ancho-chile shrimp quesadillas
we love quesadillas and i am always looking for new filling ideas. i read a similar recipe on the internet somewhere (perhaps on another blog?) and thought these sounded delicious. plus, since cooking with ancho chiles for the first time with my fried oysters, i have been looking for ways to cook with them again...
ancho-chile shrimp quesadillas
in a dry skillet heated on high, toast 1 dried ancho chile (stem and seeds removed) for about 10 seconds. then, fill the skillet with enough water to cover the chile. leave the heat on until water begins to boil and then turn off the heat and let the chile soak until soft, about 30 minutes. drain and rinse the chile, and place it into a mini food processor. add to the blender 1/4 cup orange juice, 1 tablespoon lime juice, 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, 1/4 teaspoon ground allspice, pinch of cayenne pepper, and 2 minced cloves of garlic. blend until smooth. add salt to taste. pour the ancho-chile and orange marinade into a bowl and add 1 pound of large (31-35 count) uncooked, peeled and deveined shrimp. toss to coat and then store in the refrigerator for 2-8 hours.
to cook shrimp, melt 1 tablespoon of butter over medium-low heat in a large skillet, and add the shrimp, cooking for a couple of minutes on each side or until pink. (You may have to do this in batches.) roughly chop the cooked shrimp and toss with some of the pan sauce.
in a clean skillet heated to medium, melt another tablespoon of butter. add a tortilla and cook it on one side until it puffs (about 30 seconds). flip the tortilla over and sprinkle about 1/4 cup of monterey jack, 1/4 cup of the muenster, 1/4 of the chopped shrimp, 1/2 of a chopped jalapeño with seeds removed, and 1/2 slice of cooked, crumbled bacon. top with another tortilla, and after cheese has melted and the two tortillas stick together, flip the quesadilla and cook for a couple of minutes more. repeat procedure for the remainder of the filling and tortillas- should make 4 over stuffed quesadillas. cut into slices and serve warm with salsa and creme fraiche.