This quesadilla oozes robust, meaty wild mushrooms and is balanced by the rustic blue corn tortilla.  Served with a bright red tomato salsa, you can safely say you are eating your colors.

Chef’s tip: To grate cheese, pop the cheese into the freezer for about 10 minutes to firm up the cheese before grating.  A regular box grater works best for grating cheese.  Zesting citrus, however, is best done with a microplane which only lifts out the colored parts of the citrus where the essential oils are, leaving the often, bitter pith behind.

Mushroom:
1 pound mushrooms, such as Shiitake, Chanterelle, Maitake, sliced 1/4 inch thick
4 Tablespoons olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Filling:
1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
2 Tablespoons fresh oregano, chopped
3 Tablespoons cilantro stems, chopped
2 Tablespoons parsley, chopped
3 oz Cotija cheese, grated
3 oz Oaxaca, grated
2 oz aged, sharp Cheddar
1 teaspoon coriander seeds, roasted and crushed

4 Tablespoons olive oil
8 small blue corn tortilla

Salsa:
3 vine-riped tomatoes or dry farmed Early Girls, diced
1 clove garlic, peeled, sliced
1 sprig green onion, light green and white parts only, chopped
1 Serrano chile, seeded and coarsely chopped
2 cups cilantro, packed, including the stems
Zest of 1 lime
Juice of 1 lime
1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
A few dashes of hot sauce
1/2 teaspoon cumin, ground
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 tespoon fresh black pepper

2 Tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Roasting the mushroom:
1. Preheat oven 400F.  Toss sliced mushrooms with olive oil, and garlic.  Season with the salt and pepper; roast till soft and mushrooms start to brown, about 12 minutes.  Set aside.
Preparing the filling:
2.  Combine the filling ingredients together in a large bowl.  Toss to mix.
Preparing the quesadillas:
3.  Lay a tortilla on a clean, flat surface.  Spoon in about 3/4 inch thick of filling, leaving a 1/2 inch rim uncovered.  Cover with another tortilla, press gently to compact the filling and place on a baking sheet.  Repeat till you have formed 4 quesadillas.
4.  Heat a flat frying pan with little oil over medium heat.  Using a fish spatula, transfer the prepared quesadilla onto the pan, cook for a few minutes, while gently pressing on the quesadilla.  Gently turn the quesadilla and cook the other side for a a minute or two more.
6. Cut each quesadilla into 6 and serve with a salsa.
Preparing the salsa:
5. Add all tomatoes and garlic into a food processor.  Pulse several times till the tomatoes are cut into small dice.   Add green onion, cilantro and serrano and pulse a few more times.  Remove from food processor and add in zest, lime juice, vinegar, hot sauce, cumin, salt and pepper.  If needed, balance the acid with a touch of sugar.  Finish with extra virgin olive oil.

Serves: 4

Tags: Latin, Mushrooms.

Yummy herbed-infused kofta burgers. Instead of ketchup, we use a lemony tahini.

Chef’s tip: Chilling the meat makes it easier to form patties. If you want all your burgers to be of a standard size, use an ice cream scoop.

Ingredients

Burger:
½ pound ground lamb
½ pound lean, ground beef
¼ cup panko breadcrumbs, soaked with water, squeezed dry
½ small red onion, grated, and squeezed to remove liquid (reserve the other half for condiment)
2 cloves garlic, minced
½ egg
1½ teaspoons kosher salt
1½ teaspoons ground cumin
½ teaspoon ground fennel
½ teaspoon ground black pepper
½  teaspoon ground chili/ cayenne

¼ cup parsley, chopped
¼ cup cilantro, chopped
2 Tablespoons mint, chopped
½ cup roasted pistachios or almonds, chopped finely
¼ cup crumbled feta
2 Tablespoons canola oil

Tahini:
1 small shallot, peeled and quartered
1 small clove garlic, peeled
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ Tablespoon cumin, ground
4 Tablespoons lemon juice
¼ cup tahini paste, at room temperature, stirred if separated
4 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
½ teaspoon kosher salt

Cilantro leaves
1 tomatoes, sliced
3 pieces of Iceberg lettuce
½ small red onion, sliced
10 mini brioche buns

Preparing the burger patties
1.    Combine the burger ingredients together. Chill for 5 minutes in the freezer.
2.    Mince the parsley, cilantro, mint and chop the nuts.  Mix into chilled burger mix.
3.    Form meat into golf ball size balls. Using your finger, make a hole into the patty, add a small half teaspoon of feta, and form the meat around the feta.  Gently form into 2-inch patties.  Using your thumb, make a small dimple in the middle of the patty.  Place on a slightly oil baking sheet.
Cooking the burger
4.    Preheat oven to 375°F
5.    Heat a fry pan over medium-high heat.  Working in batches, sear burgers 1 minute on each sides, drain on paper towels then transfer to a sheet pan.  Transfer the burgers to the oven to finish cooking, about 4 minutes for medium rare.
Preparing the tahini
6.    Mix together all ingredients in a blender, and pulse till it forms a smooth paste
Assembly
7.    Split and toast buns.  Assemble burgers with tomatoes, onions, lettuce and a smear of tahini sauce.

Serves: Makes 10 mini burgers

Tags: burger, finger foods, kofte, meatballs, Persian, sandwich, sliders, tahini.