Monday, May 5, 2014

Chicken Cheese Quesadillas -- Cinco de Mayo (Grain-Free Style)

Happy Cinco de Mayo! In my pre-wheat/grain free days, hubby and I would go out for Mexican on Cinco de Mayo. Mexican food was and still is some of our favorite food to eat. This evening I made my grain-free tortillas/wraps to use to make the Chicken Cheese Quesadillas. Last night we grilled a number of different items and I made extra grilled chicken cutlets specifically so I could use the extra leftover to make these quesadillas. 

When I got home this evening, I quickly whipped up the tortillas. In a separate small skillet, I sauteed some sliced onions, red bell pepper and Poblano pepper to add to mine (hubby didn't want peppers and onions in his). The recipe I made makes 4 tortillas (I actually got 5 out of it this evening). I pulled my partially used block of monterey jack cheese out to grate and it was moldy...yuck! I re-grouped and used a combination of white and yellow cheddar along with some Sargento's Colby-Pepper Jack sliced cheese (it has jalapenos and habanero peppers). I diced up the leftover grilled chicken cutlets and placed a quesadilla in a nonstick skillet over medium heat and layered it with the cheese, chicken, peppers and onions, a bit more cheese and topped it with another quesadilla and browned it a bit, then covered the pan for a couple minutes to melt the cheese on top to help the top quesadilla stick so I could make "the flip." The flip is the trickiest part, getting it to flip without losing your filling ingredients. I usually lose a pepper or two and then promptly tuck it back in as the other side cooks. When its done, I slide it off onto a cutting board to sit for 5 to 10 minutes to allow the cheeses to set up so it doesn't run out when I cut it into wedges. Hubby and I really enjoyed them. I served it with some sliced tomatoes and avocado sprinkled with a bit of salt. I snapped a few photos below. Enjoy!

P.S. -- For anyone interested in listening the to FREE "Preventing & Reversing Diabetes World Summit 2014"...they have an interesting list of speakers and keynote speakers beginning today through May 16 -- 12 days of speakers that will include Dr. David Perlmutter (Grain Brain), Dr. Mark Hyman and others. Each day's program is available to listen to free for 24 hours after it's aired. I just finished listening to today's speakers -- lots of interesting information. Here is the link if you are interested in tuning in online: ---> Preventing & Reversing Diabetes World Summit 2014








Grain-Free Tortillas/Wraps
Makes 1 8-inch tortilla/wrap

Ingredients:


1/4 cup egg whites or Egg Beaters
2 tablespoons blanched almond flour
2 teaspoons ground golden flax seed
1 teaspoon finely grated Parmesan
Dash of sea salt
Generous dash of ground chipotle chile (or seasoning of choice such as smoked paprika, etc.)

Directions:


To make the tortillas, whisk all ingredients together in a small bowl to form a smooth, thin batter. (add a little water to thin batter, if necessary). Lightly spray a 10-inch non-stick skillet or crepe pan with olive oil spray and heat over medium-high heat. Pour batter into hot skillet, tilting the pan and using a circular motion to evenly distribute the batter in the bottom. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes until very lightly browned and cooked around edges. Carefully loosen and flip using a rubber spatula; cook for another 1 to 2 minutes. Serve and fill with your favorite fajita, taco or sandwich fixings.

*Note: To make 4 tortillas, use the following amounts: 1 cup egg whites/egg substitute, 1/2 cup blanched almond flour, 2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons of ground golden flax, 4 teaspoons finely grated Parmesan, 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon seasoning (or to taste). Pour approximately 1/4 cup of batter in hot skillet to make each tortilla. If a thinner tortilla is desired, add a teaspoon or 2 of water to thin batter, as necessary. 


      

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Why egg whites and not the whole eggchilada :)
Cathy

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi Cathy -- I have made them with whole eggs and egg whites (or egg beaters) -- when I use whole eggs, they are more fragile and less flexible for some reason. Naturally I would prefer to use whole eggs...I don't "waste" my good organic cage free eggs making these -- I buy the regular plain egg beaters most of the time. If you want to "test" it to see if you have better luck, test it on 1 tortilla so you don't waste a bunch of eggs. Maybe you will have better luck. I've tried several times and while they are still usable, they don't have the complete flexibility, etc. that I prefer. Let me know! Love the "eggchilada" too by the way! ;-)

Shannon said...

I didn't have much luck getting mine to flip without destroying it but the flavor is great so I will try again!

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi Shannon,

It does take a little practice getting it to flip (and that goes for the "regular quesadillas" too). The key is having a little cheese on the bottom tortilla and against the top tortilla so it gets melty and acts like a glue of sorts. You still have to be quick when you flip it. I'll give you another little trick that works. Instead of using 2 whole tortillas as the top and bottom, instead use only 1 tortilla and place your fixings only on one half and fold the other half over (sort of like an omelet) so you have a "half circle" in your pan. It's a little easier to flip that over than the full "2-tortilla" type quesadilla. I hope what I wrote makes sense to you -- if not, let me know. :-)

Shannon said...

I was only cooking one...I think I was afraid it would burn and got nervous and tried to get my spatula under it too soon. This cooking/baking wheat free is new to me and it is such a different beast than what I'm used to. I make a batch of your cookies (choc chips/walnuts/cream cheese) every week and they have been at different levels of doneness each time. I either almost burn or undercook, lol!

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi Shannon --

You are so right -- cooking this way is a different beast all together! The baking flours are more sensitive to overcooking, etc. The best suggestion I can give you (from personal experience)...is the more you practice, the better you get! Also, just in case it isn't "you" -- have you tried checking your oven temperature with an oven thermometer to make sure it isn't off at all? Worst case scenario with the cookies -- cook them at a lower temp if they tend to burn more in your oven (maybe 25 degrees less) and just cook a bit longer. I'd rather cook them longer than eat burned cookies! :-)

Shauna said...

Hi, Ayla.
I've got a couple tricks for you regarding your tortillas!

I use a glass pie plate AND I use a whole egg. They come out perfect every time.

I use the same ingredients you have listed, except I use a whole egg instead of just egg whites. Then I grease the glass pie plate generously with coconut oil and pour in the "batter". I microwave it for 70 seconds and use a rubber spatula to lift it out of the plate. I sprinkle cheese on the side that was face down in the plate then fold it over and finish it off in my toaster oven for a few minutes to melt the cheese and get the tortilla bit crispy.

Enjoy!
--Shauna

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Hi Shauna,

What a GREAT idea! I would never have thought to do that. I will have to give that a try! So glad you are finding new ways to enjoy them! :-)

plasterers bristol said...

I love quesadillas, and this recipe sounds yummy, thanks for sharing.

Simon

Gourmet Girl Cooks said...

Thanks so much Simon -- I hope you enjoy them! :-)