scallop tortillas

The downside of our new eating regime is I haven’t been baking any bread. Baking bread is one of my more favorite things to do, and while I will be getting back to it, I haven’t taken the time to start reworking recipes for smaller loaves and the like. One of the things I’m learning is I need to make what we need for the meal at hand and not cook with abandon – as was my wont.

I have been thinking about making tortillas for quite a while, now – I have not made them in years and years – and tonight proved to be the perfect time to do it. Cooking Light had a recipe this month for Tilapia and Summer Squash Tacos and it set the thinking gears a’spinnin’.

I had just bought some fresh scallops, I had fresh corn, I had tomatoes and peppers from the yard. All I needed were the tortillas – and since I have a pretty foolproof recipe, my bread-making needs were being met. Dinner started coming together…

Tortillas are easy to make – they’re just a bit time-consuming to make for a crowd. I cut this recipe in half to make four tortillas, so I definitely didn’t have that issue.

Flour Tortillas

Makes 8 tortillas

Ingredients

  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
  • 1 tsp kosher salt
  • 3 tbsp lard or vegetable shortening
  • 3/4 cups warm water

Directions

Whisk together flour, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Rub lard into flour mixture using your fingertips until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add warm water and work dough with hands until completely combined and no dry flour is left in bowl.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead until smooth, about 1 minute. Cover with a damp cloth or plastic wrap and let rest for 10 minutes. Divide dough into 8 equal pieces; roll each piece of dough into a ball. Cover dough balls with a damp cloth or plastic wrap and let rest an additional 15 minutes.

Preheat cast iron skillet, griddle, or comal to 500°F. Place one ball of dough on a lightly floured surface and pat down into a flat disc. Using a rolling pin, roll dough out to an 8-inch round.

Place dough in skillet and cook until bubbles form on top side and bottom side has brown spots, 30-60 seconds. Flip tortilla and cook until second side develops brown spots, 30-60 seconds longer.

Transfer tortilla to a plate and cover with clean dish cloth. Repeat with remaining balls of dough. Serve immediately while still warm.

I had guacamole in the freezer, so that came out, and I then made a corn salsa.

Corn Salsa

  • 2 ears corn, roasted and cut from cobs
  • 2 hot peppers, roasted, skinned, and chopped
  • 1/2 red onion, roasted and chopped
  • 1 tomato, chopped
  • 1 bunch parsley, chopped
  • juice of 1 lemon
  • salt and pepper, as desired

Cook corn, peppers, and onion on grill until each is done. Cut kernels from the corn, skin and mince the peppers, and chop the onion. Place it all in a bowl with the chopped tomato, parsley, lemon juice, and salt and pepper, to taste.

For the scallops, I just liberally doused them with Penzey’s Salsa and Pico spice blend and quickly sauteed them in a hot skillet. I added a splash of vermouth because… well… old habits die hard.

It really was a great combo. The corn salsa was spicy, the guacamole mild, and the scallops nicely flavored, and with a fresh, warm tortilla to hold it all together, it was the perfect dinner!