Tortilla Chips #3

This was a good trial.  Tortillas turned out fine.  I know now that I can't roll it too thin or it will break apart on the edges.  Cooked chips 8 minutes, switched pans, and then 8 more minutes.  Some of the chips did not get crispy, so I put them back in for another 8 minutes, removed the crispy ones and put it back in again until all were crispy.

Notes:

1. Cook tortillas longer for crispier tortilla chips. The chips that took the longest to cook were from softer tortillas.
2. Brushing with oil may be optional.  Next time, I will brush one pan with less oil and the other will be without oil.  Salt may not stick this way but it's worth trying to see if this will help chips to become crispier.
3. Chips loose crispiness in bag.  Try brushing with less oil and soaking up oil with paper towels before and during cooking.

Homemade Tortilla Chips

From my initial review of recipes, they seem a bit easy to make.  However, I'm learning that "easy" will really come after making them several times and learning what the dough should look like and how this type of flour cooks.  The change that I am making with recipes I'm following is that I am using light in flavor olive oil instead of vegetable or canola oil.  Olive oil is a good fat plus it can be cooked safely at 350 F which is what is called for in almost every tortilla chip recipe I've seen.

Recipe Links:
fried tortilla chips: not fond of this one since they are friend. However, I took note of it since it is a recipe from scratch and also since it adds salt to the dough.
chips only: this a great way to make the chips once the tortillas are made.

Tortilla Chip Trials:

tortilla chips #1 & 2  25 Jul 2011
tortilla chps #3 28 Jul 2011

Homemade Tortilla Chips #2

So disappointed.
#1 - Last night I made tortillas for the first time and then made chips right afterward.  I followed the tortilla recipe on the flour bag and they turned out great.  However, I ended up overcooking the chips and they were way too hard.  My guess on the solution would be, of course, to cook them for a shorter period of time and also to roll them thinner.  I overcooked them purposely due to my experience with potato chips not getting crispy when following the recipe and also to adjust for altitude.  Fortunately, they are still edible after soaking in salsa. :(
#2 - Tonight I thought I'd try again.  However, I followed the recipe closer than the first time since I used warm water instead of cold.  This made it much easier to mix the dough.  However, the dough was a little sticky.  I know now I should have added more flour like most recipes suggest but I didn't.  I also added salt this time which may have resulted in a sticker dough.  I'm not really sure which one it was.  I wasted time rolling out all the balls and then found I could not remove the dough from the plastic without it falling apart in my hand.  I am thoroughly discouraged, but I know its just a matter of learning what the dough should feel like before rolling it.  So, I've learned that sticky is no good for tortilla dough and hopefully shortening the cooking time on the chips will solve the rock hard chip problem.  Though I hate having to throw out a failed batch, I'm encouraged to continue since I want to eat tortilla chips made with olive oil.

Crispy Oven-fried Potato Chips

• 1-2 medium sized russet (baking) potatoes 
• 2 Tbsp butter (melted)
• 2 Tbsp light in flavor olive oil
• Salt to taste

Peel and slice potatoes to 1/8 inch thickness.  Be sure to work quickly to prevent potato slices from browning. Place slices from the first potato on two layers of paper towels and then cover with two layers of paper towels. Press the paper towels into the potatoes to soak up the moisture.  Place the slices from the second potato on top of the paper towels and then cover once again with two layers of paper towels. Press paper towels into the potatoes and then put all potato slices in a bowl.

Pour melted butter and olive oil over the slices and toss to coat each slice. Arrange potato slices in one layer on a lightly oiled cookie sheet. Place a double layer of paper towels on top of the slices and press down on each slice to soak up excess oil.  Bake slices in a preheated 400°F oven for 30-40 minutes, or until they are golden brown. Since some chips will be ready earlier than others, you will need to remove the pan and remove browned chips so they do not burn. When you remove the ready chips, soak up excess oil on the chips. Be sure to repeat this step 2-3 times since excess oil will prevent chips from becoming crispy. When the chips are ready, scoop them off the pan with a spatula. Place on a plate lined with paper towels and sprinkle liberally with salt. Toss chips and enjoy. If there are left over chisp, tore in foil in the refrigerator.  Bring to room temperature before eating.

Note: For different flavors, toss chips with herb infused oil or sprinkle with different spices.  To infuse oil, add dried herbs and oil to a container. Let sit in sunlight to infuse flavors. Flavor ideas: garlic, herbs, mustard seed, or rosemary

Health Note: These chips are healthier than store bought chips since they are oven baked, are made with olive oil and butter rather than canola or vegetable oil, and are free of preservatives and artificial flavors.  

Wine Making

Since wine making involves a great deal of waiting, I am still in the process of researching this topic.  So far, I've followed a homemade wine recipe which turned out great for the most part.  I've made two more of the same recipe using different flavors which I am still waiting to mature.

Homemade Wine Recipe Link:
This recipe works out great. If you've ever tried box wine, don't worry, this wine is nothing like it.  It isn't the same smoothness and strength as store bought table wine, but its actually quite good for a wine made from a concentrate.

Equipment Note: If starting with a ballon, a step up from that can be using an air lock with a rubber stopper.  If you buy an air locks and stopers, the investment will be minimal, around $8-$10.  However, the large jug that the stoppers fit in run about $40+.  If you want to ease your way into wine making and not spend $60-$100 on a kit, buy the air locks, rubber stoppers, and a gallon or 4 liter size glass bottle of wine or juice.  It is hard to find juice in glass jugs these days but there are always glass wine jugs available.  Though I cannot speak for the quality of wine sold in large jugs, it will be worth purchasing for the glass jug.  The rubber stoppers generally fit in these large jugs and you will only pay around $10 for the jug of wine/juice.
Once you are comfortable with using airlocks, you may feel ready to make wine using the whole wine making cycle of fermentation and syphoning.  However, be aware that the longer the wine ages, the more you have to worry about spoilage as well as other issues.  From what I've read so far, four - six week wine should have no such issues so adding preservatives does not need to be considered.

Sulfates as Preservatives in Wine
Making wine that ages longer than 6 weeks generally has a list of other ingredients that are added including sulfates.  Though many people have some form of intolerance to sulfates whether it is simply getting headaches, wine makers continue to insist that wine cannot be made without sulfates.  The number one reason for this is because sulfates are produced naturally when grapes ferment.  However, many wine makers add additional sulfates in order to keep the wine from spoiling.  So, if you are making your own wine and wish to avoid adding sulfates, you can keep it simple by sticking with the 4-6 week wines or you can gamble with your batch of wine and hope it does not spoil.  I have heard that some organic wineries are using a new method to make wine that keeps the grapes from producing natural sulfates as well as methods for avoiding having to add sulfates.  Since this is a new technology, it is probably not done everywhere.  I have not researched this extensively, but since I heard about this new wine making method from a relative who works at a winery, I can always add that information if anyone is interested.

Additional Topics to research: 1. Wine making basics  2. The best place to get brewing equipment.

Homemade wine - trial #1 19 Jul 2011
Homemade wine #2 10 Oct 2011

Homemade wine basics
Homemade wine making instructions
http://www.theorganicwinecompany.com/sulfites.php 
http://www.howtomakehomemadewine.info/Reasons_for_Failure.html

Homemade Wine #1

I hit the 4 week mark for my homemade wine experiment.  The recipe called for 6 weeks but the reviews indicated that the wine was fine to drink at 4 weeks.  The wine tasted a little bit strong but the strength of the alcohol did not seem as strong as most store bought wines.  Maybe waiting the 6 weeks would make a difference.  Though the taste was a little strong at first, it is not gross like box wine and probably is a step down from most table wines.  Definitely good enough to drink on a regular basis. :)

Anyway, I solved the sifting problem pouring it through a paper coffee filter and letting it drain into the bottle.  Toward the end of the jug, it drained more slowly and finally I just had to throw the rest out since it was too thick with yeast and sentiment.  The recipe did not give instructions on how to filter out the yeast but the reviews cited this as an issue people would have to figure out.

1 gallon jug makes approximately the equivalent of 3 bottles of wine.  Price $2.50 when taking sugar and bottled water into consideration.  Very economical if you like to have a glass of wine at night or with dinner.


Homemade Recipe Link

My only deviation from this recipe is that I released the air from the balloon when it started to get big.  I only had to do this once and I was careful not to let any air in.  Since my results were good, I'll do the same thing next time.  I'm sure a balloon can be substituted with professional brewing equipment for anyone who's serious about the wine making thing.  As for me, I'll be trying the same recipe with different flavors and possibly longer fermentation before I consider getting any brewing equipment.  It's nice to keep it simple at first.

Return to Wine Making Page

Favor Extracts #1

Just hit the 3 week mark on raspberry and strawberry extracts.  Strained extract and replaced old berries with fresh ones.  At this point, the strawberry extract smells very strong but does not taste as strong as most finished extracts.  The raspberry extract does not have as strong of a raspberry fragrance compared to the strawberry.  This may be due to the berry type and is sure to improve in the next 6 weeks.  Unfortunately, I was not able to get fresh organic raspberries for this change over so I used frozen berries.  So far, the berries have not broken apart in the alcohol which is a good sign since my fear was freezing would make the berries into mush.

Results:
These extracts had a very nice smell.  However, the strength of the extract was not enough to use in hard candy.  I used it in gummy bears and still the flavor did not come out very strong.  So, this was a fun experiment, but I was really looking for something for hard candy.  Since extracts last forever, I'm sure I'll find something interesting to use them in.