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| Green Plantains make delicious grain-free tortillas. And, they are less than 40 calories! Follow Foods For Long Life on Facebook and Pinterest. |
Gluten and Grain-Free Tortillas
Most people buy corn tortillas when they are trying to avoid gluten or products made from various gluten-free grains such as brown rice, amaranth, quinoa, millet, teff, and sorghum. But if you want to avoid grains completely, here's a brilliant alternative that my friend Margarite introduced me to - making tortillas from green plantains!
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| Make sure to buy green plantains, not ripe ones. |
Plantains may look like bananas but they are starchy, not sweet. They are not eaten as a fruit and must be cooked. The biggest difference is that they are not as easy to peel! But I'll be showing you a trick to make that easier.
Although most plantain tortilla recipes just use plantains, I've jazzed these up with seasonings, and herbs. And of course I added some freshly harvested garlic. For my herbs, I used the lemon basil from my garden, but you can use any of your favorite herbs. Cilantro works well. For the chili lime spice, I used Rancho Gordo but you can use Tajin. Here's the recipe!
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Green Plantain Tortillas
Vegan, Gluten Free
[makes 18 tortillas]
Requirements
Medium saucepan to boil plantains
Food processor
Non-stick or cast iron griddle
Tortilla press or two flat plates
1-Quart size Ziplock plastic bag
Ingredients
2 green plantains
2 cloves garlic, pressed
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped lemon basil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon chili lime spice
Zest of 1 lime
Directions
Cut the ends off the plantain and cut it horizontally in 4 pieces. Slice each chunk vertically along its seam. This will make peeling them a lot easier after they are cooked.
Place the chunks of plantain into a pot of boiling water and cook until they just soften, about 20 to 25 minutes.
Remove the skins and place the peeled plantains in a food processor with the remaining ingredients.
Process until the mixture turns into dough. Using your hands, turn the dough into 18 (1 1/4 to 1 1/2-inch) balls.
Heat a griddle to medium high heat.
Place each ball in the center of a quart-sized plastic ziplock bag. Using a tortilla press or two flat plates, press the dough ball until it's a flat, 5-inch circle. You can buy a really nice Victoria 8 inch Cast Iron Tortilla Press for around $25 on Amazon.
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| Victoria 8 inch cast iron tortilla press. |
Carefully peel off the plastic and place the tortilla on a heated grill. Cook for several minutes until the tortilla is slightly brown. Turn over and cook a bit longer, about a minute. Do one more quick flip, if needed, and you're done.
Cool a minute so that they are pliable and enjoy. To save and reheat, place a piece of wax paper between the leftover tortillas, place in a Ziplock bag and refrigerate. They will last several days.
Nutrition:
Per tortilla: 36 calories, 4 g total fat, 1 g saturated fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 54 mg omega-3 and 379 mg omega-6 fatty acids, 1 g protein, 35 g carbohydrates, 3 g dietary fiber, and 244 mg sodium*.
*Sodium with vary with the brand of chili-lime seasoning.
