My best friend in elementary school was a girl named Flora. She was Mexican and hanging out at her house was quite a departure from my own culture. Her family spoke a different language and had a different cooking style. Her mom made the best tortillas by hand. It was fun to watch her expertly roll out the dough and then cook it on a small round griddle on the stove. She tried to teach me how to make them. My tortillas never turned out round. They were more like the shape of South America. Lol! I have tried making tortillas on my own many times since. Although they have gotten rounder, my tortillas often turned out more like a cracker than the soft flatbread I desired. That is, until recently. I finally found a recipe that gave me what I wanted. It’s easy and pretty quick. Once you’ve tried it, you may never be satisfied with store-bought again.

Flour Tortillas

Ingredients

• 2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• ¼ cup lard (shortening or any fat that is solid at room temperature will work)
• ¾ cup hot water

Instructions

1. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt in a mixing bowl.
2. Cut in lard with a pastry cutter until flour mixture resembles coarse meal.
3. Stir in water, forming a soft dough.
4. Place on floured surface and knead 10-12 times. Cover and let rest 15 minutes.
5. Form dough into a disc. Cut into eight equal parts. And roll into balls.
6. Flatten each ball with hands and then a rolling pin creating a 6 to 7-inch circle.
7. Cook in skillet, cast iron preferred, for 1 minute, until bubbly. Flip and cook another minute.
8. Keep warm under clean dish towel or in a tortilla warmer.
9. Enjoy!

“Cooking is all about people. Food is maybe the only universal thing that really has the power to bring everyone together. No matter what culture, everywhere around the world, people get together to eat.” 

Guy Fieri

WW Smart Points—5.5 per tortilla