Protective Diet Class #266 Notes:

Homemade Tortillas & Pro Tips for Perfect Chips

In this class you join me in my Workplace for Wellness turned PD-Ed Tortilla Factory! I share my quick dough mixing technique along with Pro Tips for sure thing soft puffed tortillas and perfect crispy chips. I show you my favorite stovetop to oven cookware, why I don’t use non-stick pans, and how to season cast iron. When it’s Time to Eat, I demonstrate my Chili Salad Bowl that Jerry and I adore many times a week with our chips. Reduce stress playing in your Workplace for Wellness, while creating and minimizing with me.

Announcements

1. A shout out to Jennifer for rejoining, jumping all in and experiencing fast results, losing 6lbs in one week on a PD.
2. Julie shares how stress is physically manifesting in her body and what she is doing about it.
3. Post pictures of your homemade tortillas in Protective Diet Living (PDL).
4. Thank you for posting your beautiful meal photographs in PDL. I am blown away by the amazing chefs and platers we have. You are presenting the most beautiful meals to yourself and your family and you should be so proud.

Vocabulary

Action Steps for Perfect Homemade Corn Tortillas & Baked Chips

The Right Ingredients

• Masa harina or Maseca, NOT cornmeal/corn flour/corn grits/polenta.

– Dried corn, soaked with lime mineral and finely ground into flour.

– Should be just corn and lime. Sometimes contains folic acid as a food additive. Choose additive-free whenever possible.

– Use a variety of types/brands; plant diversity supports microbe diversity. Julie describes her results from different brands.

• Boiled water (an electric tea kettle makes this so convenient).

The Right Tools

• Cast Iron Skillet (the PD favorite, but stainless steel, ceramic & enameled also work).

– Must be kept dry or it will rust, although it is rust-resistant. Store it away from the sink or any water source.

– They come pre-seasoned—coated with non-toxic oil and baked to create a bond within the metal (Polymerization).

– Retains its non-stick finish even at high temperatures, unlike typical non-stick finishes.

– Rub the pan with a thin layer of coconut oil and bake face down on a baking pan at 450˚ for 1 hour (oven or outdoor grill).

– Let it cool completely in the oven/grill. The oil will not come off and bake into your food.

– If you wash it with soap and water, you must re-season it. Keep acidic things (such as tomatoes) off your Cast Iron Skillet.

• Victoria Cast Iron Tortilla Press (Top-rated press for creating the thinnest, evenly cooked tortillas).
• Off-set Spatula or Tongs

The Right Techniques

• Follow the recipe for PD Corn Tortillas, including all the notes and tips for perfect tortillas.
• Measuring and mixing the dough is the hardest part and this technique makes it easy and fail-proof.

– Measure masa harina by pressing the measuring cup against the inside of the bag=a packed cup.

– No salt added because it is better added to the surface when making chips to avoid making them too salty.

• Boiled water makes the perfect dough consistency with no guesswork.
• Knead the dough a lot, like playdough; makes the tortillas puff with heated air, which cooks the inside.
• Roll dough into a log and cut a bit left of center. Cut the shorter section into 3 parts and the longer section into 4 parts.
• Use a finger bowl of water to moisten fingers as necessary and roll one part into a ball.
• Line a plastic-wrapped tortilla press (can repurpose bags from produce packaging instead of purchasing plastic for this use).
• Press. Rotate tortilla. Press again to create even thinness.
• Cook with 3 flips, a tap and wrap:

– Flip at 30-second intervals.

– Tap/Press tortilla center with an off-set spatula on the 3^rd flip to help with the puffing up.

– Wrap in kitchen towel-lined soufflé dish to keep warm—the soufflé dish is the perfect size, but any bowl will work.

Baking Tortilla Chips for Your Dinner Starch

• Make 2 batches of tortillas to get 2 pans of chips.
  • Arrange oven racks with one above and one below center position for best circulation.
  • Preheat oven to 400˚.
  • For each pan, stack 6 tortillas on a cutting board and use a knife to slice into quarters. Single-layer on pans.
  • Generously salt chips, and then spritz with water to adhere salt. If using frozen tortillas no water is necessary.
  • Set a timer for 10 minutes and bake. Rotate pans front to back, switch shelves and bake for another 10 minutes.

– Chips will be chewy if they are not dehydrated enough, but if too browned, they don’t taste good.

– If the chips are still chewy, turn off oven, put them farthest from the heat source and leave them to crisp up.

– If chips are getting too dark and are still chewy, next time use a lower oven temperature and bake longer

– Hot, freshly made tortillas or frozen will take longer to bake than dried, shelf-stored tortillas.

– Convection/Electric/Gas ovens will each have slight variation in best time and temp. Play with it to get your best.

– Chips baked from frozen tortillas will be flakier.

Freezing and Reheating Tortillas & Chips

• Freeze in a stack in a plastic freezer bag. Store a plastic bag labeled, “Tortillas” in the freezer for unlimited reuse.
  • Reheat one tortilla at a time directly on a gas burner or in a heated pan on an electric stovetop. Wrap to keep warm.
  • Make chips fresh. If you must make-ahead, return them to the oven for a few minutes to re-crisp before serving.

Cooking Tips

• When using your phone as a timer in the kitchen, wrap it with a piece of plastic wrap.
• Use your skillet to toast arbol, ancho, pasilla, and guajillo chilies and jalapenos for PD Recipes.
• If you only need ½ an onion, chop the other half and store in a jar for easy meal toppers during the week.
• If you chop up too much cilantro, add it to your onions and shake it in a jar. It will stay fresh for a couple of days.
• Julie demonstrates assembling a PD weeknight warm chili salad bowl loaded with fresh, crunchy, protective toppings.

Student Q&A

Q: Is it ok to use non-organic masa harina?

Q: Would you use these for the Salad Chips, too?

Q: Do the PD Corn Tortillas freeze well?

Q: Do you just stack them and freeze or separate them with something in between?

Encouragement

• If you are seeing physical signs of stress, do something about it. Find ways to play and have fun.
• Have fun in your workplace for wellness. These tortillas are so fun! It’s so much fun making them with a friend or family member. Practice makes you a pro. You really can’t mess these tortillas up, I promise.
• As both an artist and a minimalist, there is nothing better than creating food in my Workplace for Wellness and eating it–satisfies my need to get rid of my creation and keep my home neat. I hope these recipes give you that outlet for creativity.
• It’s okay if you just have chips and salsa for dinner. That meal is loaded with protection from whole grain corn and protective salsa. If you are a snacky person like I was…baked tortilla chips saved my life and made PD possible at first.

I am totally addicted to making tortillas.

It’s not a bad problem to have.

Recommended Recipes

Recommended Classes

In this class you join me in my Workplace for Wellness turned PD-Ed Tortilla Factory! I share my quick dough mixing technique along with Pro Tips for sure thing soft puffed tortillas and perfect crispy chips. I show you my favorite stovetop to oven cookware, why I don’t use non-stick pans, and how to season cast iron. When it’s Time to Eat, I demonstrate my Chili Salad Bowl that Jerry and I adore many times a week with our chips. Reduce stress playing in your Workplace for Wellness, while creating and minimizing with me.