Quesadillas De Flor De Calabaza (squash-blossoms)

Total Time: 20 mins Preparation Time: 20 mins

Ingredients

• 2 poblano chiles
• 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 small onion, peeled and chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced
• 1 medium tomato, cored and chopped
• 20 squash blossoms, cleaned (remove pistils)
• 1 tablespoon fresh epazote (optional) or 1 teaspoon dried epazote (optional)
• salt
• fresh ground black pepper
• 3/4 lb monterey jack cheese, grated
• 2 lbs fresh masa harina flour or 20 small flour tortillas
• lard or vegetable shortening

Recipe

• 1 set rack in top third of oven, then preheat broiler. put chilies on a cookie sheet and broil until skin is blistered and charred, about 5 minutes per side. transfer chilies to a deep bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside until cool. peel, stem, seed, and chop chilies, then set aside.
• 2 heat oil in a skillet over medium heat. add onions and garlic and cook until soft, about 5 minutes, then add tomatoes and cook until liquid evaporates, about 4 minutes. add squash blossoms, epazote (if using), and reserved chiles, and season to taste with salt and pepper. cook, stirring, until blossoms soften and wilt, 1 1/2-2 minutes. transfer to a medium bowl and set aside until cool. add monterey jack and toss until just mixed. set filling aside.
• 3 if using masa. form masa into 20 1 1/2'' balls, then loosely cover with plastic wrap. lay a sheet of plastic wrap over base of a tortilla press, draping it over the sides. place 1 ball of masa on plastic, slightly off-center of the press, towards the hinge. lay another sheet of plastic wrap over masa, draping it over sides, then close press to flatten masa into a tortilla. set plastic-covered tortilla aside. repeat process, draping press with plastic and pressing out tortillas with remaining balls.
• 4 place 1 tortilla at a time on a flat surface and peel off 1 of the sheets of plastic. put 2 tablespoons of the filling on half of tortilla; then, holding plastic with one hand, fold other half of tortilla over filling to form a half circle. press edges together to seal, then set quesadillas aside.
• 5 lightly grease surface of a large cast-iron skillet with a little lard, then heat over medium heat until hot. working in batches, remove plastic from quesadillas, then fry quesadillas until crusty and dark brown in patches, about 4 minutes per side. serve hot.