Instructions: The warm, comforting smell of homemade tortillas, coupled with their wonderfully fresh taste, has always been soothing and satisfying. They were a mainstay of my childhood diet because I was one of those picky eaters. I remember hoarding the pats of wrapped butter at restaurants and saving them to spread on my tortillas at home. Today, Im a more adventurous diner (though I still like to save restaurant butter pats), but my love for homemade tortillas remains.

Tortillas are just as enjoyable to make as they are to eat. Unlike some types of baking dough, where one mistaken measurement can mean disaster, tortilla dough is very forgiving. There are two basic types of dough: masa for corn tortillas and flour dough for flour tortillas.

Masa, meaning dough, has been around since well before the Aztec empire, and corn tortillas have fed and nourished countless generations since. Flour tortillas are a more recent invention, dating to the arrival in 1519 of the Spanish, who introduced the locals to wheat flour. Thats one reason flour tortillas are most often used in Tex-Mex dishes such as fajitas, while corn tortillas are reserved for more traditional cuisine, like soft tacos.

Masa begins as nixtamal, large kernels of corn traditionally grown from heirloom varieties. The kernels are then soaked in a solution of water and lime

(the mineral, alkali calcium hydroxide, not the fruit), which changes the texture of the corn. (Originally, the Aztecs used a solution of water and ashes.) The soaking process also makes the vitamins and minerals present within the corn more readily available to our metabolism. Once ground, nixtamal becomes masa.

Though masa is used to prepare many types of food, including tamales and corn cakes, it is most often made into corn tortillas. Fresh masa is available at Mexican groceries and many large supermarkets. It usually comes wrapped in plastic and formed into a large roll, like cookie dough.

I prefer fresh masa for making homemade tortillas because it usually has superior texture and flavor, but if you cant find it, look for masa harina, or flour, in the baking or Latin food section of your market. These days, even such chain stores as Wal-Mart carry masa harina. It needs only to be mixed with water.

Once you have your dough, youll need to decide how to form your tortillas: by hand, with a press or by rolling out the dough, the method used for making flour tortillas.

If youve been to Mexico or gone behind the scenes at a good Mexican restaurant, you probably have observed - or heard - tortillas being made by hand.

First, dampen your hands lightly. Then, pinch off a golf ball-size round of dough. Pat the dough with your palms into a flat disk and then clap it from one palm to another, rotating the dough about 90 degrees with each clap, until you have a 5 inch disk. Though this method takes a bit of practice, youll be able to move quickly once you get a rhythm going.

The second, and easiest, way to make corn tortillas is with a tortilla press.

You can find them in gourmet shops, Latin groceries, online and at stores like Cost-Plus or Sur La Table, which sell specialty cooking equipment. Look for heavy, metal presses with sturdy hinges. To use, place one of two cut sheets of wax paper on the bottom of the open press. Put the dough on top and cover it with the other sheet of wax paper. Close the press, then open it and peel off the formed tortilla. I prefer wax paper to plastic wrap because it does not tear so easily.

The final method, also used for making flour tortillas, is to roll out the dough. Since it helps to begin with a circle shape, I like to first wrap the dough in wax paper and form a cylinder. That makes it easy to cut circles from either end. Be sure to dust your work surface and rolling pin with flour. The dough tends to stick less on unvarnished wood than other surfaces, but if you dont have such a surface in your kitchen, roll the dough out between two sheets of wax paper until its about 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick and 8 inches in diameter.

To cook corn or flour tortillas, place the formed tortilla on a hot, ungreased Mexican comal, on a skillet or a flat cast-iron pan. (It is better to use a well-seasoned cast-iron or metal surface than a non-stick pan because most non-stick coatings cannot withstand high temperatures for long periods of time.)

When the edges of the tortilla begin to dry, flip it and cook for a minute. Flip once more and cook 30 seconds longer.

Homemade tortillas often puff up while cooking, but dont worry. Theyll deflate back to their traditional shape. Besides, that puffing is the sign of a well-made tortilla.

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