Spelt Tortillas
Makes about 17 large tortillas

I am in love with sprouted spelt. I feel it is a superior flour. Everything I make with it turns out softer and lighter than with wheat, kamut, or emmer wheat. I also love it because my gluten-sensitive family members can eat it, due to the sprouting.

These tortillas are fantastic right out of the pan (what tortilla isn’t?). You’ll want to wrap them warmly in towels to keep them from drying out. Once cooled to slightly warm, transfer to a zipper storage bag to preserve moisture. They will stiffen up, but don’t be discouraged. A few seconds on medium heat in a cast iron skillet is all that’s needed to soften them up for subsequent meals.

See all basic recipes.

• 6 cups sprouted spelt flour
• 2 cups filtered water
  
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Rumford baking powder (does not contain GM corn)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1/2 cup barely melted virgin, unrefined coconut oil
• more coconut oil for the pan

In bowl of mixer, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Turn mixer on dough setting and add oil. Add water gradually until mixture cleans sides of bowl and forms ball in center of bowl. Let the machine knead the dough for 2 minutes. Remove dough. Divide into about 17 2-inch balls. Roll each part into a ball and fill an oiled clean mixing bowl with them. Cover the bowl with a moist towel or plastic wrap, to keep them from drying out.

Heat a flat cast iron frying skillet over medium heat and add a small amount of oil. Oil a clean, flat work surface, such as a countertop. With an oiled rolling pin, roll out one ball of dough into a circle that is approximately 1/8-inch thick, or your desired thickness, and about 10 inches in circumference. Place rolled out tortilla in the pan. Let it cook for about 25 seconds or until there are several bubbles in the dough. Flip the tortilla with a spatula and cook the other side for another 15 to 25 seconds, or until the bubbles are browned*. Remove tortilla from pan and place between towels to stay warm and moist. Meanwhile, roll out the next tortilla. Repeat until all of the balls have been rolled out and cooked. Add oil to pan and/or rolling pin as needed. Store in a zipper seal freezer bag in refrigerator or freezer.

*Adjust heat or cooking times to account for your stove, pan, or thickness of tortilla.

© 2009 by Wardeh Harmon

I am so thankful to Sonya, a friend and commenter, for sharing a gluten-free tortilla recipe with me! I didn’t follow it exactly, so here follows my modified recipe. The original is Living Without’s Gluten-Free Flour Tortillas.

We enjoyed these today as wraps with shredded chicken and shredded goat cheese. We all agreed they were the best tortillas ever! Who needs gluten? These are just as good, if not better!

This recipe makes about 8 tortillas.

• 1-1/4 cup corn flour*
• 3/4 cup brown rice flour*
• 1/3 cup potato flour
• 2 teaspoons xanthan gum
• 1 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder
• 1-1/4 teaspoon sea salt
• 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 to 1-1/4 cups pure water, room temperature

*Flour Tortilla Variation: Increase the brown rice flour to 1 cup. Use 1 cup of buckwheat flour instead of the corn flour. No other changes are necessary. This is a very yummy variation!

Combine all the dry ingredients. Whisk to combine. Add the oil and cut it in with a whisk or a fork. Add 1/2 cup water. Mix well. Add more until the dough becomes soft and hangs together when made into a ball.

Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium heat.

Generously flour a clean counter-top with corn flour, for rolling. Form a 2-inch ball of dough, then flatten it.

Using natural wax paper (from Natural Value) between the dough and a rolling pin, roll the dough into a 1/8-inch thick circle, about 8 inches in diameter. Rotate the dough as you roll to prevent it from sticking to the counter; dust with more flour as necessary. If the tortilla does stick to the counter, release it by sliding a spatula between it and the counter.

Transfer the tortilla to the heated cast-iron skillet. Oiling is not necessary if the skillet is well seasoned. Allow to cook on the first side until big and puffy, about 1 minute.

The underside with have spots of browning. Flip over and let the second side brown. Transfer cooked tortilla to a dinner plate and cover with a towel to keep soft and warm.

Begin the process again with a new tortilla — shaping it and baking it. Once you develop a rythmn, you’ll be able to roll one out while another is cooking.

Unfortunately, this is one of those foods for which I can’t figure out a plastic-free method of storage. So, store them in a zipper-seal plastic bag in the fridge or in the freezer for future use.

These tortillas are as easy as 1-2-3 because they are batter style. Mix up the batter, pour 1/4 cup at a time into a skillet, cook one side and then the other. That’s it!

Corn Tortillas — Gluten-Free, Batter Style
modified by Wardeh Harmon
from a recipe by Erin T., from the T2CHK Message Board

makes about a dozen (plus) tortillas

• 2 cups of corn flour (non-GMO and organic preferable)
• 1 cup of buckwheat flour*
• 1 tablespoon egg replacer (I use Ener-G Egg Replacer)
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon of natural sweetener (I omitted this)
• 4-1/2 cups water (or nut milk plus water combination)
• grapeseed oil (for the pan)

Heat a cast-iron skillet over medium heat.

Mix all ingredients in a medium-size mixing bowl. You want to achieve a runny batter, so add more water or more corn flour depending on whether you need to thicken or thin the batter. After cooking these a few times, you will know what consistency of batter you prefer.

Lightly grease the skillet with the grapeseed oil. Pour 1/4 cup (scant) of the batter into the skillet. Tilt the pan to spread the batter over the entire flat surface of the skillet. Cook until the tortilla releases itself from the pan, which is evidenced by the edges curling up (see photo below). Also, the tortilla will be covered with bubbles. This should take about a minute, but the amount of time may be different depending on your pan and/or stove.

The edges are curling up, showing that the tortilla has released itself from the pan. Also, it is covered with bubbles and almost cooked through.

Flip the tortilla over and let it cook until browned on the second side. This doesn’t take very long.

You will want to make sure the tortilla is thoroughly cooked in the middle. Additionally, you may choose to cook it more crisply. This is all personal preference.

When the tortilla is cooked and browned on both sides, transfer it to a waiting plate, which has been lined with a paper towel**, to absorb oil. Cover it with another piece of paper to make it ready for the next tortilla. Pour another scant 1/4 cup batter into the pan and repeat cooking instructions for remaining tortillas.

*I have found that buckwheat flour works best in this recipe. You may use other gluten-free flours instead, but be aware that they behave differently. For instance, brown rice flour gets gummier and should be used in a smaller quantity. Conversely, sorghum flour doesn’t gum up enough and causes the tortillas to be crumbly.

**Whenever I have them, I use recycled paper bags, cut up into tortilla size sheets (see top photo).

• 4 cups whole spelt flour (preferably freshly ground)
• 3 cups whole kamut flour (preferably freshly ground)
• 2 cups cold filtered water
• 7 tablespoons apple cider vinegar or Kombucha
• 1 1/2 teaspoons non-aluminum baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
• extra virgin olive oil or olive oil spray for frying

In bowl of mixer, combine flours, baking powder, and salt. Turn mixer on dough setting and add oil. Add Kombucha. Then add water gradually until mixture cleans sides of bowl and forms ball in center of bowl. Let the machine knead the dough for 2 minutes. Remove dough. Divide into 32 parts for small tortillas or 24 parts for large tortillas. Place in a covered bowl to rest for about 12 hours, or overnight. (Oil the tops of the balls if desired.)

Heat a flat cast iron frying pan over medium heat and add a small amount of oil. Oil a clean, flat work surface, such as a countertop. With an oiled rolling pin, roll out one ball of dough into a circle that is approximately 1/8″ thick, or your desired thickness. Place rolled out tortilla in the pan. Let it cook for about 25 seconds or until there are several bubbles in the dough. Flip the tortilla with a spatula and cook the other side for another 15 to 25 seconds, or until the bubbles are browned*. Remove tortilla from pan and place between towels to stay warm and moist. Meanwhile, roll out the next tortilla. Repeat until all of the balls have been rolled out and cooked. Add oil to pan and/or rolling pin as needed. Store in a zipper seal freezer bag in refrigerator or freezer.

*Adjust heat or cooking times to account for your stove, pan, or thickness of tortilla.

© 2006-2009 by Wardeh Harmon

Note: As Mindy noted in the comments below, she successfully converted this recipe to a soaked tortilla recipe by replacing 1 tablespoon of water (per cup of flour) with 1 tablespoon of raw apple cider vinegar (per cup of flour).  She mixed all the ingredients together and kneaded the dough and let the balls of dough soak for 24 hours. She wrote that next time, she’ll let the dough soak as a whole, then shape into balls and roll out just before cooking. This is awesome news! I (Wardeh) would suggest letting this soaking happen in the refrigerator if the temperature of your house is more than room temperature – or decrease the soaking time to prevent the dough getting overripe.

I have tried several whole wheat tortillas recipes. I never found a recipe that resulted in soft, fluffy tortillas until I made up my own. In my opinion, homemade tortillas need a good bit of oil to be fluffy and soft. So here is my recipe for whole wheat tortillas, which does not skimp on the oil.

See all basic recipes.

• 6 cups whole wheat flour (preferably freshly ground)
• 2 cups cold filtered water (or 2 cups water minus 6 tablespoons, plus 6 tablespoons raw apple cider vinegar)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons non-aluminum baking powder
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil or melted virgin, unrefined coconut oil
• extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil for frying

In bowl of mixer, combine flour, baking powder, and salt. Turn mixer on dough setting and add oil. Add water gradually until mixture cleans sides of bowl and forms ball in center of bowl. Let the machine knead the dough for 2 minutes. Remove dough. If following soaked version, let dough rest for twelve to twenty-four hours and then proceed. Otherwise, divide into 32 parts for small tortillas or 24 parts for large tortillas. Roll each part into a ball and spread on a cookie sheet. Spray with oil and cover tightly with plastic wrap. If following unsoaked version, let the balls rest 1 hour before proceeding.

Heat a flat cast iron frying pan over medium heat and add a small amount of oil. Oil a clean, flat work surface, such as a countertop. With an oiled rolling pin, roll out one ball of dough into a circle that is approximately 1/8″ thick, or your desired thickness. Place rolled out tortilla in the pan. Let it cook for about 25 seconds or until there are several bubbles in the dough. Flip the tortilla with a spatula and cook the other side for another 15 to 25 seconds, or until the bubbles are browned*. Remove tortilla from pan and place between towels to stay warm and moist. Meanwhile, roll out the next tortilla. Repeat until all of the balls have been rolled out and cooked. Add oil to pan and/or rolling pin as needed. Store in a zipper seal freezer bag in refrigerator or freezer.
*Adjust heat or cooking times to account for your stove, pan, or thickness of tortilla.
© 2006-2009 by Wardeh Harmon