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Hasu Cook Session 9:
Caramel Quesadillas
Introduction
Pull a dessert out of your ass, why doncha?
Don't mind if I do. June is apparently a dessert month or something, since I'm doing a lot of these, and I don't even have a pregnant wife or anything like that. At any rate, this time it is a dessert of my own concoction. The premise is simple: a sweet version of the quesadilla. I ran the idea past a friend of mine who is a pastry chef, and he said it sounded pretty good.
The idea is to mirror the savory quesadilla in its entirety. Toasted, crispy tortillas, gooey caramel in place of cheese, and roasted hazelnuts to complete the filling. On the side is a fruit version of pico de gallo, using fruits to reproduce the texture of your standard tomato and onion pico.
Ingredients
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/YVChG.jpg)
If it doesn't have queso, is it still quesadilla?
Prep Time: ~1 hour
Serves 4-6
Tortilla:
4 medium-sized flour tortillas (about 6 inches diameter)
1/2 cup sugar + 1 tbsp for sprinkling
1/4 cup cream
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp salt
3 oz hazelnuts toasted or roasted (about three dozen nuts or so?)
Pico de Gallo
1 medium sized Granny Smith apple*
2-3 dozen red seedless grapes**
1 tbsp fresh mint
2 tbsp honey
juice of 1/2 lime or 3 tbsp grapefruit juice***
1 kiwi (optional)
salt****
pepper****
*Or 1 1/2 small granny smith apples. Try to find apples that are as crisp and tart as possible.
**Red seedless grapes are the best because of their combination of sweetness and crispness. Their skin texture is tender and a good imitation of a tomato's skin texture. You can also use plums, but make sure that they are very sweet and firm enough to be diced.
***I used lime juice, but grapefruit juice could add an interesting hint of bitterness
****You only need a tiny pinch of both, less than 1/4 of a teaspoon
Assembly
Pico de gallo becomes tastier over the passage of time as the flavors marinate together. Therefore, it is made first. Wash and assemble all the fruits. Dice the granny smith apple into roughly 1/4 inch (~3/4 cm) cubes.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/QQNP8.jpg)
Who is this Granny Smith, that people hated her so much they named the sourest fucking apple in existence after her wrinkled ass?
Follow it up by dicing your grapes into quarters. The work might seem tedious, but it is necessary to make sure the grape pieces are as close to the apple pieces in size as possible. Put both fruits into the same container.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/8i9rY.jpg)
What did Granny Smith do, pour acid on her grandchildren as a form of punishment?
If you have a kiwifruit, dice that as well and dump it into the container. Pick out a tablespoon or so's worth of mint and slice it into fine strips. Put everything into one container, add salt, pepper, honey, and juice. Toss everything together and refrigerate for the moment.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/uRENh.jpg)
I guess if you have grapples you can just use those instead of grapes and apples.
Now it is time to make the caramel. Measure out your sugar and place it in a heavy bottomed pan (not a non-stick one! you will ruin your nonstick pan). A lot of caramel recipes tell you to add water, but that isn't really necessary. Simply keep an eye out on your caramel as it melts. You can stir it around, but not too much as that will form lumps.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/7D5rQ.jpg)
I've found a way to turn white into brown! But Michael Jackson is unfortunately dead.
In a separate pot, bring your cream to the boiling point. Add vanilla extract and salt to the cream. Let the sugar melt until it is a deep amber but not brown color. Take the caramelized sugar off the heat. Stir it around to prevent it from solidifying, then pour the boiling cream into the sugar while constantly stirring. Ideally no lumps will form and you get your caramel sauce. However, if lumps do form, you will have to put the sauce back on low heat and stir until the lumps go away. At the end of the process you should have this:
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/475lW.jpg)
Never lick melted sugar until it is completely cool, unless you wish to intimately discover how cooked human tongue tastes like.
At this time you are almost ready to move onto the tortillas themselves. Bring out your hazelnuts. If they are not already toasted yet, toast them (a small toaster oven is the easiest and most efficient. You can also do it in the conventional oven, or over the stove. Make sure you do not burn the hazelnuts if you use the stove).
Pre-heat your oven to 400F and set it to broil. Prepare a sheet pan by covering it with parchment paper. Place two rounds of tortillas onto the pan. Take a knife and stab a bunch of pinpricks into each tortilla. This will prevent air pockets from expanding and ruining the shape of your tortillas as you toast them. Butter each tortilla on one side only and sprinkle sugar all over the buttered side.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/ua7n1.jpg)
These two tortillas are the most Mexican part of this dish that you will see, so savor the moment.
Broil each tortilla for approximately 5 minutes or so. I say approximately because the tortillas can go from completely white to thoroughly burnt within the span of thirty seconds, so you should start checking them at around 3 minutes. As soon as some parts of the tortillas start becoming dark brown, remove them from the oven.
When they are reasonably cooled, turn them over and spread the caramel sauce on the untoasted sides of both tortillas. Sprinkle one of the rounds with your crushed hazelnuts. Place one tortilla over the other to form the quesadilla.
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/lJJm2.jpg)
If you didn't turn your tongue into a slab of well-done meat by tasting the caramel while it was hot, you'll probably enjoy what is about to come a lot more.
Serve the quesadillas while they are fresh alongside the pico de gallo.
The Result
![[image loading]](http://i.imgur.com/yHTkW.jpg)
This one is dedicated to all the vegetarians out there. So you can all get diabetes faster MUAHAHAHA
It's pretty good. The first time I made this dessert I used plums instead of grapes, but I find that grapes are superior due to their tenderer skin and their sweeter flavor. Both parts of the dessert can be eaten separately or together. The tortilla is a bit chewy, so the dessert is not for those with bad teeth. Where is the sour cream you ask? Well, you can use whipped cream or ice cream to replace sour cream for this dessert. I did not do it because I never liked sour cream anyways.
Conclusion
What is with all these desserts? I have no idea. They just keep popping into my mind so I make them. I think this one turned out rather well, but I don't exactly have a large number of people to back me up on that, so you're just going to have to make this one yourself. Tell me how it turns out, and if you have suggestions for improvement, tell me about it as well.
Questions and comments are welcome. If bastardized Mexican food is not your idea of cooking, feel free to check out my other, non-bastardized (for Mexican food anyways) entries at my main blog,
http://foodinmind.wordpress.com
Until next time, always buy pants a few sizes larger, because you never know when obesity might jump out of a bush and surprise you.
 
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Love your blogs, but seriously gtfo with the sweet stuff! 
(Asking people to put the 4 (5) flavours in order of preference can be quite interesting/revealing, people rarely consciously think about this. Mine: Sour, salty,sweet,bitter)
Depending on whether you're still in your french cuisine phase, I'd like to ask for a Ratatouille variant.
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That looks and sound seriously delicious. I have to try this sometime. Good job as always.
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Awesome, looks great definitly gonna try this @ home =)
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On June 27 2012 16:57 Monsen wrote:Love your blogs, but seriously gtfo with the sweet stuff! (Asking people to put the 4 (5) flavours in order of preference can be quite interesting/revealing, people rarely consciously think about this. Mine: Sour, salty,sweet,bitter) Depending on whether you're still in your french cuisine phase, I'd like to ask for a Ratatouille variant.
I do intend to make another variant of Ratatouille eventually, probably in late summer/early fall since that's when the vegetables for ratatouille usually are picked (I think).
Do you have a specific variant of Ratatouille in mind?
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I have a recipe of my own to share (and I'm dumb-folded where to create my own blog entry), so here we go, feedback would be welcome, especially on any other ingredients to add that would make it even better. I hope you don't mind Newbistic - if yes, let me know and I'll edit it out.
It is called 'THE GIROS'.
Preperation time: ~ 1 hour, actual work time is maybe 10 minutes
serves: 3 - 4
1 pound of cut, marinated pork, gyros style (you can buy that at any butcher here)
1 - 2 red capsicums
1/2 pound of Feta cheese
1/8 l of cream, or 1/8 l of wine
some olives, with the pips removed
couscous to taste, maybe 75g (the dry stuff)
Fry the meat in a pan until it is all well done, a bit of brown can't hurt
preheat the oven
cut the capsicums into pieces
mix the meat, the capsicum pieces, couscous and the olives and put it into a casserole without a top, crush the feta cheese with your bare hands and sprinkle on top, pour the cream/wine over the whole thing
put the casserole into the oven, take out once the feta cheese has browned a bit
bon appetit!
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On June 27 2012 19:37 Rimstalker wrote:
(and I'm dumb-folded where to create my own blog entry),
Press profile up the top right and then the 'My blog' tab! 
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Another succesful dish, it always looks so good ! I'm getting frustrated I can never at it.
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Lack of cream of tartar means that this dish needs to be served hot/warm or it'll get exponentially worse as the crisp tortilla softens with absorption of the caramel.
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Looks yummy! Might be good with berries in place of the grapes, too!
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Oooo this looks interesting. Tortillas have a bit of a bland flour-y flavor though, not sure how that would go with carmel. Does look good though....
5/5 as always!
Who is this Granny Smith, that people hated her so much they named the sourest fucking apple in existence after her wrinkled ass?
Must.... Not.... Make.... Pony Reference....
What did Granny Smith do, pour acid on her grandchildren as a form of punishment?
Okay, now you asked for it.
+ Show Spoiler [Granny Smith!] +
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How sweet did this turn out?
I feel like the honey and fruits might clash :x
Either way, looks amazing still
Love it
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Really inventive dessert and seems fairly easy to make. There's probably a lot you can do with it too, I think I'd drizzle chocolate sauce/syrup over the quesadillas and serve with some soft ice cream that you could also dip it in.
Also what about using a caramel mix with a little something in it to keep it from becoming too chewy (like more butter/milk/cream)?
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On June 27 2012 21:13 ShatterZer0 wrote:
Lack of cream of tartar means that this dish needs to be served hot/warm or it'll get exponentially worse as the crisp tortilla softens with absorption of the caramel.
I've heard about this cream of tartar but never used it. Where/how would you suggest I use the cream of tartar?
On June 28 2012 03:47 JerKy wrote:
How sweet did this turn out?
I feel like the honey and fruits might clash :x
I'd say it's pretty sweet but not super sweet (not sweet like store-bought icing). I think the honey mixes well with the fruits. I put it there because I thought it would allow the pic to stand on its own better should someone choose to eat the quesadilla separately from the fruits. You can omit it if you like.
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This is really cool . I really enjoy this series, and this is definitely a creative dish, have you ever though of doing anything on demi-glace or custards? I know they are finicky, but reading about you make flan would make my day .
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The fruits look juicy. Like JUICYFRUIT!
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my cooking level is french fries, but i really enjoy these threads
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On June 27 2012 17:29 Newbistic wrote:Show nested quote +On June 27 2012 16:57 Monsen wrote:Love your blogs, but seriously gtfo with the sweet stuff! (Asking people to put the 4 (5) flavours in order of preference can be quite interesting/revealing, people rarely consciously think about this. Mine: Sour, salty,sweet,bitter) Depending on whether you're still in your french cuisine phase, I'd like to ask for a Ratatouille variant. I do intend to make another variant of Ratatouille eventually, probably in late summer/early fall since that's when the vegetables for ratatouille usually are picked (I think). Do you have a specific variant of Ratatouille in mind?
Haha, no. I am a brother in cooking arms to the romanian "I'm at the french fries level of cooking" poster.
I remembered Ratatouille from a commercial from years ago and since then wrongly thought of it as a more "saucy" (hah, as in "has lots of sauce") pepper dish. Kind of like the hungarian (?) Letscho.
I was corrected recently and now am somewhat curious, that's all.
Apropos curious, how would you (or any poster here for that matter) order the flavors when it comes to your preference?
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def gonna try this one
^^ ill post results in a few days after i go and buy stuff i need
what kind of cream do i get o-o
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SICKKK i have to favourite all the food blogs to try to make my own stuff later, haha
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Nice blog man, totally doing this for my gf when the finals end
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Hi Newbistic, first time commenting on your posts, hope you read! hahaha
I'm a 21 brazilian guy that recently graduated in Gastronomy and i just find fantastic this initiative of yours, cooking for nerds and presenting in a fun, non-scary way so everybody can do it!
I wanted to congratulate you for the efforts and the real funny posts ahahaha, keep up the good job and i'll read everytime i see it on the featured blog session )
ty, COOKS FIGHTING!
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There is another way to make caramel that is super simple, but does take time.
Take the wrapper off of a can of sweetened condensed milk and try to remove any of the glue left on the can (the glue can make your pot dirty, but that's about it). Put it in a large pot and cover it with at least 2 inches of water. Bring to a rolling boil and then reduce to a strong simmer for at least 2 hours. Longer will give you a darker colored, thicker caramel, while 2 hours will give you a tan and creamy caramel that spreads easily.
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On June 29 2012 11:07 Bigtony wrote:
There is another way to make caramel that is super simple, but does take time.
Take the wrapper off of a can of sweetened condensed milk and try to remove any of the glue left on the can (the glue can make your pot dirty, but that's about it). Put it in a large pot and cover it with at least 2 inches of water. Bring to a rolling boil and then reduce to a strong simmer for at least 2 hours. Longer will give you a darker colored, thicker caramel, while 2 hours will give you a tan and creamy caramel that spreads easily.
That's dulce de leche, which is slightly different. It has much higher dairy content and lower fat content than the stove top caramel. I blogged about it when I made carrot cake.
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On June 27 2012 17:29 Newbistic wrote:Show nested quote +On June 27 2012 16:57 Monsen wrote:Love your blogs, but seriously gtfo with the sweet stuff! (Asking people to put the 4 (5) flavours in order of preference can be quite interesting/revealing, people rarely consciously think about this. Mine: Sour, salty,sweet,bitter) Depending on whether you're still in your french cuisine phase, I'd like to ask for a Ratatouille variant. I do intend to make another variant of Ratatouille eventually, probably in late summer/early fall since that's when the vegetables for ratatouille usually are picked (I think). Do you have a specific variant of Ratatouille in mind?
If you want an excuse to go back to ratatouille my personal favorite variation isConfit byladi. (link goes to the wikipedia for it) it's basicly a more "compossed" version of the dish and makes a great centerpiece to a vegatarian meal or just as an impresive side dish. This picticular variation was made popular as the "ratatouille" preperation seen in the movie "ratatouille".
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awwwwwwwwww mannnnnnnnn i really wanna make this *drools
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If it doesn't have queso, is it still quesadilla?
....that's like making cherry pie without any cherries. >< I'm going to re-dub it... "tostada acaramelizada"
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Really clever. That looks awesome!
My only worry is the amount of skin (apple, grape) in the pico.
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I'll try this when I've recuperated :D
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EPT![[image loading]](http://images.wikia.com/mlp/images/3/35/Granny_Smith_S2E06.png)
