I’ll admit the name of this recipe is a mouthful but I assure you’ll be glad you took the time to read this title….please read on!

The last time I shared a quesadilla recipe was three months ago (see our Simply Tasty Quesadillas recipe here) so I thought it was time to try my hand at a new approach to quesadillas. The original recipe was loaded with veggies – onions, peppers and zucchini –sautéed in a robust cumin-balsamic vinegar-rice vinegar blend and topped (of course) with cheese. Today I decided to switch up a few things. First, I wanted to introduce beans into the recipe to make it a heartier more filling quesadilla I could serve as a main to dinner guests. Second, I wanted to experiment with using sea salt flakes (vs Himalayan pink salt) as I’ve heard this is an incredible finishing salt that provides a delicious salty crunch (in truth I’ve also had a box of Maldon® Sea Salt Flakes sitting in my cupboard for over a week and I have been waiting for the right recipe to use it!) Last but not least, since discovering how delicious made-from-scratch flour tortillas can be (see our Curried Chickpea, Potato & Rice Burrito or our Tofu Chick’n Shawarma for the recipe link from Grow a Good Life) I wanted to develop our very own flour tortilla recipe that would be perfectly suited to making quesadillas.

The tortilla recipe shared here is incredibly easy to make and tastes delicious – once you make your own you won’t go back to buying store-bought (not to mention most commercially-prepared tortillas contain hog hair, labeled as L-Cysteine). Roasting the sweet potatoes caramelizes their natural sugars and really complements the mild ‘heat’ derived from the addition of cumin, chili powder and curry powder. A big fan of Follow Your Heart®/Earth Island® vegan cheese shreds (sorry Daiya fans) the cheddar variety tastes and melts like its dairy counterpart and adds a gooey, salty dimension this recipe needed to  balance the sweetness of the roasted potato filling and mild, earthy flavour of the black beans. I’m really happy how the sea salt flakes turned out in this dish – they not only tantalize the eye but created a “crusted” topping with a hint of sweet heat from the cumin. You can expect to see (and learn) more about sea salt flakes in future posts 😉.

As always, I look forward to hearing your thoughts on this recipe. Have a great weekend!

Preparation

• 1/Prepare 10-12 flour tortillas (recipe below; it’s worth the effort!)
• 2/4-5 large sweet potatoes, baked (450-550g)
  Tip: Preheat oven to 410F. After rinsing the skin and patting dry with a towel to remove any moisture, pierce each potato with a fork.  Drizzle a generous amount of olive oil and Himalayan pink salt over each potato. Bake for 1 hour or until sweet potatoes are tender and they have caramelized.
• 3/Prepare cumin-salt topping: Add 2 tsp sea salt flakes and ½ tsp cumin to a small mixing bowl. Gently combine using your fingers(Note: Do not crush the flakes)
• 4/Cook 2 cups black beans as directed (Note: Drain any excess cooking liquid)

Ingredients: Flour Tortillas

• 3/4 cup of water
• 6 Tbsp olive oil
• 3 cups flour, white & unbleached
• 1 1/4 tsp sea salt

Instructions: Flour Tortillas

• 1)Add water and oil to your Thermomix mixing bowl. Blend 2 min/37C/Speed 2.
• 2)Add flour and salt to the TM bowl. Using the Turbo setting, knead for 2 minutes.
• 3/Transfer prepared dough from the TM bowl to a lightly floured surface and form a ball. Divide into twelve smaller balls (Note: This will yield 10-12 six-inch tortillas)
• 4/Flatten each ball of dough using a flat service such as a glass or measuring cup; use a rolling pin to thin out the dough (the thinner the better).
  Tip:  Roll the dough from the middle outwards, which lengthens the gluten strands in the dough so you don’t need to work as hard! If the edges lift, flip the tortilla and continue until you have a 6-inch tortilla.

Ingredients: Roasted Sweet Potato Filling

• 2 onions, halved (95g)
• 2 large garlic cloves, peeled(25g)
• Olive oil (15 g)
• Pinch of Himalayan pink salt
• 4-5 baked sweet potatoes (see notes above)
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• ½ tsp chili powder
• ½ tsp curry powder
• Pinch of Himalayan pink salt
• Pinch of ground cracked pepper

Instructions: Roasted Sweet Potato Filling

• 1/Place onion and garlic in your Thermomix mixing bowl. Chop 5 sec/Speed 7. Using a spatula, scrape down the sides of the bowl.
• 2/Add olive oil and a pinch of salt. Sauté 3 min/120C/Speed 1. Once again, scrape down the sides of the bowl.
• 3/Cut the baked sweet potatoes into coarse chunks (Note: Leave the skin on!) Add the coarsely chopped sweet potato to the TM bowl with sautéed onions and garlic. Add dry spices to the TM bowl (cumin through pepper). Blend 4 sec/Speed 3 (Reverse blade). This step not only seasons the roasted sweet potatoes, but also gently chops the potato into smaller bite-size pieces. (If you prefer a smoother texture you could always blend longer or increase the blade speed!)

Assembly Ingredients: Quesadillas

• Flour tortillas (approx. 10-12 tortillas)
• Roasted sweet potato filling (recipe above)
• 2 cups cooked black beans
• 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese
• Olive oil (for topping)
• Cumin-salt topping (for topping)

Assembly Instructions: Quesadillas

• 1/Preheat oven to 375F; line a baking tray with parchment paper. Place 5-6 tortillas (flat) on the tray.
• 2/Spoon a generous amount of the roasted sweet potato filling on each tortilla. Top with black beans and shredded cheddar cheese. Cover the potato-bean-cheese filling with a second (top) tortilla . Gently brush some olive oil on the top tortilla. Sprinkle with a generous amount of the cumin-salt topping.
• 3/Bake for 10-12 minutes or until cheese has melted and the edges are golden brown.
  Note: This recipe was made using a Thermomix appliance, however it can easily be adapted using similar food prep tools (e.g. mutli-function processor, immersion blender etc) or using a more traditional stovetop method.

Product Recommendations

*Earth Island®/Follow Your Heart®Vegan Gourmet Shreds [Cheddar]
*Maldon® Sea Salt Flakes

Note: This recipe was made using a Thermomix appliance, however it can easily be adapted using similar food prep tools (e.g. mutli-function processor, immersion blender etc) or using a more traditional stovetop method.

SaveSave