My Mom's tortillas

Spoiler alert! Recipe is below!

My mom came over a few weeks ago to teach us how to make her homemade tortillas - something I have been wanting to learn for years. She even brought my grandma's rolling pin for us to use and the rolling pin she has used for decades.

A little background on tortillas in my family. Growing up, I didn't know store bought tortillas were available. I only ever ate home made tortillas by mom or grandma. I used to love eating them with butter as soon as they came off the pan. So good!!! I remember going to a friend's house in middle school and she took out tortillas from her fridge in a package to make me a quesadilla and I'm sure I gave her a stare that conveyed "what are those?" with some colorful words. I quickly realized that they were amazing and I didn't have to wait for my mom to make tortillas. Done. Sold. Never went back until...

I started craving home made tortillas a few years ago but with a busy schedule, my mom and I couldn't coordinate for her to teach me. Well, now that life has dramatically changed in my house, I am left with lots of time on my hands to learn a family favorite. And pass it on.

When I told the kids, they were more than thrilled to learn how to make "Granny's tortillas."Plus, I made their favorite stew to go with the tortillas.

My mom was full of tips in making these beauties. She shared that if we used too much baking powder it would cause the dough to turn yellow. I honestly had no clue!!

I haven't seen a tub of vegetable shortening since living with my parents so I don't know why I was surprised to see it's return in my kitchen that day. There it sat though on my counter begging for me to recall those found memories of scooping spoonfuls into the dough I made with my mom so many years ago.

Okay, back to her useful tips. Many recipes will call for water but many forget to mention that the water should be warm and don't pour it all at once. Pour a little at a time and mix it up. If the dough is too sticky, add a little flour. If the dough is too dry, add more warm water - small amounts at a time. She also recommends not to flour your surface.

When the dough is done, she rolls them out and puts them on a cast iron pan on medium heat. Do NOT flip until you see bubbles on the top. She also recommends popping the bubbles to allow the tortilla to cook evenly. I prefer to let the bubbles do their thing. I think it makes it each tortilla unique in their own special way.

Of course, Mom spoke of using a pinch of this and a touch of that. So we worked on coming up with measurements that worked to provide to you. One thing that I did change to her recipe is I do add a bit of time for the dough to sit before rolling out.

I hope you enjoy your tortillas. They go great with tacos, fajitas, stew, butter or just the way they are! Perfection!

• 2 cups all purpose flour

• 1/2-3/4 tsp salt (your preference for saltiness)

• 1/2 tsp baking powder

• 3 tbsp vegetable shortening

• 3/4 warm water; more if needed

Combine the dry ingredients and create a well in the middle. Add the water a little add a time and mix with fingers or fork. Continue until dough is moist but doesn't stick to your fingers. Let sit in a bowl for 20-30 minutes. With a little flour on your hands, grab a chunk the size of your fist and flatten it a bit while holding it up in the air. Once it has been stretched to the size of tea cup saucer, put on counter to begin rolling out to desired size. This is my favorite part.

Place on a pan that is has been set to medium heat. Once the top starts to bubble it is ready to flip. Once both sides have a nice brown coloring, transfer to a dish towel to keep warm.

Please feel free to share how your tortillas came out, what you paired them with and pictures!!