Who Needs Pie When You Have Tortillas?

Janet here: So you don't know what to make for dinner and can't imagine making another burrito or quiche? Take a deep breath and realize you have the makings of a great (easy) dinner within your grasp. I'm talking something I generally call tortilla pies.

Here's the general idea: You saute up some veggies, maybe take some chicken you've got in the fridge and saute that up, grate some cheese of your liking, add some spices and then build a tortilla tower. Bake it and you are in business about 30 minutes later. It's that simple.

You could take some leftover veggies too for one of the layers....or saute them fresh in whatever combination you want. Interested in Mexican? Use chilies and south of the border spices. Got a yen for something Indian? Add in cumin and curries and you've got something that works there too. The point is it's as versatile as you want it to be. The only limitation is your imagination.

Here's a recipe to get you started.

Tortilla Pie
serves 4-6

ingredients
12 6-inch corn tortillas
about 3 cups assorted diced veggies such as onion, garlic, zucchini, peppers, whatever your heart desires
about 1 cup of diced chicken
1 1/2 cups grated sharp cheese
1 cup or so salsa OR
2 tablespoons butter, about 1/4 cup flour, 1/4 cup diced green chilies and about 3/4 cup chicken or vegetable broth

method
Heat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly spray a 9X13 inch baking pan with canola oil.

Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil and saute the veggies/chicken of your choice for about 5-7 minutes until just cooked. If you're doing veggies alone, start with onions and then add garlic and the denser veggies, ending with zucchini, which cooks quickly and you don't want it to be overcooked. If you're doing chicken add it after the onions but before the garlic. It can all be sauteed together.

If you're using salsa, move to the next step. If you're making this roux version (pictured here), melt the butter, stir in the flour to make a roux and then add the broth and stir frequently until it thickens. Take it off the heat and add the chilies.

Place 4 tortillas (they will overlap a bit) in the bottom of the baking pan. Add half the sauteed goodies. Spread cheese on top and whatever sauce you're using. Then add another layer of four overlapping tortillas. Spread your veggie/chicken/salsa/roux/cheese mixture on top. End with four more tortillas and a little salsa/roux/cheese. Bake uncovered for about 25 minutes until bubbling and lightly browned on top.

I Guess You Could Call This Meal Fajitas...

Hey Ma-

I've been craving Mexican food for a while now. There's this restaurant that John and I really love called Juan's Place in Berkeley that's a staple in the area. We used to go with our friends Mona and Martin pretty regularly a few years back. Anyway, with M around and school and work and all that that entails we haven't been in a while. They make reaaaaaally good fajitas, though, and this is what I've been particularly craving as of late.

Anyway, the other night with Juan's on the brain I threw together this dinner. It was totally edible and fine, but it was so decidedly not Juan's fajitas that I couldn't help but feel disappointed. Also, I forgot beans. Not cool.

To make this, I sliced up a bell pepper and an onion and set them aside. Then I sliced up one chicken breast and one chicken thigh. I've been really into the dark meat on chicken lately and thought the light and dark combo would be good. It was. I tossed the chicken in a little olive oil, salt, cayenne, dried orange peel and cumin and threw it in a hot skillet to brown before adding in the veggies. I made some rice and heated up a few tortillas and voila--a totally edible if less than exciting dinner.



So it goes. I was pretty pleased with the way the chicken tasted, just for the record.

Off to school. Tonight it's leftover thai take-out (yum).

XXOO
-R

Simple Suppers

Rachel here: Oh, we all know those days. You know, the ones where you come home and you sort of realize that your day isn't actually over yet because there's still dinner to figure out. As a city-dweller, this often leads to take-out or delivery in my house. Sometimes, though, even that seems like more effort than I can handle, what with the plentitude of options and then the inevitable waiting. On these nights, there is a staple in my house: the quesadilla. There are always (and I do mean always) tortillas in my freezer and cheese in the fridge. Throw in whatever random vegetable and meat bits we have leftover and a hearty dinner is mere minutes away (particularly if you have made a batch of black beans earlier in the week...see Wednesday's post). After a long day, I can't think of anything better.

Quesadillas
Ingredients
flour tortillas (I prefer corn and John prefers flour, which is what I ended up using for these)
grated cheese (I used a bit of jack and a bit of cheddar)
chicken, chopped into uniform bite-sized piece
medium tomato
avocado (I recognize that avocados and tomatoes aren't in season everywhere, so substitute with a good local alternative)
cayenne
salt and pepper
lime

Method
Cook chicken in large pan, seasoning to your preference with salt, pepper and cayenne. Prepare tortillas by lining one half with a bit of cheese before dividing chicken up amongst them and covering with cheese (Amounts for tortillas, cheese and chicken will vary depending on how many you're looking to feed. I used one large tortilla per person and divided about 3/4 lb. of chicken between them). Place these tortilla pockets back into pan you cooked chicken in (one-dirty-dish cooking is part of the beauty of this easy dinner option!). Flip after a few minutes, once underside is nicely browned and cheese has started melting. Serve when everything is hot and gooey, garnishing with diced tomato and avocado on top and serving with lime wedges on the side. Of course, various hot sauces and sour cream should be waiting on the table to optimal enjoyment. Yum!

Janet here: Rachel has the best idea here for a simple supper you can throw together in minutes. I wish I had thought of it but I didn't so there it is. Anyway my main way of making supper easy these days is cooking ahead. Shepherd's Pie is my go-to comfort dinner in the winter months, and it's a crowdpleaser so it's doubly satisfying. I make this shepherd's pie using ground turkey because I don't eat red meat. I also use taco seasoning as my secret seasoning ingredient. In other words, it's tacos with mashed potatoes, making it a win-win for feel-good meals. Here's how I do it.

Shepherd's Pie

Ingredients
1 pound ground turkey
1 package taco seasoning
1 1/2 cups corn (I use frozen)
dried onion flakes to taste (this is the way I get onions into things for picky eaters)
4 Russet potatoes
1 stick butter
3/4 cup sour cream
salt and pepper to taste

Method
Heat oven to 350 degrees.
Brown the turkey in a little oil. Add the taco seasoning and follow directions for regular tacos. Add in the corn. After it's done, place in the bottom of a casserole baking dish.
While the meat mixture is cooking, cut up some potatoes (skins on is my preference), cook in boiling water until tender. Then drain, put back into the pot with a stick of butter. Mash up the potatoes, add salt and pepper to taste, maybe a little chicken broth with the sour cream to make them as smooth as you like. Sometimes I add grated cheese as well if I'm feeling really decadent.
Bake uncovered for 30-40 minutes until it's bubbling slightly.