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CORN FROM HOMEMADE

MATERIALS  2 lbs. of dried corn or grain corn on cob. Preferably Zapatista Corn. Until harvest the Mexican grocer in Toppenish has dried corn.  2 tablespoons of Cal Mexicana lime ( Hydroxide / Powdered Lime) (Available at Mexican grocer in Toppenish)  ~2 pounds of prepared Masa (making masa takes over night so the kids will reach a point where you magically fast forward for them)  Mortar and pestle  Plate Grinder, Food Processor, or other grinding tool that can handle wet ingredients  press or a pie dish and heavy pan  Plastic to keep tortillas from sticking – cut freezer bags work great  Griddle or frying pan to cook tortillas

OBJECTIVES  Prepare and sample tortillas, from scratch  Gain respect and understanding of Indigenous and Hispanic cultures of

BACKGROUND Background info should be covered in preceding lesson ‘The Story of Corn.’ If this is being taught as a standalone lesson condense ‘The Story of Corn’ into an introduction for this lesson.

INTRODUCTION 1. Who likes tortillas? How often do you eat them? With what meals? Etc. (get thinking and talking about tortillas. a. Ask students if they have ever made tortillas, or if anyone in their family does and how. b. Does anyone know how they are made? 2. The word ‘tortilla’ comes from the Spanish word “torta” which is loosely translated as bread or cake. When you add an “‐illa” to a word it means small or little. So, a torta‐illa is a small or little bread. a. The Spanish colonizers arrived and named this food in their own language, but Native peoples’ had their own names, in their own languages for tortillas. The Aztecs called it tlaxcalli 3. Discuss how people have been making corn for around 10,000 years – Maybe longer – I have seen estimated of 9,000‐12,000 years ago. Interestingly, over time scientists have discovered several times that corn and tortillas are older than they had thought. a. Archeological evidence found in cave in Mexico 9000+ years ago 4. The first people to make corn ground the grain with mortar and pestle made from rocks. a. They would often carve their pestle into rock near a water source b. This is very hard work! i. Have a few grains of corn and mortar and pestle for kids to try

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This is an image from Central California that displays an ancient kitchen. They would fill the holes with acorns or other foods to grind them.

5. More recently, maybe around 4000 years ago, people discovered the process. a. Nix is from the Aztec word from ash. What does ‘tamal’ sound like? It’s the same Aztec word that the word comes from. It means something like, “corn .” b. Nixtamalization is process that changes some of the chemicals in corn using an ingredient called lime or cal. But it’s different than the fruit lime. (show the cal/lime packet). A similar chemical is found in ash. That’s why the word nixtamalize roughly translates to ash corn dough. c. Has anyone ever heard of , had posole? The hominy is nixtamalized corn that is what you might have eaten in posole. d. If you grind the hominy or nixtamalized corn you get a dough called masa that could be used for or tortillas. (Posole and regional/cultural variations will be a later lesson). e. Has anyone ever made tortillas before? Did you use masa? 6. Nixtamalization actually makes the corn healthier by making it easier to digest. a. Nixtamalized corn increases the bioavailability of (Vitamin B) and protein in corn. i. What does bioavailability mean? ii. Does anyone know any other foods that are more healthy when they are prepared a certain way than when they are raw? 1. Cooked tomatoes are higher in anti‐oxidants than raw. b. Also it drastically reduces toxins found in moldy corn. This would be especially important if you were storing your corn to last through the winter as many people have in the past and continue to do today. i. Discuss seasonality of foods and how foods were and are stored in fall to sustain people through winter. Curriculum for Restoration Restorationpedagogy.com/curriculum

ii. Possible connections to three sisters garden / lesson. c. And when we make tortillas with nixtamalized corn, we use only 3 ingredients: corn, lime, and water. We won’t add any oils, fats, or preservatives (although the lime acts like a preservative)! 6. Now we’re readyto make tortillas with masa made from nixtamalized corn. a. Having tried grinding the corn with a mortar and pestle, discuss what hard work it would be to grind enough corn to make our tortillas. b. Discuss further how people making tortillas 10,000 years ago would have ground the corn, added some sort of fat and cooked it over a fire. c. Also mention that they can buy the ingredients at the Mexican grocery in Toppenish or get prepared masa from Safeway (if doing lesson elsewhere find out if/where ingredients would be available).

PART 1: NIXTAMALIZE CORN AND MAKE MASA

INGREDIENTS:  2 lbs. of dried corn  2 tablespoons of lime ( / Powdered Lime)  Filtered water (enough to cover the corn ‐ about 3 quarts)

DIRECTIONS: 1. Use clean corn seed, remove any chaff from the corn husk, rinse with tap water, and then remove any excess water using a plastic colander.

2. Put the corn into a non‐corrosive pot. Use 2 to three liters of water per each one kilo of corn. Add 2 tablespoons of dried powered lime (Mexican cal) dissolved in 1/2 cup of filtered water.

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CAL MEXICANA.‐ You can find “cal mexicana” (powdered lime) in most Latin or Hispanic grocery stores.

3.Transfer all these ingredients into a clay pot (preferably) and let it boil for few minutes (15‐20 minutes), stir slowly using a wooden kitchen spoon. Remove the pot from the stove, cover it with a lid and let it cool overnight.

Instructor should have second batch that has already soaked overnight prepared ahead of time. Just like a cooking show so that we can ‘fast‐forward’ and complete the process.

4. You know that the corn is ready if it easily peels off when you rub it with your fingers after 15 ‐20 minutes of cooking.

5.The next day, reserve some of the cooking liquid and remove the rest of the liquid (also known as “nejayote”), and rinse the corn two or three times rubbing off the loose skin, until the kernels are quite white and the water looks clean. Drain well.

5. Now the corn is ready for the grinder. You can use the ancient “metate”, but we are going to describe the grinding process using a manual plate grinder. Start grinding the corn in small batches twice or three times until it has a fine texture. Add enough of the reserved cooking water and mix until it forms a dough. You can also add an extra pinch of Cal to extend the life of the nixtamal. Curriculum for Restoration Restorationpedagogy.com/curriculum

(This manual plate grinder could be replaced with a food processor, however, the texture cannot be duplicated.)

Note: you can often find prepared masa in most grocery stores like Safeway. A lot of Mexican grocery stores have more variety and the Mexican supermarket in Toppenish sells lime and dry corn. Discuss with kids that we are exploring the process and it can be fun to make things from scratch, but that they can still make homemade tortillas with prepared masa.

PART 2: MAKE HOMEMADE CORN USING MASA

INGREDIENTS FOR 12 TORTILLAS  2 cups masa harina  1‐¼ cups of warm water (this may vary depending on air humidity and other wheatear conditions).  2 pieces of round plastic cut out from a bag. (freezer bags are ideal for this purpose).

DIRECTIONS: 1. Use a wooden bowl to combine the masa harina and water. Mix well until the water is absorbed evenly and the dough forms a ball.

NOTES: We are looking for a soft dough consistency; it should not stick to your hands. If it does, add a little more of masa harina. If it looks dry, breakable or crumbly, add more water. Cover with a moist towel to prevent the dough from drying.

2. Preheat a griddle or heavy skillet on medium flame. This has to be ready when you start pressing the tortillas.

3. Using a tortilla press or a heavy dish, (pie dish as I do), place a ball of the dough about 1 ½ inch in diameter between the two plastic pieces and press to form a 6 inch round tortilla. Curriculum for Restoration Restorationpedagogy.com/curriculum

4. Press the small ball of dough firmly with your fingers to form a patty between the pieces of plastic.

5. Open the tortilla press or remove the heavy dish if using to press the tortillas, peel the top plastic off. If the press tortilla has an uneven edge, then the dough is too dry and you will need to add a little water and mix the well.

Somehow when using the tortilla press my tortillas come out very thin. Some people in the South of Mexico eat thicker tortillas and some grandmas still make them by hand.

6. Lift the plastic with the pressed tortilla, place the dough in your hand closer to your fingers and carefully peel the plastic off the dough. If the dough doesn’t come out so easily then the dough could be a little to wet. Add some more masa harina to the dough mix again until it becomes easy to handle.

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7. Place the tortilla on the griddle and cook for 45 seconds. The edge will begin to dry out. Turn over and continue to cook for 1 minute until brown patches form.

8. Turn over again and cook for another 15 seconds. The cooking time is about 2 minute’s total. Cook until the tortilla begins to puff. Tap lightly with your fingertips to allow even puffing. Wrap with a napkin or clean towel, and serve.

CONCLUSION  Have students taste the tortillas that they worked so hard to make.  Discuss similarities and differences to other tortillas they’ve had (homemade or from the store).  What ones do they like more. Would they want to add or change anything? Salt? Lime (the fruit)? Fat?  Discuss how making tortillas, has, in the past been a gendered role, but that now, many indigenous communities are working to preserve and continue the ‘good’ parts of their culture and leave other parts in the past. o Zapatista men make help make tortillas, today, although in the past, in their communities, it was strictly women’s work. By sharing household duties and chores women have found more opportunity to become involved in the political process, open shops, and hold military positions and Men have had the opportunity to be more involved in home life. This change in their native Mayan culture has contributed greatly to their struggle to maintain their culture and way of life. However, some Zapatista leaders argue that these gender roles were never so strictly defined or enforced by their ancestors, but that they were introduced by the Spanish colonizers. Regardless, sharing equal roles at home and in society between men and women has improved their way of life.  Draw connections to present and Mexican culture. Ask students about family traditions. If students have a family member who cooks tortillas, encourage them to ask where they learned to make them.  Encourage students to ask a parent, grandparent, or other grown up to teach them traditional recipes and other traditions that they were taught by an elder.  Close by discussing how significant food is to culture and socialization and how we often share other elements of our cultures through sharing a meal.

Recipes are from www.mexicoinmykitchen.com