Recipe: Quesadillas and Salsa

Dinner was all about leftovers tonight. We made a roast chicken on Sunday night, which left us with some juicy chicken. But how to keep it from getting boring.

OK, I love quesadillas, but only with the right accompaniments. For me, that would be sour cream, salsa, and gaucamole (though I'm happy enough with just mashed avocado). This was the first time I actually ventured into homemade quesadilla territory. It was good. And we'll be coming back.

Making a quesadilla is only as complicated as the ingredients you set out to use. The cheese was from a pre-grated mix. I also had a jar of smoked bell peppers, which added a rich, smoky flavor. I used 1/2 an onion in making the salsa, so I sliced up the rest and sauteed it in some olive oil until soft.

As for accompaniments, there really wasn't much to that either. I made the salsa (recipe below) because it's pretty quick, easy, and so very tasty. I always have avocado on hand for MetaBoy, but the sour cream was a special purchase. I'm thinking of making a chocolate cake with the leftover sour cream, but we'll see how that goes.

The tortillas was a special purchase, and kind of an experiment. For the best flavor, make stuff yourself, right? Well, of all of the crazy things I've made or considered making at home, tortillas has never made the list. No-siree-bob. Instead, I went to a local favorite Mexican restaurant that makes excellent tortillas and asked about buying a few. I only bought what I needed (instead of a store-bought pack of 2 dozen that inevitably goes to waste).

Quesadilla
Tortillas
Cheese, grated
Chicken, shredded
Roasted bell pepper, jarred
Sauteed onion

Lay the tortilla on a flat surface. Cover half with cheese, and sprinkle on other ingredients, as desired. Close with other half and heat in a pan for about 2 minutes on each side. Cut into 3 wedges with a sharp knife.

Serve with salsa, guacamole, sour cream, or anything else your heart desires ;-)

Salsa
2 tomatoes, diced
1/2 onion, diced
1 garlic clove
1-2 tablespoons chopped cilantro (stems and leaves)
1/2 lime
1 chile, diced small (optional)
Salt to taste

Drain the tomatoes for about 1/2 an hour to reduce fluid in the salsa. For a quicker version, cut the tomato in half, squeeze the pulp out, then dice the tomatoes. Add in all of the other ingredients and mix.

Overall, it went well. If anything, it was too good because I think I ate too much. Oh bother.

Even better, I've got leftover salsa!