Acorn Squash Quesadillas
There is a spectacular amount of snow piled up on the streets of Boston, thanks to weekly snowstorms over the last 4 weeks. But I’m tired of waking to the beeping and racket of snow plows thundering up and down the roads before its even light out. I’m tired of the unsolicited workout I’ve been getting from stomping through the snow in heavy snow boots to get to lab and back home. I’m tired of staring out my window at lab, desperately wishing “snow day” applied to me and that I could hang out in my pajamas and watch the snow fall from inside my apartment (or better yet, from my bed!).
To snap me out of my little snow-funk, I decided to channel some California in the form of a cheese-y, crispy, spicy quesadilla! For a little winter twist, the filling is a combination of monterey pepperjack cheese, caramelized red onions, and sweet roasted acorn squash.
Adding brightly flavored (and colored!) fresh tomatilla salsa verde and sour cream to these quesadillas brought back fond memories of enviable warm winters in California. Like that one year we wore flip flops and tank tops on my birthday because it was 70 degrees and sunny in San Diego. Man, I miss those days.
Tomorrow’s forecast includes freezing rain and sleet after another 6-10 inches of snow overnight. I guess I’ll just have to look forward to frying up more of these (with extra cheese! extra salsa! extra butter! extra crispy!) for dinner tomorrow!
Braised Pork (Carnitas) Tacos and Tomatillo Salsa
This weekend the temperature in Boston hit the 50s. 50s, people! I vaguely remember a time, while living in sunny southern California, where 50 degrees was a cold winter day requiring a jacket and even a decorative scarf. Now, after a few years of Northeast winter where the months of unbearably freezing temperatures can stretch on and on and on, the day that the temperature hits 50 is the day where it takes all my self control not to skip on outside in just a skirt, t-shirt, and flip flops. This weekend was no different, despite the fact that this winter has been uncommonly mild. The warmer weather immediately put me in a better mood; there is nothing that makes me smile more than stepping outside into the sunshine and having it actually WARM my face.
To celebrate the almost-spring-like-weather, I made tacos with fork-tender, tomatillo-spiced, braised pork. Why tacos? Because tacos remind me of California, and California reminds me of sun and warm weather, and these days 50 degrees IS warm weather.
I took advantage of the Oscar red carpet pre-show on the E channel, using these 2 hours to admire and critique the red carpet outfits, ridicule Ryan Seacrest, and most importantly, to slowly braise the pork, allowing the meat to absorb the flavorful braising liquid of chicken stock, tomatillo salsa, and a heavy dose of cumin. By the time the awards show started, we had pulled the tender meat into bite-sized shreds, piled on the taco toppings (cheese, shredded lettuce, guacamole, and tomato, corn, and black bean salsa), and savored our first bites of a most awesome summery taco. The meat is nicely seasoned and just melts in your mouth- a great contrast to all the fresh vegetables.
I also used this opportunity to make a tomatillo salsa, or salsa verde. I used the salsa to flavor the meat during the braising process, and also in my tacos. The first time I had salsa verde was at a Rubio’s in San Diego; my first “mexican” meal after moving down there for college. It was tangy, slightly sweet, and not too hot… the perfect condiment for one with a rather weak tolerance for heat, and I ate it with everything I ever ordered from there. I had no idea it was so easy to make at home- the hardest part was finding the tomatillos in the produce section of the grocery store!
Tomatillos are thought of as green tomatoes in Mexican cuisine, but are actually more closely related to cape gooseberries than to tomatoes. They are amazingly cute, wrapped up in a light, paper-y thin husk, and have bright green fruit within. The tomatillos are roasted in the oven with onions, jalapenos, and a bit of garlic, then pureed in the food processor with some freshly squeezed lime juice, a dash of sugar and salt, and plenty of fresh cilantro. Tasty with chips and excellent on tacos.
I’m looking forward to the rest of the week- the warmer temperatures and more of these pork tacos!
Salsa Verde Carnitas
adapted from Simply Recipes
makes about 6 servings
3-4 pounds of pork shoulder (pork butt), cut into 2 inch chunks
1 1/2 cup salsa verde, bottled or home-made (recipe below)
1 onion, roughly chopped
2 cups chicken stock
1 teaspoon oregano
2 bay leaves
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 small orange, cut into fourths and seeded
salt
- Trim the excess fat from the meat. Cut into 2 inch chunks.
- Heat 2 tablespoons of oil in a large pot or dutch oven over medium high heat. Brown meat, cooking for a few minutes on each side. I browned the meat in 2 batches.
- Put all the meat into the pot, then add chicken stock, salsa verde, onion, oregano, bay leaves, ground cumin, and orange. Stir around the mixture, making sure the braising liquid is combined and most of the meat is submerged.
- Bring the the pot to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, and cover. Let simmer for 2-3 hours, or until the meat is tender when pierced with a fork.
- Once the meat is tender, remove the meat from the liquid and shred using a fork. Season to taste with salt. At this point, the recipe calls for roasting the shredded meat in a roasting pan for an additional 15-20 minutes at 400 F for browned and crispy parts… we skipped this step because we were starving because wonderful smell in the apartment was almost overwhelming, but I would try this step next time.
- Turn the heat to high and reduce the braising liquid by 1/2. The braising liquid can be used on the tacos, and I mixed in about 1-1 1/2 cups of this liquid into the leftover braised meat.
- Pile the meat onto corn or flour tortillas and top with your favorites: cheese, lettuce, salsa, sour cream, guacamole, etc etc…
Tomatillo Salsa (Salsa Verde)
adapted from Simply Recipes
makes about 3 cups
1 1/2 pound tomatillos
1 jalapeno (next time I would use 2)
1/2 cup chopped red onion
1/2 cup fresh cilantro leaves
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice (about 1 lime)
1/4 teaspoon sugar
salt
- Remove papery husks from tomatillos and rinse well.
- Roasting method: Cut tomatillos in half, and place cut side down on a foil-lined baking sheet. Place under a broiler for about 5-7 minutes to lightly blacken the skin.
- Boiling method: Place tomatillos in a saucepan, cover with water. Bring to a boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Remove tomatillos with a slotted spoon.
- Place tomatillos, lime juice, onions, cilantro, peppers, sugar in a food processor or blender and pulse until all ingredients are finely chopped and mixed. Season to taste with salt.
- Cool in refrigerator.
