Rascal was pretty zonked out after our 5 1/2 mile walk, which included an iced coffee/water break at Starbucks and swinging by the new house just to look at it briefly.
Brad and I spent the afternoon being bloggy (sorry for the dark photo). I worked on the blog and he did too. He’s making a way for me to create galleries so I can post all of my honeymoon and wedding photos without having a bajillion photos on a page.
I snacked on a piece of pear bread toast smeared with Greek yogurt and raspberry jam with a few raspberries on top…tangerine sparkling water on the side.
After sitting on the couch for a bit, I got a little antsy. I decided to break in one of my new kitchen appliances and make whole wheat tortillas.
I followed this recipe loosely in that I used the same exact ingredients, but used a very different technique.
I used my KitchenAid mixer (not new) to mix the salt and whole wheat flour.
I slowly added the water as I continued to mix using the dough kneader attachment.
I scraped the side and the bottom to make sure everything was mixed well.
I kneaded it a bit and found that it needed much more water. The recipe called for 2/3 but I ended up using at least a full cup. To add water to dough once you’ve started to knead, make a well in the dough and pour just a bit of water (1 tsp. – 1 Tbsp. depending on how dry the dough is and what you’re making). Then fold the dough over the water and continue to knead.
Then, I used the new kitchen appliance. My in-laws got me a tortilla press for my wedding shower. Here is a good comparison on tortilla presses. They always make fresh corn tortillas when we visit and I had quirky kitchen appliance envy for quite some time. After talking about how cool it would be to have one, they were so nice to get one for Brad and I. I completely forgot to get masa at the store to make corn tortillas, so I thought I would try my hand at whole wheat.
I shaped the dough into smaller balls of dough.
They should be about this big, keeping in mind that I have child-sized hands.
Put the dough on the tortilla press, which had been warming up for about 10 minutes. I found that the dough tended to ooze out the front, so it was best to put the dough ball back from the center slightly towards the hinge of the press.
I pressed each tortilla for about three seconds, just like the directions said in my instruction manual, which is actually Wally’s (Brad’s dad) translation of the Spanish only direction. 🙂
Edited to add: If you do not have a tortilla press, you could easily roll the dough balls out on a floured surface with a rolling pin until you reach the desired thickness. The tortilla press is just quick and easy. Plus who doesn’t love cool kitchen appliances? 😉
This is what they look like when they come out of the press.
I piled them up in a plastic container to put in the fridge. At this point they’re not actually cooked. Every time I want one, all I have to do is throw it in a skillet and cook on both sides. The dough will keep in the fridge for up to 15 days.
What an awesome gift! I can’t wait to try different types of wraps and tortillas. But I’ve got to get my hands on some masa so I can make the original soon.
