Savory Stiletto
Steaming Up The Kitchen…
Mexican Fiesta??? My favorite!!!
December 1, 2009I’ve come to the conclusion that I can rarely just enjoy a meal in a restaurant. I always find myself wondering what I would do differently, how I would tailor the dish to my likes, and what other flavors, textures, or colors (weird, I know) would work with it. Lunch my first day in Napa was no different.
You probably remember me talking about the apple quesadilla I had when I landed in Sacramento. It was really good, but I, of course, thought I could do better. In fact, I KNEW I could do it better. And maybe even a little healthier. Plus, it was a great excuse to enjoy some mid-week margaritas!
Obviously, the chicken and the apple needed to stay, since it is, after all, a chicken apple quesadilla. But I felt like it was missing something the first time I had it. I wanted/needed more than just chicken, cheese, apple, onion. Which got me thinking to some of the other things I was going to order that afternoon…fish tacos….veggie burrito….steak tacos….some yummy sounding thing with peppers…guacamole. Clearly, I wasn’t going to pair a quesadilla with a taco or burrito, but adding some guacamole (extra hot and spicy of course!) and maybe some peppers would do just the trick.
For whatever reason, eating quesadillas and drinking margaritas makes me think about relaxing on a beach in a fun bikini with great friends and lots of sunshine. Fall in the Midwest tends to require lots of imagination like that. I will say we have been pretty fortunate with some mild weather these last few weeks, although it certainly hasn’t been warm enough to bust the bikini back out for some sunbathing at Lake Michigan!
Since I can’t bring beaches and cabana boys to the Midwest in November, I figured I would help you bring that same feeling to your home. This yummy Mexican fiesta is best savored with, you guessed it, a margarita!!! Don’t let the egg whites scare you off!!
Tia Tati’s Mexican Fiesta
Apple Chicken Quesadillas
• 1 lb chicken breast
• 2 TBS ground cumin
• Salt/pepper to taste
• 2 large Granny Smith apples, sliced thin
• 6 oz Chihuahua cheese shredded
• 6 oz Iberico cheese shredded
• 2 poblano peppers, seeded and deveined, sliced into strips
• 1 TBS oil (I used grape seed oil)
• 4 tortilla shells (I used whole wheat extra fiber)
• ½ large sweet onion sliced in strips
• 1 TBS oil (I used grape seed)
• 1 habanero minced
• 4 TBS sour cream
• 1 tsp maple extract
Pre-heat oven to 350 F.
Coat the chicken in cumin, salt, and pepper. Place in an oven safe dish, cover in foil, and bake until fully cooked. My chicken tenders took about 23 minutes.
Meanwhile, sauté the onion in a frying pan over medium high heat in 1 TBS of oil until golden brown, but not burnt. Set off to the side.
Take the poblano peppers and sauté over medium heat in 1 TBS of oil until they are tender.
When the chicken is fully cooked, take out of the oven and let sit for a few minutes. Take two forks and shred the chicken into small pieces.
Place one tortilla shell in a sauté pan that has been heated to about medium heat. Layer ½ the Chihuahua cheese, ½ the shredded chicken, ½ the onions, ½ the pepper, and ½ the iberico cheese then top with another tortilla shell.
Cook each side on the stove top until the cheese has melted, gluing the tortilla together. (I made 2)
To make the maple/habanero sour cream:
Combine the minced habanero with the sour cream and maple extract. Top the middle of the quesadilla with the sour cream.
Amazing Guacamole:
• 2 large avocados, cubed
• ½ sweet onion diced small
• 1 ½ jalapeno peppers minced
• 1 serrano pepper minced (optional, I love things hot though!)
• 3 cloves of garlic minced
• Juice from 2 limes
• 3 TBS cilantro chopped
• Salt to taste
Combine all the ingredients in a bowl (if you have a mojacete, use that!). Combine until desired consistency is reached. You can add tomatoes if you want, but I leave them out because they are yucky! Serve a dollop of the guac on top of the quesadilla.
Best Margarita Ever
• 4 oz silver tequila (I used 1800 for margaritas)
• 3 oz Grand Marnier
• 4 oz simple syrup
• 4 oz fresh lime juice
• 2 tsp egg white
• Lime wedges for garnish
• Ice
Combine 2 oz tequila, 1 oz Grand Marnier, 2 oz simple syrup, 2 oz lime juice, and 1 tsp egg white in a shaker filled with ice. Shake it until it hurts, then pour, ice and all, in a short cocktail glass. Float another ½ oz of Grand Marnier in the glass, garnish with a lime wedge and savor the best margarita you’ve ever had with a green apple quesadilla!
My Thoughts:
We all know I like it hot. No, wait, love it hot! And this dish didn’t disappoint! The guacamole was ultimate perfection with a great chunky texture that I love. The quesadillas were 100 times better than the ones I had in Napa. I think the addition of the poblanos along with the habaneros in the maple sour cream really kicked things up a notch. The apples were sliced thin enough that while they were cooked, they still had a little crunch to them. Mmmmmmmmm! And the margaritas, well, let’s just say, the only thing missing was the suntan oil and the cabana boy!!! Enjoy!
This entry was posted in Cheese, Chicken, Happy Hour, Main Dish, Mexican-Inspired, Quick and Healthy, Spicy. Bookmark the permalink. ← Pampering the Princess… And the Secret Ingredient Is… →3 Responses to Mexican Fiesta??? My favorite!!!
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Nely says:
Have you ever tried the guac without onions (heartburn)?
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I want these for lunch right now! I’m starving and I just finished reading this – bad timing. I think yours sound better than the one in Napa. IMHO