roast Brussels sprouts fajitas with homemade oat-flour tortillas

We’re off to LA this week and these roast vegetable fajitas with homemade oat-flour tortillas are a little taste-prelude of what’s to come.  Outside of Mexico itself, California has some of the best Mexican restaurants in the world and we plan to try a few of them.  Fajita’s are one of those hybrid dishes that has multiple origin stories.  The concept was Mexican; the word fajita is a TexMex bastardisation of the Mexican word for skirt steak – arracheras.  Skirt steak was always used as it was the cheapest cut, so in fact a vegetable fajita makes no sense but I love how food and food origins evolve over time to suit a particular peoples tastes and thank god for fajitas because they a firm Belleau Kitchen favourite.

Many few years back, when I first started this blog I took part in an international food swap.  I think I sent some local honey out to a Spanish lady and I was sent a few sachets of different spicy herb blends including a cajun spice bag and a chipotle spice bag.  They’ve lasted me for years and they are SO good.  I don’t have a recipe for these but you can now pick up quite authentic spice blends at all good supermarkets.

This is a ridiculously easy dish to make.  It can of course be done in a frying pan but I like this oven-roasted version as it’s hassle free and means you can enjoy drinking margaritas without worrying about standing in front of a hot stove. I’m using an array of traditional wrap vegetables (peppers and onions) along with a couple of more locally grown veg such as Brussels sprouts and leeks.

The flour tortillas are also super-easy if you have a stand mixer and honestly so delicious and can be made in advance and frozen, or make them in the morning and keep them in a sealed container to keep them fresh, then simply re-heat them in a microwave for 20 seconds. I’m using the amazing oat-flour that was sent to me from buywholefoodsonline as I thought it would make a lighter, softer wrap and I wasn’t disappointed. They also have cornflour (if you want to make corn tortillas) as well as regular flours.

For the vegetables:

• 3 teaspoons of your favourite spice blend mix – I’m using a chipotle style spice blend.
• 4 banana shallots – quartered lengthways
• 2 packets of baby sweetcorn – halved lengthways
• 4 large Portobello or field mushrooms – thickly sliced
• 1 yellow pepper – sliced
• 1 red pepper – sliced
• 6 large Brussels sprouts – halved
• 1 medium leek – halved and chopped
• 2 medium red chillis – whole
• 3 cloves garlic – skin on
• 3 tablespoons olive oil

For the soft flour tortillas:

• 320g plain flour
• 100g oat flour
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 72ml (roughly 5 tablespoons) extra virgin olive oil 
• 250 ml warm water

start by making the tortilla by combining the flour, salt and baking powder in the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the dough hook, mix dry ingredients until well combined then add the oil and water with mixer running at a medium speed. After about 1 minute, or when mixture comes together and begins to form a ball, decrease mixing speed to low. Continue to mix for 1 minute or until dough is smooth.  Place a tea towel over the dough and set aside to rest for 10 mins – the dough won’t rise but the gluten needs time to relax.

To make the roasted vegetables simply pace all the vegetables into a large bowl, drizzle with the olive oil and then sprinkle with 2 or three teaspoons or your spice mix – stir around to ensure all the veg are coated and then pour all the vegetables into the centre of a large sheet of foil.  Fold up the edges of the foil to create a little foil teepee and place on a warm BBQ for 20 mins – open the teepee after this tie and let the veg crisp up a little for a further 5 mins (the same can be done in the oven in a large casserole dish covered in foil)

Serve with sour cream and smashed avocado and lime juice, rolled inside the fresh tortilla

Eat and of course enjoy and a Happy New Year one and all, I hope all my readers have an incredible 2020 and a big thank you to everyone who has the patience to come and say hi and read all my ramblings!