Friday, September 12, 2014

Broccoli Quesadillas



Broccoli Quesadillas
serves 8

1 lb Broccoli florets (about 1 head, or 2 crowns)
6oz Red Onion, diced small
2 garlic cloves, finely minced
1 small can Diced Green Chiles
6 Cherry Tomatoes, quartered
1/4 cup chopped Cilantro
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp chile powder
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 lb Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
8 Fajita size Tortillas

Put broccoli and 1/2 cup water in a large Dutch oven, cover with lid slightly ajar.
Turn heat to high and steam 8 minutes (start timing immediately).
Lower heat to Medium, remove broccoli from Dutch oven. Return Dutch oven
to burner and add oil, onion and spices. Saute onions until translucent, but not browned.
Add garlic and cook about 30 seconds, taking care not to brown it.
Add Chiles, Tomatoes, and Cilantro. Stir together and remove from heat.
Put a cast iron griddle on a small burner on low heat to get ready for quesadillas. (allow 5 to 10 minutes)
Chop cooked broccoli coarsely (no thicker than the thickness of the quesadilla), and return to Dutch oven. Stir everything together.

For each quesadilla take one tortilla, put 2 oz of mozzarella evenly over it. Add 4oz of filling (or 1/8 of the total amount) just on one half of the tortilla.
Carefully fold the cheese-only half over the topping.

Cook on the griddle, taking care not to burn the tortilla. It will only take a minute or two on each side. You just need to melt the cheese inside. No oil is needed on a cast iron griddle. Slice the quesadilla into manageable size wedges. Use a pointed-tip knife to poke a dotted line of holes on the top of the quesadilla before cutting. This will help keep filling from coming out when cutting wedges.