Tuesday, May 22, 2012

Tomasa's Child and Homemade Flour Tortillas

When I was a little girl, there was nothing better in the whole world than a homemade flour tortilla made by my own dear mom.


I remember that she would knead the flour, lard (because we didn’t use the much lighter shortening or oil that we use now, we used big huge blocks of lard) baking powder, salt and water in a big bowl. I loved watching her hands, strong and sure working the dough.


Little Balls of Dough

Then she would make these perfect little balls of dough. I made the ones in this photo and they are not perfect at all, but mom's were. She would then line them all up on a clean dish towel, ready to be rolled out into perfectly round tortillas.


Mom would always give my sister and me our own little ball of dough which we would pretend to knead and roll out as she did. Sometimes, depending on our mood, we wouldn’t knead or roll it out; we would instead form it into animal shapes, like it was clay.





Here's the rolling out in process

When my mom was done making the family tortillas, she would have us roll out our little ball of dough and she would place it on the “comal” which was made out of cast iron and heated over the open flame on the stove. We would watch her flip our little tortilla around until it was perfectly browned on both sides. We couldn’t wait to eat them!


This is the Cast Iron Comal

Mom would slice a pat of real butter which had been softening to room temperature and sit us down, each with our little tortilla. She taught us to rip off little pieces of the tortilla and dip them into the warm, melting, sweet butter. There was nothing better! We felt as though we had cooked these tortillas ourselves, my sister and I. Sometimes we would save them for our dad to eat so he knew his little girls had been slaving away making tortillas for him.


Comal with a Tortilla

My mom was great at including us in on her regular household chores and making it fun and like a game for us. We didn’t need fancy play-doh with all the little accessories they come with now. We just needed the plain tortilla dough, our imagination and our wonderful mother by our side. My mom's name is Tomasa and I am her child.






This post is inspired by the novel Julia's Child by Sarah Pinneo. Worried about what her kids eat, Julia Bailey starts a prepared organic toddler meals business. With names like Gentil Lentil, can Julia balance work and family and still save the world? Join From Left to Write on May 24 as we discuss Julia's Child. As a member, I received a copy of the book for review purposes.
 

21 comments:

  1. Yummy! I love homemade tortillas. Food made by mother's is always the best!

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    1. Della!!! I haven't heard from you in months! Thanks for stopping by. I have to agree with you my friend, mother's food is always the best!

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  2. Homemade tortillas are the best. Yummy. I love how you describe every little detail and show us the process. Tearing a piece and dipping it in sweet butter......oh my that makes my mouth water. Sounds like you had a wonderful childhood.

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    1. JarieLyn...are you sure you weren't just hungry? :) Yeah, we don't eat butter like we used to when we were kids, but it was so delicious! I think my mouth is watering now too! Thanks for visiting. Love your eclipse photos I've been seeing on facebook!

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  3. Yes, my mouth is watering too. What a wonderful memory your mother created for you!

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  4. I like the name Thomasa; it sounds lovely to me. And your Mom, as described in your blog, is a lovely woman and a great mother.
    Your post reminds me of my own childhood and my own mother. I liked to be in the kitchen offering my Mom "to help" her with the cooking. She wasn't always pleased about this kind of Help, I must say.

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    1. Funny thing is my mom HATES her name. Most people call her Tome (pronounced like Tommy). Her name was her mother's name as well. It is a pretty name, but I guess to her it sounds masculine.

      My mom was/is a wonderful mother. I wish I could have been half the mother she was to my own kids when they were growing up. Unfortunately divorce and work took me and my attention away from my kids more than it should have...such is life.

      I think it's wonderful when mom's have patience to have their children in the kitchen. I know I don't and perhaps that is why I admired the character in this book and my mom...for their patience (of which I admittedly don't have enough of!)

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  5. What a great memory! My mom was great with cooking with me, too. The tortillas look amazing!

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    1. I've never had a bad tortilla...lol. Whether homemade or store bought, they are delicious. Thanks for stopping by!

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  6. What a beautiful memory and tribute to your mom! I also baked with my mom - not tortillas, what with us being whitey Irish-Catholics and what not -- and thank her for that experience!

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    1. Hey Zadge-a-rooney! Your mom is an awesome cook, I've seen some of the recipes you've shared of hers. And you have a knack for just concocting a meal out of ingredients that one wouldn't think go together. I'm sure you got that from your own mom.

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  7. Neat memories! I got to make Jello, except for the pouring.

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    1. Well since you know how to make jello I would recommend jello shots, but considering the huge failure with your watered down margaritas, I doubt I could get you to use tequila with your jello shots :)

      The point is you did something with your mom and I bet you remember it fondly right?

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  8. I still cannot make good tortillas! Guess I have to make a trip back to NM for the real thing. And I still believe that lard makes the best ones! :-) Sue

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    1. The knack of making good tortillas is practice. If I were to make them today I doubt they would be as good as the ones I was making when I was in my teens and living at home and helping my mom make them on a semi-daily basis...lol. Practice does make perfect!

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  9. I've made homemade tortillas before and it was so gratifying!

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    1. It is gratifying to eat something you made from scratch with your own hands. I just wish someone else would do the clean up :)

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  10. I love fresh homemade tortillas! Thanks for sharing such a special memory.

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  11. I love fresh homemade tortillas! Thanks for sharing such a special memory.

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    1. You are welcome Charlotte, thank you so much for stopping by! Homemade tortillas are definitely the best! Not very carb free, but definitely the best!

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Please leave a comment.I would love to know your thoughts!