¡Tortillas!

As part of our Food and Restaurants unit, we spent a day in the kitchen the week before vacation learning how to prepare authentic corn tortillas from scratch.  Students followed these step by step instructions (method 2 - corn tortillas), and were quite successful in their efforts.  When the tortillas were prepared, we added cheese or queso to make quesadillas.  

Dried hibiscus petals steeping in simple syrup to make agua de jamaica

As an extra treat I prepared agua de jamaica for students to try.  Agua de jamaica is a sweet beverage made from the dried petals of the hibiscus flower.  This is a very traditional Mexican beverage that tastes somewhat similar to fruit punch.  

I've offered students extra credit for this unit if they make tortillas at home and document the process with a series of photos or a video.  The main ingredient, masa, can be found in the international aisle in most grocery stores and a rolling pin can be used in place of a tortilla press.  Check out our photos from this very fun class!