When in doubt, make shrimp quesdaillas.

Time to make shrimp quesadillas.

 They're quick and easy, 

boast a lot of colors, textures, and flavors,

they're quite palatable,

and I usually have all the ingredients on hand,

so a shrimp dish is no further than a thaw away.

I always have the basics:

flour tortillas,

shrimp (always lots of packages frozen) 

cheeses (another staple)

roasted red peppers 

 I had a jar of roasted peppers,

 but you can always blacken your own over an open flame,

then dunk it in ice water

and rub the charred skin off it.

Slice/chop.  It's ready to eat.

 

If you start making these, 

you'll find 

lots of other ingredients to use.

Onions, sautéed mushrooms, 

red onion, peperoncini. 

You could forgo the shrimp

and use chicken or pork or beef. 

All up to you. 

 Here's how to make shrimp quesadillas.

Get this much of everything.

 

I have:

 

Left cutting board:

boiled shrimp

bunch of spinach

orange for zesting

 flour tortillas

 

Right cutting board:

grated mozzarella  

smoked red pepper 

chopped onion

sliced jalapeno

chopped cilantro 

Now, let's make a quesdilla:

Put a layer of cheese on the bottom half of a tortilla. 

The cheese is the glue

that holds everything together. 

 

Layer spinach and shrimp.

(Stem those spinach leaves.) 

Add some sliced jalapenos.

The heat (capsaicin) in jalapenos

 is in the white ribs or spongy membranes

(where the seeds attach),

 so you can control the level of bite you want. 

As you can see, I like the bite. 

 

Drop in some roasted red pepper strips.

 

 Layer the top with more grated cheese.

Gotta glue down the top. 

And some orange zest.

 

Fold over top of quesadilla.

And squish down. 

 

 

 

Heat thin layer of oil in medium skillet to 350° - 375°.

Place in quesadillas, one at a time.

Press top halves down over filling.

 

Lightly brown first side, then turn over and brown the other.

The cheese gets meltymelty and holds it all together.

Just takes 2-3 minutes each side. 

Place on rack to drain.

Serve with fresh salsa and cilantro.

 

Maybe grate some orange zest over top for a citrusy kick.

Enjoy.

 

Cool Cucumber Concoctions

 

 

 For those of you with a cucumber crop coming in, I'm here to help.  I have two cucumber salads/dips (you can go with either) that put together a lot of green and a lot of flavor.

 

My first salad/dip calls for a medley of green produce –crunchy toasted pistachios (the toasting enhances the flavor and makes the green stand out), coarsely peeled cucumbers so you have that dark green stripe going on for added color, some smooth avocado slices, the cooling zest and juice of a lime, and the verdant herbalishness of chopped cilantro.  Even better when you have cilantro plants in your garden which are getting ready to set seed and are producing those lovely little raw coriander seeds.  I like to pick these while they’re still green and use them to embellish my dishes.  They offer a bright pop of intense cilantro flavor plus a delicious side kick of citrus.

 

 

Cucumber and Avocado Salad

 1 cucumber, coarsely peeled, thinly sliced

1 avocado, diced

Zest and juice of 1 lime

½ cup chopped red onion

1/3 cup toasted pistachios

1/3 cup chopped cilantro

2 oz. crumbled feta cheese

2 TB extra virgin olive oil (I like Corto EV olive oil, but always taste test your olive oils first.)

1 TB chile/lime seasoning

 

 Slice the avocado in half, score it vertically and horizontally and drop into a medium sized bowl with the zest and juice of the lime.  Toss to coat.  The citrus will keep the avocado from browning.  Add in the red onion, pistachios, cilantro, and feta cheese.  Add the chili/lime seasoning to the olive oil, mix well, and pour over rest of ingredients.  Combine well.  Refrigerate before serving.

 

  

My second salad/dip again calls for lush greenery – cucumbers, mint, lime, and cilantro - with the added crunch of fried chickpeas.

.

Cucumber and Chick Pea Salad
1 cucumber, coarsely peeled and diced
½ cup dried garbanzo beans (chick peas), cooked
Cornstarch (enough to coat chick peas)
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Neutral flavored oil (About ¼ cup)
1-2 tsps curry powder (Taste test)
Zest and juice of one lime
⅓ cup chopped mint
⅓ cup chopped cilantro
⅓ cup chopped parsley
1 tomato, peeled and diced
1 small sweet red pepper, diced

To cook garbanzo beans, add them to a medium pan with about 1 quart salted water.  Bring to a boil, reduce to simmer, and cook slowly for about 1 ½ hours, or until tender.  Drain.  Pat dry.

Dice the cucumber and put in colander.  Sprinkle about a teaspoon of kosher salt over the cuke and let drain for an hour.

In a medium skillet, heat oil to about 360°.  While oil is heating, toss the cooked garbanzo beans with the cornstarch to coat. Place in fine-mesh sieve and shake to remove excess cornstarch.

Add beans to hot oil and fry 5-7 minutes, turning, until golden brown and crisp.  Transfer to paper towels to drain.  Season with curry powder, salt, and pepper, to taste.  Toss to coat.
 

Discard drained cucumber liquid and wipe out the bowl.  Add the cucumbers, lime zest and juice, chopped mint, cilantro, and parsley, tomato, and pepper.  Stir in fried garbanzo beans.  Taste test and add additional seasoning if needed.

I served both cucumber dishes with my homemade tortilla wedges, which you can season as I have in the recipe, or add a little this, add a little that, and make them your own

 

Seasoned Tortilla Triangles

 12 6-inch flour tortillas (6 tortillas, cut into wedges, will cover one 13 x18-inch baking sheet)

Onto each baking sheet, pour 2 TB neutral oil and place 3 TB butter.  Put in 300° oven until butter melts.  Swirl the oil and butter around until evenly combined.

Cut a stack of tortillas into ⅛s.  Dredge each tortilla triangle through the oil/butter and wedge them side by side on baking sheet.  Season evenly with a light sprinkling of garlic powder, onion powder, cumin, oregano, and chile lime seasoning.  Bake for 10 minutes, rotate pan, and bake another 10 minutes, or until triangles are crisp and light golden.

Enjoy.