Quesadillas; Homemade Corn Turnovers

 

Two corn turnovers topped with mild, creamy green chile cheese sauce

Wow, I can't believe I actually made these all by myself yesterday. They aren't complicated, but are a bit time consuming. I could have used another set of hands, or a short order cook to help me out, but I did it all on my own. Besides making the turnovers with the pork filling, I also made a few with some leftover picadillo I made a few days ago.

 

Cooked, shredded pork

Prep Work
I made the filling and cheese sauce ahead of time. I actually thought I would wait until the next day to make the quesadillas, but decided to make them later that same day. I blew off my regular Wednesday night bike ride and run (BRICK workout) to stay home and make these delectable corn treats. It's a good thing they are so time consuming, otherwise I'd probably make them every week. And then I would weigh 1,000 pounds by the end of the year.

 

Jar of achiote paste, and small dish of achiote paste which has been blended with hot water

Mex Grocer
I got many of my ingredients from Mex Grocer including:

• Tortilla press
• Queso cotija
• Chipolte peppers in adobo sauce
• Achiote paste
• Masa harina

You should be able to find most of the ingredients at your grocery store or gourmet market.

 

Quesadilla filling: pork with spicy red chile sauce

Multiple Step Recipe
There are three items that need to get made, before you can begin putting the quesadillas together. The filling and sauce can be made in advance, and stored in the refrigerator until ready to use. To reheat the cheese sauce, I stirred in 2 tablespoons of chicken broth, and heated it up in the microwave for a few minutes. You could also reheat it in a small pan, placed over medium low heat, but that will take longer.

1. Filling - pork with spicy red chile sauce.
2. Sauce - mild green chile cheese sauce
3. Quesadilla dough

Pork with Spicy Red Chile Sauce
Queso cotija is a very salty, Mexican cheese which is a bit like feta. Use feta if you can't find queso cotija. Chipolte is a smoked jalapeno pepper, they can be found in most grocery stores, packed in small cans of a vinegar based sauce, AKA adobo sauce. Achiote paste is a combination of achiote seeds, vinegar, salt, garlic and spices. I bought achiote seeds before, they are hard as a rock, it's much easier to buy ready made paste.

I had some leftover pozole in the refrigerator. I strained out the pork, and shredded it with a fork. The pork was already well seasoned from when it was cooked in the pozole. You could use chopped, cooked chicken or cooked ground beef in place of the pork, if desired.

Ingredients for Pork with Red Chile Sauce

• 1 1/2 to 2 cups shredded pork
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1 chipolte in adobo sauce - minced
• 1 teaspoon achiote paste
• 1 tablespoon hot water
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
• 1 teaspoon Spanish sweet paprika
• 1/2 cup crumbled queso cotija

Directions for Pork with Red Chile Sauce

1. Place the shredded pork into a mixing bowl.
2. Stir in the garlic and chipolte.
3. In a small cup, blend the achiote paste with the hot water. Stir the mixture into the pork.
4. Stir in the cumin, coriander, paprika and cheese.

Shredded, drained zucchini

Green Chile Cheese Sauce
The pork filling is quite spicy. The mild green chile cheese sauce is a nice compliment to the spicy filling. I have a HUGE Mexican oregano bush growing near my front door, which I can harvest a few stems from whenever I need it. Regular oregano can be substituted for the Mexican oregano if necessary. 

To prepare the zucchini, first I peeled it, then I grated it. Then I wrapped it up in a clean, kitchen towel and squeezed the excess moisture out of it.

 

Mild, green chile cheese sauce

Ingredients for Green Chile Cheese Sauce

• 1 tablespoon vegetable oil
• 2 cups grated, drained zucchini
• 1/2 cup chopped green onions
• 1 tablespoon fresh, or 1 teaspoon dried Mexican oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 2/3 cup mild, green chile sauce
• 1 tablespoon cornstarch
• 1 cup shredded cheese such as Monterey jack, cheddar or Mexican cheese blend
• 1/4 cup chopped, fresh cilantro leaves

Directions for the Green Chile Cheese Sauce

1. Add the oil to a large frying pan placed over medium heat.
2. Add the zucchini and green onions to the pan, and cook for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Stir in the oregano, salt and nutmeg.
4. In a small cup or bowl, whisk the cornstarch into the green chile sauce. Whisk the mixture into the frying pan of zucchini/green onions.
5. Whisk in the shredded cheese. Continue whisking the sauce, until all the cheese has melted and the sauce is thick and creamy.
6. Remove the pan from the heat, and whisk in the cilantro.

Ingredients for the quesadilla dough

Quesadilla Dough
There are two ways to make the quesadilla dough, either using the traditional ingredients, or using the modern ingredients. I used the modern method. Masa harina is a dried corn flour, which is specifically processed for use in tortillas and tamales. Do not substitute corn meal!

 

Quesadilla dough

Traditional Quesadilla Dough Ingredients

• 2 cups masa harina
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1 7/8 cups warm water
• 2 tablespoons pork lard

Modern Quesadilla Dough Ingredients

• 2 cups masa harina
• 1 7/8 cups chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons margarine - melted

Quesadilla dough waiting to be pressed flat in the tortilla press

Directions for the Quesadilla Dough

1. Place the masa harina in a large mixing bowl.
2. Heat the chicken broth in the microwave, using a microwave safe container.
3. Slowly stir in the chicken broth and melted margarine into the masa harina using a large fork.
4. Form the dough into a ball, and knead a few times with your hands.
5. Set the dough aside for 15 to 20 minutes.

Place filling in center of flatted quesadilla

Assembling the Corn Turnovers

• 1 recipe filling
• 1 recipe sauce
• 1 recipe quesadilla dough
• Tortilla press
• Gallon size plastic freezer bag - cut in half
• Comal or large frying pan
• Vegetable oil

Fold corn turnover in half, sealing edges

Directions for Making Corn Turnovers

1. Place one half of the plastic freezer bag on the bottom of the tortilla press.
2. Place a 1 1/2 to 2 inch ball of quesadilla dough on the middle of the tortilla press.
3. Place the other half of the plastic bag on top of the quesadilla dough ball.
4. Press the dough flat.
5. Open the tortilla press, remove the top plastic bag.
6. Place 1 to 2 tablespoons of filling in the middle of the quesadilla.
7. Fold the bottom plastic bag in half, forming a turnover, or what I like to call, a giant Mexican ravioli.
8. Seal the edges of the turnover using your fingers, making sure not to rip/poke a hole in the dough.
9. Place 1-2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a large frying pan placed over medium to medium high heat.
10. Add 3-4 quesadillas to the pan and cook until lightly browned on both sides.
11. Place the cooked quesadillas onto a large serving platter.
12. Add additional oil to the pan if necessary, and continue making, filling, cooking the turnovers until all the filling and dough has been used.
13. Place 1-2 quesadillas on a small plate, and cover with the sauce.
14. EAT - EAT - EAT!!!!!

Pan fry homemade quesadillas

Vegetarian Quesadillas
My almost 14 year old daughter is a vegetarian. If I were to make the corn turnovers again, I would use vegetable broth instead of the chicken broth, so I could make a few quesadillas that she could eat. For the filling I might try heating up some soy crumbles, mixing them with taco seasoning and adding a bit of shredded cheddar or Mexican cheese blend. I think she still eats cheese, but I'll have to check to make sure she hasn't gone to the extreme of becoming vegan.

 

Platter of homemade quesadillas, AKA corn turnovers

Take care,
Lynn Smythe AKA the Cuisine Diva