Intro to AIP

Intro to AIP, just in case you happen by this blog and don't know what it is:
The Auto-Immune Protocol is an elimination diet designed to help people with auto-immune issues, leaky gut, adrenal fatigue, allergies, and health problems that spring up due to any combination of the above. By eliminating all grains, dairy, nuts, seeds, eggs, and nightshades (tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, and eggplant), we are able to achieve a "clean slate" so to speak, free of allergens in our food that may be exacerbating our symptoms. Once our health returns, we slowly reintroduce foods and are able to see which foods are healthful and which we should continue to avoid. Much more on the AIP and it's How-and-Whys can be found on Sarah Balantine's blog Paleomom.


Cassava Flour Tortillas



We make these a few times a week to use as a bread replacement for lunches and dinners. Ordering cassava flour from Amazon has been more convenient for us than trying to find frozen grated cassava for the other type of tortillas we like. (For quite a while, we've only been able to find the grated cassava that has preservatives added, which we are unwilling to eat, and it's also faster and more convenient than boiling fresh yuca root to make the whole thing from scratch-scratch.)

I was going to type out our recipe, because I couldn't remember where we got it from, but I found it! We basically use this recipe: http://theurbanposer.com/cassava-flour-tortillas/

 

1 1/2 cups Cassava Flour

6 tablespoons arrowroot flour
2 tablespoons ground golden flax seed
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons melted fat(s) of choice (palm shortening, lard, ghee, coconut oil)
3/4 cup (possibly a little more) lukewarm water


Go see the post, because she's got some great info about cassava flour, although I don't agree that it is a good substitute for a lot of baking. Apparently some people are subbing it 1:1 for wheat flour, but we've had terrible results with most of our experiments. We do like it for these tortillas, and we use it for cookies, but breads and cakes are a no-go. You might need more water than she calls for, but it depends on humidity, etc. We often use half palm shortening and half coconut oil, instead of just one fat. We also sprinkle a small amount of fine sea salt on top when we first add them to the pan to cook, just for yum. :)



Remember if you are still strict AIP, flax seeds are a reintroduction. We do like the golden flax better than regular for this recipe, and we always use a tortilla press...rolling by hand would make a 3x/week chore unnecessarily loooong. The press makes everything come out in a uniform way and when you use parchment to avoid sticking, it comes together really fast. Most bloggers sharing cassava flour recipes seem to be pushing Otto's brand, but we use Anthony's, which is significantly less expensive.

We make a double batch (about 40 tortillas) and store in the fridge in a large plastic bag; they heat up great in a toaster oven or iron skillet. Great to pack for lunch on travel days! (Pro tip: put your tortillas, muffins, or breads on the dashboard while you drive and they'll be warm and extra delicious whenever you want them!)




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