WyMichelle's Two Thousand and Twelve: homemade corn tortillas

Hey yall!

I have had an amazing Sunday!!!!! It really has been a good day. I love the weekends. Church was awesome and had a wonderful date with my boyfriend. I have been experimenting with some new foods. The spaghetti squash I posted about was good. I may make something else to eat with the extra squash that I didn't use to make the shrimp meal I wrote about.

I worked out this morning before I went to church with made me really happy because I got my workout out of the way so I could enjoy the rest of the day. I had plyometrics today and it was tough as always but it felt good to complete. This is my fourth week and I am looking forward to my recovery week next week. But I am scared of week 6 which has all the workouts at 'MAX' whatever that means. I thought I was already doing MAX type exercises since they kick my butt each week! But it is worth it for the gains I have had along the way. Stronger, more endurance, dimples in thighs going away, stomach (I call it the "pooch") slimming down some. A coworker said she noticed some weight in my face going away so that was great to hear. Another co-worker said my lunches made her happy and she was proud I have been doing well with my goals of eating better. So all in all, INSANITY has been good to me although it may not FEEL like it lol.

Today I did have my cheat meal though and mainly it was because that is where we had lunch for our date. I found out how many calories were in one roll from there so I felt guilty so I took a long walk/jog with my dog after we got back from lunch. So my thing here is do things in moderation. I have not had a meal like this (featured below) in a long time. I did choose water instead of a cocktail, pop or juice so I did make a good choice there. I wanted more than 2 rolls but I did not indulge. I had like 4 pieces of fish on my plate but I gave my bf two of them so I didn't eat them. So yes I had a meal that was more calories than it should have but to tell you the truth it was good, I enjoyed it and I won't be doing that often so as long as I keep things in moderation I think I will continue to have results and be healthier. But like I said I am keeping it honest with you all so I did not want to pretend like I didn't have a cheat meal. We are all human! My walk was about 30 minutes so I am proud of that and feel better about what I ate today. I jogged, walked fast, did walking lunges and when I say hills I sprinted up them. I felt better after I got done with that lil' workout! :)

TODAY'S MENU

Breakfast: Veggie Omelet with egg whites and one whole egg and raspberries with one piece of turkey bacon.
Snack: Almonds
Lunch: Two small catfish fillets, baked potato with cheese, ceasar salad and two rolls. Rolls are my weakness
Dinner: one turkey taco and black beans.

Lots of water today too!!!

Anyway, I had been craving tacos or Mexican for that matter and wanted to find healthier alternatives for it so I did. Yesterday I made a yummy meal that included home made corn tortillas for only 64 calories each. I didn't do beef I used ground turkey and ground chicken which is way healthier. I had a fresh tomato salsa (not the jarred stuff in the aisles loaded with sodium and words I can't read), avocados, lettuce and 2% colby and Monterrey jack cheese (better than regular cheese). I wanted to put some sauteed veggies in my meat so I added onions, red bell pepper, jalapenos, and a roma tomato in for color and flavor. I seasoned it with a little sea salt and black pepper. Now doesn't that sound delicious....well here is the recipe if you want to try it.

Homemade Corn Tortillas

Ingredients

2 cups Masa Harina

1 1/4 cups Warm water

1/2 t salt plus an extra pinch of salt

Plastic Wrap

Round plate or bowl,small

Directions:

Measure two cups of Masa Harina and pour in a bowl
Pour in the warm water and begin to stir it in the Masa until it becomes doughy
Take your hands and knead it until smooth
Make small balls of the dough and keep them covered in the bowl
Take out one ball of dough at a time and place on plastic wrap.
Place another piece of plastic wrap over the dough and roll until a nice thin thickness. This keeps it from sticking. If you don't have a rolling pin a long drinking glass usually works too.
Take a bowl or plate and place in the middle of the rolled out dough and cut around the plate/bowl. Softly peel off the tortilla. Stack them on a plate with plastic wrap between them or those sandwich bags that don't have any enclosure just a plain sandwich bag.
When you have all the tortilla's stacked, put a non-stick pan or lightly oil pan (use olive oil) and cook until brown on both sides for about 1 to 2 minutes each. Serve warm and it makes about 8-12 tortillas. If you want to fold them down middle it should be easy to just fold it.

Here are some pictures to help you....

Get your salt out!

Pour in your Masa Harina.

Add water and stir

Knead the dough until it is smooth

Roll the dough into small balls and lay on the plastic

Put some plastic over it and and roll it until it is thin but not too thin because they are fragile

Here it is rolled out. You can place plate/bowl over it or just let it have rough edges up to you

Put a bowl/plate in the middle and cut around it for nice circle shape

It may get stuck so peel it off nicely

Repeat the steps and create your tortillas.

Warm on Medium heat

Cook each side until golden brown

Place on a plate and stack them up. This is one I didn't cut with a circle. Enjoy!

Taco Meat: Chicken and/or Turkey

Instead of buying a packet or seasoning all you need to do is this.....

Ingredients:

1/2 t ground cumin

1/2 t chili powder

1/2 t cayenne pepper

1/2 t dried oregano

1 T Chopped, fresh jalapenos

1 c Diced tomatoes (1 or 2 roma tomatoes)

1/2 cup White onion

1/2 cup red bell pepper

Salt and Pepper to taste

It is about 99 calories per serving.

These measurements are for a pound of meat. If you want to do a half pound of each then just split the seasonings among the chicken and turkey. It is up to you.

Just take the chopped veggies and mix with the meat.
Drain any fat or excess liquid.
Add seasonings and spices to the meat. Cook until the meat is cooked through and serve with the tortillas.
Add whatever toppings you would like, try fresh salsa, avocado slices, 2% shredded cheese for healthier choices and plain greek yogurt instead of sour cream but if you must just find a low fat sour cream if needed. Add lettuce, tomatoes, onions etc if you want more on top of the taco.

I served this meal with a side of refried black beans. Great protein and a healthy choice. I cooked it with a few chopped white onions too.

Here are some pictures...