What is a quesadilla?

"Quesadillas are one of the Mexicans' favorite simple snacks. They are, in fact, uncooked tortillas stuffed with one of various fillings and folded over to make a "turnover." They are then toasted on a hot griddle or fried until golden. In many parts of Mexico they are filled with strips of Chihuahua cheese, which melts and "strings" nicely--a Mexican requirement...the farther south one goes the more complicated they become. For instance, in central Mexico the simplest ones are filled with some of the braided Oaxaca cheese, a few fresh leaves of epazote and strips of peeled chile poblano. Potato and chorizo filling--that used for tacos...--is also a favorite version, while the most highly esteemed of all are those of sauteed squash blossoms (flor de calabaza) or the ambrosial fungus that grows on the corn blossoms (huitlachoche), both of which are at their best during the rainy months of summer and early fall."
--The Tortilla Book, Diana Kennedy [Harper & Row:New York] 1975 -(p. 106)

Ah yes, quesadillas. The simple Mexican snack. Or meal. For me. I can’t remember when I first encountered the savory tastes of the quesadilla, but it might have been at Perkins. Yes, at Perkins, the all time fave cheap food destination for teenagers with nothing better to do than annoy overworked waitresses. I used to order the quesadilla appetizer all the time. As for as authenticity, who knows? But they sure were good. I have tasted all sorts of other quesadillas at other restaurants over the range of years I have lived on this earth, but had never tried making one for myself.

Then I received a quesadilla maker for Christmas from my grandmother. Honestly, I was not so thrilled about this gift. My kitchen is small, I have no storage space….I wondered where in the heck would I put this thing?

One night I was too lazy to really cook a meal. I remembered the quesadilla maker. I was able to whip up a simple meal in minutes for me and my husband. I made shrimp quesadillas….I simply put some leftover cut up cooked shrimp, taco cheese and green onions between two tortillas, toasted them in the quesadilla maker and voila! A beautiful, simple delicious meal was to be had.

The quesadilla maker is a simple contraption. It just consists of two plates that clamp together to toast the tortillas, reminiscent of a waffle maker. Some might find it a bit cumbersome. It is kind of large, and round…and red. It can’t easily be stacked on anything, and things can’t be stacked on top of it. It demands its own space on your shelf. It is situated on 4 feet, and these can become hot so be sure to place it somewhere where heat cannot destroy it.

The two plates are non sticky and easy maintenance. Simply spray some cooking spray on them every once in a while and you are good to go.

Using the quesadilla maker is simple. Plug it in, wait for the ready light to come on. Place the bottom tortilla with all the filling on it on the bottom plate, then put another tortilla on top, close the quesadilla maker, wait approximately 4 minutes, and then the quesadilla is made.

I have a fear of getting burned so I use potholders to open the quesadilla maker, but there is a rubber handle that doesn’t get hot to open the maker. The quesadillas come out with demarcations toasted onto the tortilla where you can cut the quesadilla into even triangles. I usually use a pizza cutter for that job.

The instructions recommend that 10-inch tortillas be used. These are the only size of tortillas I have used, but I’m sure smaller ones could easily be substituted. Also, the amount of filling should also be watched. ¼ to ½ cup of cheese is recommended. Due to the weight of the top plate, and cheese melting action, filling could easily spill out the sides and create a mess.

Clean up is a piece of cake. Wiping it down with a damp cloth is the only thing that is necessary, unless of course, you make a mistake like using too much filling as mentioned above.

I really enjoy the fact that some recipes were included for things I had never even thought of. Recipes are great for that. Who knew that quesadillas could be made out of ingredients that weren’t even really Mexican like apples and scrambled eggs?

Overall, I recommend this quesadilla maker for those who like tortillas, who have a lot of space in their kitchen to store gadgets and for those who like to have fun experimenting with different tastes.



Recommended: Yes