look rather blue-grey-brown when it only cooks a short time. This is fine if your using it inside of a tortilla or taco shell. Plain, it doesn't look as appetizing. So If you're using this as a dip, nuke in a covered dish for about 5 minutes on high. It will turn a better shade of brown.


Refried bean soup
You can also use broth instead of water, thin the refried mixture out and use this for a soup. Float pieces of tortillas - either plain or toasted into chips, or Fritos. Add some cheese, tomato pieces, onions, cooked ground beef, etc. You can have dinner in like 10 mins!
Serve with tortillas - flour or corn, some salsa and sour cream.

Guacamole
2 avocado, mashed
juice of 1 lime - about 1-2 tbs
Cumin
onion powder or minced onion
Mix together. I never measure this. Just start with 1 tsp and add to taste. Let it sit for 10-20 minutes, covered, so the flavors can meld . Press the plastic directly on top of the avocado or it will turn brown - still tastes good, just looks yucky.

Salsa Colombian style
6 Roma tomatoes, or 3 regular tomatoes, diced small
1 med onion, diced small
1 jalapeño pepper, minced
1 1/2 tsp salt
red wine vinegar
olive oil

Place in a medium size bowl and mix together tomatoes, onions and peppers. Add vinegar to 1 1/2" to 2" below vegies. Pour a 1/2"-1" layer of oil over all. Add salt and stir well. Use fresh.

Nachos
Either homemade or store-bought:
Tortilla chips
Bean dip
shredded cheese
sliced black olives
Sour cream
Guacamole
diced tomatoes*
Diced onions*
red wine vinegar and oil*
*or salsa instead

Place the chips on a plate. Layer dip and cheese on top. Nuke for about 45 seconds - just enough to melt the cheese. Top with olives, sour cream, guacamole and either salsa or the tomatoes, onion and some vinegar and oil.

Taco Salad
Above ingredients for Nachos, plus ground beef seasoned with taco seasoning and lettuce.

crush chips, place ground beef, dip and cheese on top. Nuke to melt cheese. Then add lettuce and continue layering as for Nachos.

Sopapillas
After rolling out dough, instead of heating it in a dry skillet, drop the dough into a pot of oil and deep fat fry them, turning once. They will puff up. Drain on a couple of towels to absorb extra grease. Sprinkle with sugar, brown sugar, powdered sugar, honey, nutmeg and/or cinnamon. Eat while still warm.

Hope you enjoy these dishes as much as my kids do.