How to make the rice flour wraps, or tortillas, that will be stacked and sliced with homemade black bean dip, for a delicious artsy appetizer.
Wraps Tortillas And Crepes
Never having had a tortilla wrap until recent years, I was reminded of how culture and heritage contributes much to the foods we eat.
When I was growing up, and well into my adult life, a crepe was the only type of wrap I was familiar with. A soft dough made from a simple recipe with mostly eggs a bit of flour and some milk whose origin was French.
Then, when my kids were growing up, flour and corn tortillas entered our home as an easy way to buy the tortilla already made and toss layers of flavor inside, fold them in half and place a huge tray on the table for the kids to dig into.
Obviously kids are going to love a fun wrap filled with ground beef, cheddar cheese and a splash of tomato sauce in the mix.
But once the kids grew up, I was in search of something a bit more adult friendly with a wider variety of fillings, rather than the kid friendly meals that dominated those hectic years.
White Rice Flour Wraps And Tortillas
During those busy years of making food for children, I doubt I paid much attention to the nutritional information on the package of store bought flour tortillas; it’s a wrap and I’m in a hurry!
However, the twenty-first century brought about the universal attention to ingredients labels and new information about gluten-free foods.
The use of brown rice flour or a white sweet rice flour sounded like a delicious alternative for rice tortillas.
So, I took a look at the ingredients in a store bought gluten-free tortilla or wrap.
It was then I discovered ingredients I didn’t want in my wraps, some I couldn’t pronounce, like xanthan gum, much less know where they came from.
What’s In Your Tortilla Dough!
Knowing what ingredients are often used in alternative foods, convinced me to create my own rice flour wrap, based on my French crepe recipes.
I had no interest in putting tapioca flour, or tapioca starch, a thickening and binding ingredient made from yuca root, because I knew it was highly processed.
After living in Brazil, in which yuca root is used in many recipes, I was aware of how long it takes to boil the root down to make it tender enough to eat, like three times as long as a potato.
Confidently, I set out to make my own healthier version of a store bought rice wrap, which is so much better than the regular tortilla wraps I used. There was no need to toss in arrowroot starch or psyllium husk powder either; just a good quality cup of rice flour!
Easy To Make Rice Flour Wraps
Would you believe these are so easy to make that you could whip up the batter tossing all the ingredients into a blender or food processor, blend and place it into the fridge until ready to make the wraps?
Six simple ingredients are all that are needed to make the batter.
Once the batter is chilled, a thin drizzle of the batter goes into a hot frying pan or hot skillet for seconds, flipped and done.
When making the batch of tortilla wraps, it’s a good idea to place pieces of parchment paper between each layer so they don’t stick together.
In a short time these delicious rice flour tortillas are ready for favorite fillings; which of course I am going to share mine with you, and no it’s not kid fillings!
Unique Tortillas And Wraps
It seems that ‘wraps’ have become an international thing, and having cooked on The Great American Recipe, with PBS, I can’t tell you how many times some of the other cooks used ‘wraps’ in a variety of dishes they prepared.
Planning a dinner party at my home for a unique group of friends, local restaurateurs, I decided a unique menu was in order.
Totally different from any tortillas or wraps I had ever seen, I decided to layer a warm tortilla, with a warm spicy black bean dip, several more tortillas and dip and slice them to serve as appetizers.
Once the stacks were assembled, now looking ‘zebra-like’, I sliced them into long slivers, easy to eat as a finger-food, and served them with a drizzle of a spinach and lemon glaze.
With black beans, chili peppers, teriyaki sauce, garlic and a splash of lime whirled into this dip, assembly goes fast and holds its shape all evening, without making the wraps soggy.
How To Make Fast Spicy Black Bean Spread
Having made crepes a gazillion times, this time wanting a gluten-free wrap that I could stack with the black bean spread between the layers, I found this spread just as easy as the wrap to prepare.
Into the blender goes a can of cooked black beans, a splash of teriyaki sauce, garlic and the heat of chili peppers, making this layered black bean, rice flour tortilla wrap the star of the evening meal, both for the guests and for me because they were so easy to make.
Wraps Come In Many Forms And Sizes
The similarity in a sandwich, taco, tortilla wrap, blini, pancake or waffle is that they are each used to place a meal inside of them.
How are they different? All shapes, sizes and ingredients, but basically they are used to do the same thing; pick up your food with your fingers!
While I have numerous recipes for various types of bread on my blog to make great sandwiches with, I wanted to give you other options:
- Savory Herb Crepes – For Wraps Omelettes Or Tapas – these classic crepes will become your favorite, easy to make, homemade wrap, for a variety of favorite fillings.
- Blini Pancake Recipe – makes the perfect bite-sized pancakes with caviar and creme, or favorite toppings, for a delicious appetizer.
- Countryside Waffles with Chicken – Waffles are made with a Maryland seasoning on a sautéed chicken thigh, chili honey and tucked between homemade waffles.
- Mediterranean Pita Flatbread – with fresh herbs or dried spices, are a favorite with sandwiches, dips or tapas spreads!
Ingredients Needed
- Cooked black beans
- Salt
- Olive oil
- Red pepper flakes
- Garlic
- Teriyaki sauce
- Lime juice
- Rice flour – Bob’s Red Mill is my favorite
- Eggs
- Rice milk
- Coconut oil
- Ginger powder
Equipment Needed
- Crepe pan makes wraps in minutes
- Measuring cup
- Ladle
- Measuring spoons
- Spatula
- Parchment paper
- Serrated knife
- Food processor or blender
- Stovetop or burner
How To Make Rice Flour Wraps And Tortillas
Equipment
- Crepe pan
- Blender or food processor
Ingredients
- Rice Flour Tortilla Wraps makes 10 wraps
- 1 cup Rice flour
- 2 Eggs
- 1 cup Rice milk
- 1 tbsp Coconut oil melted, cooled
- 1/4 tsp Sea salt
- 1/2 tsp Ginger powder
- Black Bean Dip
- 15 oz Cooked black beans
- 1 tsp Sea salt
- 1 tbsp Olive oil
- 1/4 tsp Red chili flakes or to taste
- 2 Garlic cloves
- 1 tbsp Teriyaki sauce
- 1 tbsp Lime juice
- 1/4 cup Glaze, optional melted cheese or spinach glaze
Instructions
- Tortilla Wraps – Place all of the tortilla wrap ingredients in a blender or food processor. Mix one minute. Place batter in the fridge for one hour.
- When ready to make the crepes, lightly oil a non-stick pan. Pour about 1/8 a cup of batter into the center of the hot pan, and whirl the pan around to spread the batter thin.
- As soon as you see little bubbles forming on top, flip it over to cook the second side for just a few seconds, then remove. Crepes cook very fast so don’t take your eyes off them! Lay each crepe out on a wire rack allowing to cool. Once cool they can be stacked with a piece of parchment paper between them. If not using right away, the wraps can be place in plastic wrap to keep them from drying out.
- Black Bean Dip – Place the ingredients into a blender or food processor and puree until smooth. The dip can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge until ready to use.
- Assembly – Place one wrap on a work surface. Spread the dip across the wrap in a thin layer. Place another tortilla wrap on top and continue in this way until you have prepared several layers. With a serrated knife, cut half-inch slices and place them on a serving tray.
- An optional melted cheese can be drizzled across the tops, though they are flavorful enough without. In some of the photos here a spinach glaze, of pureed cooked spinach, garlic, lemon juice and olive oil was used.
Video
I believe the table... that place that draws people to gather, is the most powerful symbol of togetherness. All that happens before the table is set, the planning, the gathering, the preparing, are all an intricate part of the dance that create the mood of celebration to share with friends and loved ones.
