Glancing through vegetarian blogs this week, I spotted a recipe for potato quesadillas with homemade whole wheat tortillas. I honestly didn’t follow this recipe, because the idea appealed to me, and I just went with it. We enjoy mashed potato taquitos and a special Hispanic dish called molotes, which are a homemade corn tortillas dough, wrapped around mashed potatoes and queso fresco and deep fried. We also love thinly sliced potatoes with rosemary, sea salt and olive oil on pizza and potato strudel made with puff pastry. All these dishes have in common a very special way the potatoes melt into the dough, creating a unique texture which is very delicious. This recipe would have been better with uncooked flour tortillas, but I just bought whole wheat flour tortillas and made the quesadillas with them as a quick lunch time treat. This was an excellent dish for Max to help with. I baked the potatoes in the microwave for about 10 minutes, and then peeled them with a knife. Then he grated the potatoes. This wasn’t his first experience with a grater, but it still takes real concentration to avoid grating his fingers.
Then we filled half of each tortilla with grated potato, and topped with grated cheese. I got a great deal on some pre-grated cheese this week, and so we used a “Hispanic blend.” Max was a little timid with the cheese. Next time, I will make sure there is more cheese on each quesadilla.
Fold the tortillas in half. Many quesadilla recipes stack two tortillas on top of each other, but they are easier to flip if they are made from a single tortilla.
While assembling the quesadillas, heat a griddle over medium high heat. Generously butter the skillet, and lay the tortillas on the hot butter, pressing down with a spatula to help them cook evenly and melt the cheese. Flip after about 3 minutes to grill other side.
Cut in half to serve.
To make 7 quesadillas:
8 small potatoes, scrubbed and poked with a fork
7 whole wheat tortillas
1 1/2 cups grated cheese (I used an Hispanic blend with asadero and cotija)
butter for the skillet
Bake potatoes in the microwave until just soft. Peel (or not, if your potato skins look fine. Mine were ugly.) Grated on the large holes of a box grater. On one half of each tortilla, layer potato and grated cheese. Fold in half and cook on griddle over medium high heat with plenty of butter. Serve with salsa and pot beans (if you have them.)
Do you have a special potato dish that is your family’s favorite? Leave me a recipe or a link in your comments!
