Greetings from Cape Cod!

It’s Cape week. We planned our menu as an extended family and I am sharing it below. When we got here Saturday we had Sweet Tomatoes pizza, as per tradition. I limited myself to one slice (since I’m not eating much wheat or any dairy lately)…and it was worth every bite. Man, that pizza is good.

SUNDAY:
– 7-Layer Mexican Dip,
– Creamy Chicken Enchiladas

MONDAY:
– Seafood Sam’s (another Maynard Cape tradition)

TUESDAY:
– Jane: Lentil Rice Bowls with Lime-Tahini Dressing

WEDNESDAY:
– Jessica: BBQ Night (Hot Dogs, Hamburgers, Potato Salad, etc.)

THURSDAY:
– Jake & Mary: TBD, something vegetarian!

FRIDAY:
– Eat out night and/or eat up the leftovers!

SATURDAY:
– Cousin Sara’s Wedding in Maine!

It’s going to be a fun and delicious week! As usual we would love to see your menu for the week, please share in the comments!

Reports are starting to come in…my friend Mindy made fresh masa tortillas the day after I published my post and my eye doctor made them yesterday, using masa from the same market where I buy masa. Both Mindy and Dr. Hom are converted. I promise I’m not exaggerating about how delicious fresh masa tortillas are…if you haven’t read my fresh masa post, here’s a link!

Enough tortilla talk, time for this week’s menu…which is a bit shorter for us because we leave Thursday for our east coast trip! A Toyota Highlander will be waiting for us when we land in Boston and this time we’ll hang out for a day in Boston before heading to Cape Cod. I can’t wait to show my kids our college town!

Everything on this week’s menu was on last week’s menu…I didn’t cook as much as I thought I would last week, and I really stretched out the carnitas for a few meals.

MONDAY:
– Grilled BBQ Chicken
– Salad

TUESDAY:
– Pesto Pasta
– Salad

WEDNESDAY:
– BLTs

THURSDAY:
– Airport food

FRIDAY:
– Dinner in Boston somewhere

SATURDAY:
– Sweet Tomatoes Pizza on Cape Cod

SUNDAY:
– Don’t know yet!

Please share your own menus in the comments below, we need your inspiration since I’m entering travel mode!

It’s Monday, which means the start of another week, which means time for another weekly dinner menu!

MONDAY:
– Chili

TUESDAY:
– Carnitas Tacos

WEDNESDAY:
– Pesto Pasta
– Salad

THURSDAY:
– Leftovers

FRIDAY:
– Grilled BBQ Chicken
– Side veggie (whatever I find at the farmer’s market!)

SATURDAY:
– Eat out night

SUNDAY:
– BLTs

You all know the drill…please post your own meal plans in the comments below! Have a great week!

Several years ago I had the chance to do a walking tour of the Mission District in San Francisco with Rick Bayless. It is one of the coolest things I’ve done and I learned a ton about Mexican cuisine. (Seriously, the Rick Bayless is like a college professor.) One of the topics he covered was tortillas. He took us to a tortilleria where they make their tortillas from fresh masa. These tortillas were like nothing I had every tasted before. Rick explained the difference between maseca and fresh masa and talked probably for 15-20 minutes just about tortillas. I’ve been meaning to act on what I learned since that day but only recently tracked down a fresh masa source in my neighborhood. Man, I wish I had done it sooner because these tortillas. And now that I have cooked them many times I am going to share the magic with you! Today you will learn how to cook fresh masa tortillas and as well as why they are so magical.

A Wee Bit of Masa History

I’ve done a lot of reading about masa, corn and tortillas over the last couple of months. The short story is that in ancient Mesoamerica, people processed corn using nixtamilization, where corn is soaked in an alkaline solution and then washed and hulled. This process makes corn a complete nutrient. Interestingly, when Europeans brought corn home they neglected to learn nixtamilization, which in turn made European diets less nutritious. Crazy, huh? Meanwhile in the Americas masa and corn tortillas were a nutritious staple in many people’s diets.

Fast forward to the 1980s. Masa-based tortillas were still the norm in Mexico until a company called Maseca came along. Maseca created masa flour, basically a flour made from masa. It’s more efficient and shelf stable but does not taste nearly as good as fresh masa. In the beginning Maseca did not do well in Mexico because the taste just couldn’t compare, but in 1988 the new president of Mexico helped the company in significant ways and transformed the Mexican tortilla industry. Today it is more common for tortillas to be made from maseca, which is a crying shame. (Click here to read more about this culinary and economic transformation, it’s fascinating.)

Why Fresh Masa Is So Much Better for Tortillas

Okay, so back to Rick Bayless. The tortilleria we visited in San Francisco used masa and you could tasted the difference. I have a hard time describing fresh masa tortillas I will try. The difference comes through both in texture and taste. Fresh masa tortillas are more like a flatbread. But as soon as I say that I regret it because they are still like tortillas, but the texture is just so much better. And the flavor is unreal. The kids and I can eat them straight up with a bit of butter (and honey!) and be happy. But of course the tortillas want to be tacos and so we make them tacos! Rick explained that one of the reasons he opened Frontera Grill in Chicago was because there were tortilla makers in that city using fresh masa and he needed a ready source of masa-based tortillas for his restaurant. The tortillas were that important to him when starting his restaurant.

How to Cook Fresh Masa Tortillas

Rick converted me to fresh masa tortillas, but how in the world would I make them at home? You can make your own fresh masa from dried corn – the blog Mexican Please blog has a great recipe and tutorial. However this is a time-consuming process, one which I am not apt to go through on a regular basis. If you are lucky like me and live in range of many Mexican restaurants and tortillerias, chances are one of them makes and sells fresh masa. I searched the map then called places to find out if they sold fresh masa. My source here in North County San Diego is El Nopalito. They sell fresh masa for tortillas for about $1 a pound.

If you want to make fresh masa tortillas, start digging around to see if you, too, can find a masa source. It is worth the effort to find masa! If you come up empty and feel like a fun food project, maybe give making masa from scratch a shot. But keep in mind I have never done that myself and can’t vouch for the results (although I’m sure it would be delicious)!

Okay, so you have fresh masa in hand. Now what? In the recipe below I describe in detail the process for how to cook fresh masa tortillas. I’ve made them many times and finally have it down. I will write the instructions as detailed as I can but keep in mind there’s a bit of a learning curve and you just have to dive in and do it to get the hang of it. You’ll get the feel for how to form and cook the tortillas as you cook more of them. If you have questions, just drop them in the comments below! Happy tortilla cooking!

How to Cook Fresh Masa Tortillas

 

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Author: Jane Maynard

Serves: 12-16

Ingredients

• 1 pound fresh masa (make sure the masa is for tortillas and NOT tamales)
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt (if masa is unsalted)

Instructions

1. When working with the fresh masa, make sure it is kept covered or in a plastic bag the whole time so that it doesn't dry out while you are cooking.
2. Form balls about 2 tablespoons in size, pressing the ball together well and rolling it between your hands to smooth the outside of the ball. I use my medium Pampered Chef scoop to measure out the balls. I also make the dough balls as I cook them, but if you want to form all the balls at once, just make sure you are storing them covered until they are ready to cook.
3. Cut a quart-sized ziploc bag down the two side seams to form a long, rectangular piece of plastic. I use freezer bags because the thicker plastic holds up longer. I also wash the bag after each use and store it with my tortilla press.
4. Place half of the plastic on the press, then place a masa dough ball in the center, then fold over the plastic to cover the dough. Gently but firmly press the ball into a tortilla shape. You want to get the tortilla as thin as you can but if you go too thin it will be hard to get off the plastic. It may take a few times to get the feel for it but don't fret, if you mess up just re-roll the ball and start over! If you do have a tortilla stick to the plastic, you may need to wipe the plastic down before trying again. My friend Mindy found it helpful to use a little spray oil on the plastic to prevent sticking, which could be helpful as you start working with the dough.
5. If you don't have a tortilla press, you can use a glass casserole dish - just put the dough ball in the plastic then firmly press down on the dough. Glass is nice because you can see how thin the tortilla is getting as you press. Just be sure to press evenly down so the tortilla is the same thickness throughout.
6. Preheat a large frying pan (I use non-stick, but a well-seasoned cast iron skillet should work, too) over medium-high heat. Let it preheat for a good five minutes before you start cooking the tortillas. On my stove medium-high works, but your stove may be a little different. You want the pan quite hot and you'll get a feel for it after you try it the first few times.
7. Once the pan is hot, place your formed tortilla in the pan and let it cook for about 30 seconds then flip it over. If it is sticking to the pan that means it needs to cook a little longer. I like to do this first flip as early as possible so that the top uncooked side doesn't get too dried out before it finally gets a chance to start cooking on the griddle. After the first flip, let the tortilla cook for a minute or two, flip it back to the original side and cook for another minute or two. The tortilla will looked "cooked" when it's done - non-gummy, dry and potentially browned in spots. It's okay if the tortilla puffs up with air! I use a pancake flipper to flip the tortillas.
8. Serve immediately. If you can't serve immediately, store in a tortilla warmer. As they sit they will get less crispy and a bit gummy, the best way to reheat is right on the pan. I generally make the tortillas as everyone is eating, but my family is also fine with tortillas that have been sitting in the tortilla warmer for a few minutes. I can cook 3 tortillas at a time on my 12-inch pan, so the cooking goes quickly.

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OTHER RECIPES YOU MAY LIKE:

• The Perfect Taco Night
• Pork Carnitas
• Grilled Salmon Tacos

EQUIPMENT I USED TO MAKE THIS RECIPE:

• Pampered Chef Medium Scoop
• Tortilla Press
• Tortilla Warmer
• Calphalon Unison Non-Stick 12-Inch Round Griddle Pan

Hello meal planning and food friends. I wish I could say I missed you the last two weeks, but our trip to Sweden was pretty darn spectacular and I didn’t miss meal planning and cooking one bit! But alas it is back to normal this week, which is definitely not a bad thing, actually. Since it’s going to be pretty warm this week and we’re all craving wholesome food, we’re going heavy on salads and summer-friendly meals for the weekly menu.

MONDAY:
– Chicken Caesar Wraps

TUESDAY:
– Pat’s Asian Chicken Salad

WEDNESDAY:
– Grilled Salmon
– Salad

THURSDAY:
– Leftovers

FRIDAY:
– Sausage, Peppers & Onions Sandwiches

SATURDAY:
– Eat out night

SUNDAY:
– Rachel Sandwiches

Please share your weekly menus in the comments below! Looking forward to seeing what you all have cooking and getting back into the cooking groove!

If you want to check out the trip to Sweden, click here to follow along on Instagram. I have already posted a few things and will be posting more throughout the week!