beet tortilla chips

Ginger and I were in Parker and Otis, one of our favorite stores here in Durham, and they had a bag of beet chips out to sample. They were good. I looked at the ingredient list, came home, did a little research, and made some chips.

I already had some beets handy from our last visit to the Farmer's Market, so I put those on to boil with a couple of cinnamon sticks, a sliced lemon, some peppercorns, and a tablespoon of dried lemongrass -- only because those were things I had in my pantry and fridge. I brought them to a boil and then let them cook about forty minutes. After they cooled a bit (and I saved the beet water, by the way), I peeled them, diced them, and put them into the food processor with about a tablespoon of olive oil and processed them until they were smooth.

I had some Torti Masa on hand from earlier attempts at making tortillas, so I used that as the base. I got it from our local Latino grocery store, Compare Foods, where I go to get lots of fun stuff. Anyway, here's the recipe:

2 cups Torta Masa (Masa harina)
1 1/2 cups puréed beets
1/2 cup beet water
4 tablespoons olive oil
Canola oil (or your choice) for frying

Put the masa in a bowl and add the beet purée and the oil and stir together. Add enough of the beet water to make it come together as a dough. It needs to be wet enough to roll out, but not sticky. Add the water in small batches; you can add more easier than you can take it out.


Preheat the oven to 350. Pinch enough dough for about a one inch ball and then flatten it into a disc. Spread some of the masa on the counter and dust the disc and roll it out so that it is a thin and even circle. Cut it into wedges (you may even want to use a pizza cutter) and place the pieces on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or a Silpat. Bake the chips for ten minutes. Let them cool. (You will need to do this in batches; I had about five sheet pans worth.)

Pour about an inch and a half on oil into a saucepan and heat the oil to 350. Fry the baked chips in batches -- don't crowd them. They only need to fry about two minutes or so. Drain on a sheet pan lined with paper towels. Sprinkle with salt while they are still hot and a little oily.

These are vegan chips and are also gluten free.

And they're good.

Peace,
Milton