La Buona Cucina Americana: Chicken and Mushroom Quesadillas

When I first told my mother I was going to contribute to La Buona Cucina Americana recipe series her response was,“What are you going to cook?”

“MEXICAN!” I proudly announced.

“Well,” she pointed out. “That isn’t really American.”

But, I respectfully disagree.

Mexican food is American dangit. At least the way we eat it in Texas. It is called Tex-Mex. Even Wikipedia agrees.

As Judith pointed out in the initial post regarding her motivation for creating La Buona Cucina Americana, one of the things we expats miss the most, besides our family and friends, is the food. And for me that means MEXICAN. About once a month, I’ll say BASTA to all of the pasta and declare a Mexican food night, which usually means quesadillas, salsa, guacamole, and margaritas.

So here you go!

Ingredients:

Quesadillas

>> Six flour tortillas
>> Chicken (one pound)
>> Sliced mushrooms (two cups)
>> One medium-sized onion
>> Dash of salt
>> 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
>> Provolone cheese (one cup)

Salsa

>> 1/4 of a medium-sized onion
>> One garlic clove
>> Three-five green chili peppers
>> Tomato sauce (one cup)
>> Salt (1/4 teaspoon)

Guacamole

>> One large RIPE avocado
>> Cherry tomatoes (8-10)
>> 1/4 of a lemon
>> Salt

Preparation

Quesadillas:

1. Slice chicken, mushrooms and onions into thin strips and cook in a large skillet

2. Add salt and pepper and continue cooking

3. When chicken is fully cooked, remove from stove and set aside.

4. In a medium-sized pan (we use an omelet pan) place one flour tortilla

5. Generously sprinkle cheese on top and add 1/4 of your chicken mixture

6. Cover with another tortilla

7. As the quesadilla is heating, lightly press the edges of the tortilla together

8. After 2-3 minutes, flip the quesadilla and heat the other side

9. Cut into four slices and serve with salsa, guacamole and tortilla chips

Salsa:

1. In a blender combine finely chopped onion, garlic, salt and tomato sauce

2. Add approximately 1/3 of your pepper and continue blending

3. Taste salsa

4. Continue to add pepper until you reach a mildly hot flavor

5. Pour into a bowl, cover and store in the refrigerator at least two hours prior to serving

6. Serve with tortilla chips

Tip: Salsa will get hotter the longer it sits in the refrigerator. Be careful not to add too much spice at once! I recently did and had to add an extra 1/2 can of tomatoes to mellow the taste.

Tip #2:The brand of tomato sauce is very imporant. Use your favorite brand and the salsa will have a richer flavor.

Guacamole:

1. Peel avocado and place inside a medium-sized bowl

2. Using a large spoon, mash avocado until it is a thin texture

3. Finely chop the tomatoes and add them to the avocado, being careful not to mash the tomatoes

4. Squeeze 1/4 of a lemon over the mixture and stir

5. Add salt, as needed, stir and cover

6. Refrigerate at least two hours prior to serving

7. Serve with tortilla chips

Tip: Some people add cilantro and/or sour cream to their guacamole, neither of which is readily available in Italy, however, even when in the States, this is my tried and tested recipe.

Ingredienti:

Quesadillas

>> Sei tortillas
>> 450 gr di pollo
>> 450 gr funghi champignons
>> Una cipolla di medie dimensioni
>> Un po’ di sale
>> 1/2 cucchiaio di pepe nero
>> 250 gr di provola

Salsa

>> 1/4 di cipolla, medie dimensioni
>> Un spicchip di aglio
>> 3-5 peperoncini verdi piccanti
>> 250 ml di salsa
>> 1/4 di cucchiaio di sale

Crema di avocado

>> Un avocado ben maturo
>> 8-10 pomodorini ciliegino
>> 1/4 di limone
>> Sale

Preparazione

Quesadillas:

1. Tagliare a fette il pollo, i funghi e la cipolla e cucinarli in una padella larga

2. Aggiungere sale e pepe

3. Quando il pollo e’ completamente cotto, toglierli dal fuoco e farli riposare per qualche secondo

4. In una padella, di medie dimensioni, riscaldare le tortillas

5. Aggiungere della provola ed un 1/4 del mix a base di pollo gia’ preparato in precedenza

6. Coprire con un’altra tortilla

7. Quando la tortilla comincia a prendere colore pressatele

8. Dopo 2-3 minuti riscaldare la tortilla dall’altro lato

9. Tagliare in 4 pezzi e servire con la salsa

Salsa:

1. In un frullatore frullare della cipolla, dell’aglio, sale e salsa di pomodoro

2. Aggiungere 1-3 di peperoncini e continuare a frullare

3. Provare la salsa

4. Aggiungere peperoncini fino a quando ha un sapore, medio, piccante

5. Mettere in una ciotala, coprire, e conservare in frigo per, almeno 2 ore prima di servire

6. Servire con le tortillas

* La salsa diventera’ piu’ piccante se conservata in frigo. Attenzione a non aggiungere troppo peperoncini tutto ad una volta.

Crema di avocado:

1. Sbucciare l’avocado e mettere in una ciotola

2. Con un cucchiaio largo schiacciare l’avocado fin quando non diventa cremoso

3. Tagliare finemente i pomodori ed aggiungerli all’avocado, facendo attenzione a non schiacciarli

4. Spremere 1/4 di limone e mecolare

5. Aggiungere sale, mescolare ancora e coprire la ciotola

6. Mettere in frigo per, almeno, due ore, prima di servire

7. Servire con le tortilla chips