Tortillas de masa (corn tortillas)

6 Servings

Ingredients

Quantity Ingredient
2 cups Masa Harina
1 teaspoon Salt
2 tablespoons Margarine
1¼ cup Warm water

Directions

Mix masa harina and salt. Add margarine. Add warm water all at once and use fingers to work mixture into a soft dough. Knead dough until no longer sticky. Divide dough into 12-16 balls; cover and let dough rest 20 minutes at room temperature.Place a small square of wax paper on the bottom part of open tortilla press. Place a ball almost on the center of the wax paper (a little more towares the hinge of the press than the handle). Place a second wax paper square, well flattened, on top of the ball. Close the press down firmly until the torilla measures about six inches in diameter. Peel the top wax paper off the dough. Pick up the second wax paper square and place the flattened dough onto the palm of your hand. Then peel off the wax paper and place the tortilla onto a moderately hot griddle. In a few seconds the edges of the tortilla will begin to dry out. At this point, turn the tortilla. Allow the second side to cook for a slightly longer period until it is slightly browned. Flip it back onto the first side and let it finish cooking. Allow 2 minutes cooking time per tortilla.

Delicious served with any Mexican dish. Serves 6-8.

Notes:

A tortilla press is a cast iron press for pressing corn tortillas and tamales into flat thin circles. [One could probably use a (cold) round waffle iron, assuming that it has a flat (pancake) side in addition to the bumpy (waffle) side.] Masa is freshly ground daily at tortilla factories. Corn is soaked in lime water and then cooked and rinsed before grinding. Lime aids as a preservative and adds color. Fresh masa is best for tamales and corn tortillas, but instant masa is also available.

From Lucy M. Garza's _South Texas Mexican Cookbook_, Eakin Press, 1982. ISBN 0-89015-344-2.

From: Laura Ann Wallace <WALLLAU@...>

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