Tag Archives: wheat flour

Breads and Pancakes

Tortillas de Harina (Wheat Flour Tortillas)

Although the corn tortilla is the staple flatbread of Mexico and part of almost every traditional Mexican meal, flour tortillas were introduced by the Spaniards during the colonial period and today are common fare, particularly in the northern Mexican states.

Ingredients for Wheat Flour Tortillas

  • 2 cups all-purpose or whole wheat flour
  • 1 t baking powder
  • 1 t salt
  • 3 T lard or chilled coconut oil
  • 3/4 cup cold water or milk (soy or almond milk is okay)

Mix flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in lard or coconut oil. Add liquid to make stiff dough; lumps are okay. Divide into balls and roll out thin.

Place tortillas on a pre-heated, ungreased comal (flat griddle) until toasty spots start forming on the underside (1-2 minutes).  Flip the tortilla and do the other side — they should be pliable, not crisp.

Wrap in a towel to keep warm. Best eaten hot off the grill, but can be stuffed with cheese, beans, or other fillings, folded over, and then returned to the griddle and toasted until crisp.

Servings: 12 tortillas


Originally derived from the corn tortilla, a bread of maize which predates the arrival of Europeans to the Americas, the wheat flour tortilla was an innovation by exiled Spanish Jews who did not consider corn meal to be kosher, using wheat brought from Europe, while this region was the colony of New Spain.

Wikipedia contributors. “Tortilla.” Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 22 Mar. 2016. Web. 29 Mar. 2016.
Breads and Pancakes

Pan de Campo (Peasant Bread)

Country bread from Chile

These dense bread rolls, slightly toasted on a griddle and smothered with sweet Chilean butter and strawberry jam,  made one of my favorite breakfasts during my stay in Chile. The heavy, almost layered consistency of the bread made it special. To me, the heaviness of Pan de Campo was a product of baking it in the shadow of the towering wall of the Andes that stood above us in Santiago.

Chile Alps (Pan de Campo)

Ingredients for Chilean Pan de Campo (Peasant Bread)

  • 20 grams (about 3/4 oz) yeast
  • 1 cup warm water
  • 2 t sugar
  • 7 3/4 – 8 3/4 cups flour
  • 1 cup melted shortening
  • 2 cups warm water mixed with 1 T salt

Mix yeast with 1 cup warm water and sugar. Let stand 20 minutes. Pour into a ring of flour along with cooled melted shortening.

While mixing, gradually add 2 cups warm water with salt. Work until light and shiny (10 minutes).

Form into a roll and divide into 18 pieces. Knead each piece and pat with hands into 2 cm (3/4″) thick rounds. Pierce with fork. Let rise.

Bake at 400F for 15 to 20 minutes.