Welcome to the cooking portion of our new “Cooking & Booking” Project. Allison and I decided to join forces once a month to celebrate the intersection of enjoyable Chick Lit and food. She will review the book, and I will prepare and discuss a dish that is featured within its pages.
I was so excited to choose the first book for the collaboration: “The School of Essential Ingredients” by Erica Bauermeister. It is a book I adore, and the plot plays out in a dreamy restaurant, the likes of which I want to own one day. It is a fictional restaurant as the chef/owner is untroubled by the slim profit margin generated by the commercial kitchen, has ample time to stroll through farmer’s markets leisurely, and has no issues fully staffing her team with creative, hard-working, and reliable professionals.
After reading the book, I thought a lot about tortillas. Tortillas are both incredibly simple and infinitely complicated. They are simple because they require only two essential ingredients. They are infinitely complicated because the perfect tortilla is born from years of repetition and intuition, years that I have yet to invest in.
The first batch of tortillas I attempted was made from past expiration date masa that I picked up at Safeway. I could not find a tortilla press for sale anywhere in town, so I squished them with a pie plate. I cooked them on the stovetop in a sauté pan, not on a Comal tortilla press like the experts. I did not achieve the magical tortilla “puff.”
Since then, I have acquired a super-bougie tortilla press and three varieties of specialty masa from Masienda, a store built around a commitment to equitable farming and ancestral techniques. The resulting tortillas are an improvement, with a tender texture and over-the-top corn flavor. I still strive for the puff; I may get there with a Comal and another few attempts.
Try making your tortillas as an exercise in focus, simplicity, and a celebration of essential ingredients. Trust me, even an imperfect handmade tortilla is one of the most delicious things you have put in your mouth.
Handmade Corn Tortillas Using Masa Harina - recipe sourced from Masienda
INGREDIENTS:
1 cup Masienda Heirloom Corn Masa Harina
1 cup warm water
Spices and seasonings to taste
DIRECTIONS:
Slowly add the warm water to the dry masa flour in your bowl, stirring the masa to incorporate evenly by hand.
Knead until the water is evenly incorporated and no dry, powdery spots remain. Tortilla masa should be moist but not tacky (leaving bits of wet masa on your hand and fingers). If it’s too wet, add a bit more masa; if too dry, add a bit more water.
Once masa is well combined, add optional salt, spices, and seasonings to taste, evenly incorporating throughout finished masa.
Heat Comal or nonstick skillet on the stove to low-medium heat.
Roll masa into ping pong-sized balls, placing them back into the bowl once rolled.
Once all masa is rolled into balls, turn Comal or skillet up to medium/medium-high heat.
Open tortilla press and place down a sheet of plastic. Place one ball of masa on the plastic and press down slightly to flatten. Add a second piece of plastic on top of the masa ball. Close the tortilla press, applying pressure to flatten the dough, aiming for a tortilla 1/16” thick.
Open the press, remove the top sheet of plastic, and place the uncooked tortilla on your palm before removing the second piece.
Gently lay the tortilla on the hot Comal or pan (no oil is required), searing for 20-30 seconds on the first side. Flip the tortilla to allow the other side to sear for the same time. One last flip, to land back on the first side, is where the tortilla will finish and where you may see the elusive tortilla puff. Continue cooking all tortillas.
Store tortillas in a clean dish towel once cooked, allowing them to steam and soften slightly. Serve immediately.
Read Allison's "Cookin' & Bookin'" here: The School of Essential Ingredients
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