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Old Bay and the trinity of bell peppers, celery and onions give Rach's shrimp quesadillas an extra-flavorful and festive kick.
To finish off her Cinco de Mayo menu, Rach serves them with her Creamy Guac and a batch of easy Tex-Mex Black Beans.
Ingredients
- About 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- About 1 tablespoon butter
- ½ onion, finely chopped (about ½ to ¾ cup)
- 2 stalks celery, finely chopped (about ½ to ¾ cup)
- 1 green bell pepper, seeded and finely chopped (about ½ to ¾ cup)
- 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, or 1 teaspoon dried
- Salt and black pepper
- 2 to 3 cloves garlic
- ¾ to 1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails off, chopped
- 2 tablespoons Old Bay seasoning
- About ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- About ½ teaspoon ground coriander
- Hot sauce, to taste
- About ¼ cup silver/white tequila
- 1 lemon, halved
- Cooking spray
- Four 8- to 10-inch flour tortillas, or eight 6-inch soft corn tortillas
- 2 cups shredded Monterey Jack and/or Colby, cheddar
- Cilantro, for topping
- Sliced green onions, for topping
Yield
Preparation
Heat EVOO and melt butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions, celery and bell peppers and stir 2 to 3 minutes, add thyme and salt and cook 2 to 3 minutes until tender. Grate in garlic, then add shrimp, Old Bay, salt, black pepper and a pinch each ground cumin and coriander, , stir and cook until shrimp is just opaque and barely cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes. Add a few dashes of hot sauce, then add tequila and shake pan for about 1 to 2 minutes and let tequila evaporate or burn off. Add lemon juice and remove from heat.
Heat a cast-iron or nonstick skillet over medium heat with a light spray of oil, add tortilla, char and remove, and char one side of the remaining tortillas.
To assemble, add a tortilla to pan, charred-side up, top with cheese and shrimp and more cheese. Fold in half if using larger tortillas, or stack another tortilla on top, charred-side in, if using smaller 6-inch ones. Keep turning to brown and melt cheese. Top quesadillas with creamy guacamole, sprinkle with cilantro and green onion and serve.
