Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Beet Green & Amaranth Quesadilla

Neither of us were feeling really well the end of last week with a touch of the flu. We knew we wanted to make something for dinner using the items that would go bad the quickest such as the beet greens. At the same time it had to be something we could make quickly with minimal effort. The Harmony Valley newsletter mentioned a veggie quesadilla using the amaranth so we thought why not make one with a mixture of greens.
Beet Green & Amaranth Quesadilla
The bright red amaranth & beet stems gave the filling of this quesadilla an amazing color plus we felt like it had to be pretty healthy. The greens were chopped & then wilted in a little olive oil with some garlic. We added a chopped tomato but as they are still greenhouse grown here it didn't have a ton of flavor & next time I'd leave it out & just use a little salsa as a dip. This was a really satisfying meal (I couldn't even finish mine) & quite tasty but we both felt like it was missing something. Matt thought perhaps a little heat would have been good. He thought a little longer & decided what it needed was caramelized onions. He had hit the nail on the head, that touch of sweetness was what was missing.

Beet Green & Amaranth Quesadilla
(You could make this with any green you have that wilts well such as spinach, kale or swiss chard)

1 T olive oil
2 cloves garlic
2 c chopped beet greens & stems
2 c amaranth leaves
8 oz quesadilla cheese (seriously that was what it was called but any melting cheese would be good, it tasted like mozzarella or monterey jack to us.)
1 tomato, seeded & chopped (optional)
1 medium onion, sliced thin & caramelized
4 large tortilla
Olive oil for the tortillas

Sour cream & salsa for serving

Heat the olive oil in a large skillet. Add the garlic, beet greens & amaranth. Stir until the greens are wilted.

Heat a large skillet or griddle. Oil one side of two tortillas, place them oil side down on your work surface. Top with a little cheese, followed by the greens, onions & tomato. Cover with the remaining cheese. Top with the other two tortillas. Carefully place the filled quesadillas on the hot pan with the oiled side down. Cook until brown & crisp, the cheese should be starting to melt. Brush oil on the top of the quesadilla & carefully flip. Cook until that side is brown & crisp. Remove for the pan & cut into triangles to serve.

Serves 2

If you are not reading this post in a feed reader or at http://agoodappetite.blogspot.com OR at http://agoodappetite.com then the site you are reading is illegally publishing copyrighted material. Contact me at katbaro AT yahoo DOT COM. All recipes, text and photographs in this post are the original creations & property of the author unless otherwise noted.
© 2007-2009 Kathy Lewinski

14 comments:

HungryinSW said...

Now that is gorgeous! I'm hearing about amaranth everywhere these days. I'll have to get my hands on some.

Deborah said...

That is some gorgeous color! I love quesadillas, and this one sounds like it wouldn't disappoint.

City Girl said...

Oh thanks for the inspiration! I've been trying to figure out what to do with the rest of my amaranth (some of it had become to wilted to keep) and the chard I have left. Perhaps quesadillas are just the thing! Getting a little tired of stir-fry and soup. Great idea!!!

Thistlemoon said...

This looks beautiful. I have only heard of amaranth as a grain, not as a green...so this was very interesting!!

Jersey Girl Cooks said...

These look beautiful! Quesadillas are such a nice easy summer meal.

Chef Fresco said...

What beautiful quesadillas! I've never cooked with amaranth. You've got some great posts!

Stacey Snacks said...

Kat,
These photos are making me hungry!
Beautiful quesadillas.

Kirby! said...

This is the most refined quesadilla I've ever seen, haha! But it looks awesome... I still have never tried amaranth. Stuck in a quesadilla would be a good introduction!

Amy P. said...

What a great way to use the amaranth without having to jump through hoops. I like my recipes as simple as possible. It looks delicious, I'll have to try this when we get amaranth again.

grace said...

well now, these are some unique quesadillas! the colors and ingredients are obviously fantastic and make your creation one-of-a-kind and spectacular!

Anonymous said...

Wish I had read this yesterday! I had a bunch of swiss chard to use and this would have been a great dinner. As it is, I made a gratin from Alice Waters, and it was pretty delish. Added you to my google reader, can't wait to see what you come up with next!

Lori said...

What a rainbow of color. Maybe it even helped you feel better. I love this kind of a recipe. So filled with goodness.

Jude said...

Pre and post Hispanic ingredients rolled into a quesadilla? Sounds great to me.

Nikki @ NikSnacks said...

I have been amazed at this quesadilla ever since you posted last week. Maybe I should have commented before, but I am really amazed at the amaranth greens. Usually you only hear of the whole grain seeds and even then, the product doesn't taste too great. Anyway, in my paper today, there was a recipe for amaranth greens. I thought I'd share :) http://www.news-record.com/content/2009/07/14/article/jamaican_peppers_and_greens_thrive_at_at_farm

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