I lamented a few posts ago about finding real-food flour tortillas without trans fats and other unnecessary ingredients. Corn tortillas are just as guilty in this department. Not to mention every time I would buy corn tortillas, they all seem to just fall apart, or crack into 15 pieces, or otherwise just taste blah.

No more!

These are no more difficult to make than flour tortillas — provided you have a tortilla press. Mine was a birthday present from my boyfriend last year, and I thought, what better way to celebrate this year’s by making us some delicious fajitas with fresh, homemade tortillas?

(Never you mind that we eat fajitas around here, oh, once a week or so…)

These actually come together even faster than flour tortillas, because there’s no resting period. And since there is no gluten to worry about, you can work these to death and they will never get tough. So don’t worry if you mess one up, rip it in half while transferring it to the skillet, or press it into some weird blob shape rather than a pretty circle.

Place the ball a little off center to ensure an even press.

I will admit, the first time I ever made these, it took forever. I didn’t have a large enough skillet to cook up more than one at a time, and I made a full batch. This time I made half of what the recipe on my bag of masa called for, and I used my double-burner cast iron griddle. So give yourself a few tries to get used to making them. Your patience will pay off!

A sandwich baggie makes for easy removal from the press — otherwise they will stick!

It is amazing how fresh these taste — I’ve always found store-bought corn tortillas to be slightly metallic tasting, with a funny aftertaste. In fact, for a very long time I thought I didn’t like corn tortillas because of this. It’s amazing what a difference homemade makes.

Corn Tortillas

• 1 cup masa harina (find in the latin foods aisle)
• About 1/2 cup water

1. Preheat a large (ungreased) skillet over medium high heat.
2. Cut open a sandwich baggie and place over the two circles of the press.
3. Combine masa harina and water in a bowl. Mix together (your hands work best) until it starts to form a ball. Add additional water, a tablespoon at a time, if it feels too dry.
4. Once you have a smooth ball, divide into 8 equal wedges. Roll one into a ball, press to desired thickness in your press.
5. Peel tortilla from the baggie and add it to the skillet and cook for about 30 seconds per side.
6. Repeat with remaining wedges.