Friday, April 29, 2011

Low Carb Corn Tortillas and Corn Tostada Shells



Low Carb Corn Tostada Shells - crispy and delicious.
Yield – About 8-9, 1oz Tortillas
Difficulty – Easy
Prep Time – 15 Minutes
Cook Time – 3-4 Minutes (Par Baking)
20-45 Minutes (To Melba Tostada Shells)



Ingredients:

Wet:
1/2c White Hominy, drained and processed
4 Baby Corn, drained and processed
2 Tbsp Lard, melted (homemade lard, bacon grease, butter or ghee, or olive oil)***
2 Tbsp Water



Dry:
2 Tbsp LC Bake Mix of Your Choice (I used Jenn Eloff's new GF Mix)
2 Tbsp Corn Bran
1 Tbsp Resistant Corn Starch (or sub out 1/8tsp Xanthan Gum)
2 Tbsp Organic, non-GMO, GF Yellow Corn Meal
1/8 tsp Xanthan Gum (this is additional to the sub above)
1/4 tsp Baking Powder,GF
1/4 tsp Kosher Salt



In bowl of food processor, blend hominy, baby corn and melted lard together to make a smooth puree. Add 2 tbsp water to further puree mixture. Scrape sides of bowl to thoroughly puree the masa mixture.

In separate bowl, mix dry ingredients together and stir well to combine. Add dry ingredients into bowl of food processor and pulse to incorporate into the corn mash.

Remove from food processor bowl and knead a couple of times with your hands until you are satisfied the corn "masa" is well combined.

Separate into 1oz dough and roll into balls. Let sit for 15-30 minutes refrigerated.

Smash dough balls onto baking mat with a plastic wrap covered plate sandwiched between two pieces of plastic wrap in a tortilla press, available at many Mexican markets.

Par-bake for flat tortillas at 350° for 3-4 minutes. Remove and let cool a minute or two. Remove from baking mat and allow to cool completely. Store cooled tortillas between layers of parchment or wax paper.

Tortillas freeze well.

If crispy tostada shells are desired. Place par-baked tortillas onto baking sheet and bake at 250° for 20-45 minutes until crisp and golden. Check frequently to make sure they do not over-brown. Remove and let cool completely. Store in large zip lock bag or air tight container. Keeps 1 week, refrigerated and 3 months in the freezer. Freezes well.

***Note: Do NOT use store bought lard found on a shelf in the grocery store! That kind of lard is extremely bad for you and is full of transfats. Never. Never. Never!!! OK?


SusieT's Notes:
I only give these corn tortillas 3 forks out of 4.

Why? Well, because I’m from Texas, silly! It’s a corn tortilla – a foundation of Tex Mex and I want and expect a corn tortilla to be TRULY versatile. I want to have a soft fish taco with them. I want to make crispy tacos. I want to roll them into traditional enchiladas.

I want, I want, I need, I need.

But cry me a river, cuz I’m still experimenting with these corn delights. And the par-baked tortillas make a delicious stacked green chicken enchilada, while the crispy tostadas are like a party in a piƱata!

So I will keep working on the recipe to perfect it and please be sure to check back with us and report any tweaks you make! I’d love to hear about them. As tostadas and flat tortillas, however, they are truly worthy and completely worth the time to make them!

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