NOritos Night...the Healthiest Non-junk Food You Will Ever Munch

Today was a semi-crazy busy day for me most of the day. When I got home, I wanted to unwind a bit...and how do I unwind you ask??? Well, by creating some healthy non-junk food, of course (as opposed to unhealthy junk food). Hubby had a conference to attend this evening and won't be home until late...which leaves me plenty of time to focus on playing around in the kitchen rather than preparing a meal. I had 1 leftover tortilla in the fridge that I took out and just kept staring at...LOL. And all of a sudden I had a vision of what was to come...and my vision was pretty awesome! I began looking at the tortilla and thinking....hmmm, Doritos? And then I thought....nah, NOritos...as in "no these are not Doritos"....they just look and taste a lot like them! They were so simple to make that they might actually make you cry a little (as in tears of joy, of course)!  ;-)  

I cut the tortilla in half (making 2 semi-circles). I then cut each half into 6 pie-shaped wedges and placed them on a parchment covered baking sheet. I preheated my oven to 350 degrees F and then tried to recreate what I thought might taste "Dorito-ish". I just sort of winged it -- I wanted them to be kinda spicy and cheesy since that was the kind I ate in my previous wheat-riddled life. Into a small bowl, I placed a rounded and slightly heaping tablespoon of finely grated Parmesan cheese (powdery style), a generous dash of ground chipotle chile powder (you could substitute regular chili powder, ancho chile powder, or your favorite taco seasoning), a dash of onion powder, a dash of garlic powder, a little pinch of salt and then mixed it all together. I sprayed the top of each little tortilla triangle lightly with olive oil spray to help the seasoning stick and the chips crisp as they baked. I sprinkled my seasoning combo evenly on top of my "NOritos to be"...and then added a light dusting of paprika to give them the characteristic redd-ish orange-ish glow we are so familiar with seeing (use as much or as little seasoning as you prefer). I popped them into a 350 degree oven and baked for 10 minutes; opened the door and checked their crispness and turned the oven off and kept them in the hot oven another 5 minutes to dry out a bit more (do not burn). In less than 15 minutes I was having crispy healthy non-junky baked NOritos chips...instead of unhealthy junky baked Doritos chips. Mine were wheat-free, grain-free and actually provided some protein to boot!  One 10" tortilla made 12 NOritos -- that's 1 dozen wedges of crunchy munchy goodness to snack on! I snapped a few photos for you to see below and will re-post my tortilla recipe below that I used to make this super simple "munchy-curing" snack! Enjoy!

These were light and crispy "munchie-curing" heaven!

Grain-free Tortillas (makes one 8-inch tortilla)

Ingredients:
1/4 cup egg whites or Egg Beaters
2 tablespoons blanched almond flour
2 teaspoons ground golden flax
1 teaspoon finely grated Parmesan
Dash of sea salt
Generous dash of ground chipotle chile (or seasoning of choice such as smoked paprika, etc.)

Directions:
Whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl to form a smooth, thin batter. Lightly spray a 10-inch non-stick skillet with olive oil spray and heat over medium-high heat. Pour batter into hot skillet, tilting the pan and using a circular motion to evenly distribute the batter in the bottom. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes until very lightly browned and cooked around edges. Carefully loosen and flip using a rubber spatula; cook for another 1 to 2 minutes. Serve and fill with your favorite fajita, taco or sandwich fixings.

*Note: To make 4 tortillas, use the following amounts: 1 cup egg whites/egg substitute, 1/2 cup blanched almond flour, 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoon of ground golden flax, 4 teaspoons finely grated Parmesan, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon seasoning (or to taste). Pour approximately 1/4 cup of batter in hot skillet to make each tortilla.