I have been wanting to experiment with making different coloured tortillas, and not from the variety of the corn itself. Of course, you are probably familiar with red, blue, white and yellow corn tortillas, but those colours come from the type of corn the masa is made with. These tortillas I’m talking about start with a white masa, with vegetable or herbal additions to colour them. The most popular are green tortillas made with nopal (cactus paddles), or red tortillas made with dried chiles (used in some enchilada recipes). These pink tortillas are made with beet purée and I must say I loved them. In fact, I have also made red tortillas made with rehydrated ancho chiles and those are fabulous too. This is a really fun spin on otherwise plain tortillas, so I invite you to try them!
Since Valentine’s Day is around the corner, I thought these were very appropriate. I have used them to make hibiscus tacos (recipe here in the blog), but they can be used for anything, as they really don’t taste sweet from the beets.
The only thing you need to be aware of, is these tortillas don't not last as long as the plain tortillas, due to the added moisture from the beet puree - they should be used within 5 days. If you want to keep them for longer, go ahead and freeze them.
TORTILLAS ROSAS (DE BETABEL)
Pink Beet Corn Tortillas
1/2 cup diced cooked beet
1 cup water
3 cups Maseca
1 1/2 cups hot tap water, approximately
In blender jar, process beet and water until completely smooth. If your blender is not very powerful, then strain the mixture.
In medium bowl, place Maseca and add beet purée. Mix until combined and then start adding warm water, a bit at a time, until you have a smooth masa that does not crack around the edges when you press a ball of dough.
Let masa rest, covered, for 30-60 minutes.
Portion masa into balls, depending on the size of your tortilla press. I like to make 5 or 6” tortillas, so this amount of masa makes about 28.
Heat a comal, griddle or frying pan over medium heat. Press masa balls between sheets of plastic and place one at a time on comal. Cook for about 10 seconds, as soon as the tortilla releases from the comal, turn it and cook the second side for about 15 seconds.
Flip tortilla again and cook for another 20 seconds or until masa no longer looks dark. If your tortilla puffs, that is excellent, but if it does not, it’s OK too.
Place cooked tortillas on a clean tea towel set over a cooling rack. Stack tortillas in towel as you cook. Let them cool before storing in a resealable bag.
Makes about 28 5” tortillas.