Homemade Flour Tortillas

I've added this to my list of foods that are surprisingly easy to make. I may never buy store-bought tortillas again!

3 cups flour
1 tsp salt
4-6 Tbsp butter flavor vegetable shortening or lard
about 1 1/4 cup warm water

Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl.

Add vegetable shortening or lard. Or use a combination of half lard, half shortening. (I ran out of shortening on one batch and used half shortening/half margarine and they turned out fine.) Use a fork or a pastry cutter to cut in the shortening or just do it the old fashioned way and use your hands. Next add warm water a little at a time until your dough is soft and not sticky. (I did all of my mixing by hand.) You do not need very hot water. Knead the dough for a few minutes.

Pull pieces of dough off to form 12 small balls. Let them rest under a damp towel for 10 minutes or longer.

Roll out each ball of dough. It is a good idea to dust each ball with a little flour just before you roll them out. Lay the rolling pin in the center of the dough ball and roll up, center and roll down. It is good to lift the dough and turn it. Again, rolling pin in the center and roll. Roll them out fairly thin.

Heat a cast iron or heavy bottomed skillet over medium to high heat (you may have to adjust it once you get going so they don't cook too fast). Lay your tortilla on the hot skillet. It takes just a few seconds to cook. Flip to the other side. When they are done it should have lots of nice brown speckles. Place them in a towel or tortillas warmer until you're ready to serve.