Homemade Tortillas with Flax

Tired of your homemade tortillas breaking, or being to stiff to bend, or being tough? So was I, until I stumbled across the secret to soft, pliable, delicious homemade tortillas!

I use a very simple recipe for tortillas, which works with either white or wheat flour. However, my results have been all over the place. Sometimes the tortillas would come out nearly perfect, but most of the time they would come out so stiff that they would just break when you try to wrap them around something. They always tasted good, but the texture was not there, and they were never pliable. Then one day I had a wild idea, and it worked!

The secret is really simple, too: flax seed meal! I just added 2 Tbps of flax seed meal, and a little extra water, to my tortilla recipe, and I was shocked at the difference.
First off, here is my revised recipe:

- 3 cups of flour (white, wheat, or a combination of the two.)
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp of baking powder (not necessary, but it makes them softer)
- 2 Tbps of flax seed meal
- 1 1/8 cups of water
- You can also add in pepper, or extra seasonings (garlic or chili powders, etc), if you like extra flavor in your totillas.

(I write this without great detail, assuming you have made tortillas before.)
The first thing to do is measure out the water, and stir in the 2 Tbps of flax. Let that sit for a couple of minutes to let the flax get hydrated, while you get your rolling pin and board out.
Other than that, there is really nothing special to it, you just mix the flour with the salt and baking powder, and then thoroughly mix in your flax and water mixture. (Add a bit of water or flour, if the consistency is off, but the above measurements seem to work great for me.)
Once it's all blended, make dough balls whatever size you like, and roll them out, using however much flour you need to keep them from sticking to the roller or board. You will quickly notice how elastic the dough is!

I use a well seasoned cast iron flat skillet to cook my tortillas. Put it on medium heat, and DO NOT oil the pan! If you use a cast iron or non-stick skillet, they will not stick, and they actually come out nicer without any oil. (I have never tried using a stainless steel skillet for this.)
If your pan is the right temperature, the tortillas only need to cook for about 20 to 45 seconds per side. To maximize pliability, only cook them as long as necessary.

Here are some photos of a batch I just made, to demonstrate the end result. These are 100% whole wheat.

I used only one tortilla for the following pictures.
It held up quite well to these gymnastics.

Folded accordion style:

Unfolded:

Then, rolled as tightly as possible:

Unrolled:

Then, folded over twice:

Unfolded, again:

And how to they taste? Delicious! The flax does not really add much flavor, and I personally really like what flavor it does add. You will not be disappointed with this recipe.