Concerning a quesadilla. More specifically the beanish bits in the middle. Why do refried beans come in these giant containers and five large quesadillas use, oh, maybe a tablespoon each leaving one with a giant container minus five tablespoons. What does one DO with this? Make more quesadillas? Make something else? Freeze it? I don't like refried beans to the extent that I would be willing to eat them for the four or five days that would be necessary to simply finish a can of them. But I DO like quesadillas, which was something I suspected would happen but boy I didn't think to this level. Tortillas, with beans and salsa spread over them, then a layer of coriander and parsley, and then cheese and another tortilla. Then you cook them till they melt and get all gooey and then you eat them. What is not to love about that? Do you even need to make this recipe to know you're going to love them? No, you do not. You know this very moment that that recipe is a good one. One to make over and over again and serve people casually while saying in an offhand way "oh yes I simply adore making quesadillas" (and rolling the 'L' because you just feel like it) and give to picky children and amaze picky parents and possibly even serve to those family members you want to impress a bit. Because we all have those times when someone comes over and you say "I'm SO happy you came over!" but inside you are really thinking "WHY are you here with your nice handbag while I appear to be an Eastern European housefrau and have only three lemons and a small frozen cup of bacon fat to serve you?" Do you want to feel like that? No, you do not. And that is where the quesadilla comes into its own. It is seductive because it is so easy, and it looks interesting and it is cheap and filling and you even appear to be mildly competant while putting it together (especially if you have arranged your ingredients beforehand, which I never do because I like to add excitement to my husband's life by running about screaming "where is the cheese!?").
And boy do meat lovers seem to like this little flat sandwich of happiness. We ate two and a half each and it was good hot, it was good cold (David mentioned it would be better with chicken, to which I rolled my eyes and said it was a vegetarian week, to which HE said it was also just fine the way it was of course implying in his tone of voice that he loved me and to please not force him to eat tofu, to which I implied, using my eyes only, that tofu was coming and he'd better get used to the idea) and it was a bit messy but in a very good way.
And then I washed some diapers and called it a night. Tomorrow I think we might do the risotto. Or possibly the tofu.
1 comment:
RE tofu, I'm quite fond of it and eat quite a bit of it. In fact, I eat mostly meatless meals. When I first tried it I didn't much care for it's smooth blandness. Then I discovered that you could get it with fine herbs or small pieces of vegetables added. These types are also VERY firm, almost to the texture of cheese, which I prefer. Now that I'm used to it, I can enjoy all varieties, but the firm tofu with the fine herbs is my most common purchase. The brand I buy is Soyarie. It's organic, but I didn't even notice that until I'd been buying it for a few years. I use it in salads a lot and in stir fries, and sometimes I just cut chunks and snack on it.
Stan will eat tofu too, when it's served to him and doesn't mind it (when given a choice, he will always choose a meal with meat, or at least cheese).
Have you ever had it deep fried in a restaurant? Not the healthiest way to eat it, but oh, so good. Stan quite likes it this way. It's kind of crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside. The Thai restaurant next to my work does a real nice stir fry with the deep fried tofu. I've never tried it at home - don't really want to mess with all that spattering oil.
Well, I could go on and on about tofu (I think I just have). Your quesadillas sound wonderful. I'm quite a fan of the dish. I'm enjoying your vegetarian venture. I have experimented over the years with ways to stretch hamburger with vegetarian fillers, thereby cutting down on cost and fat, etc. I had a meatloaf recipe that included cottage cheese and wheat bran that I used to make regularly (why did I stop? not sure). I'd be happy to share some recipes if you're still interested after your trial week.
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