Southwest Quesadilla

I was inspired to make these when I came across a recipe for Southwest Egg Rolls at Annie's Eats. They were delicious and I made a quick spicy ranch dipping sauce for them. (It's just hot sauce and ranch dressing.)

Ingredients

1 pound of cooked shredded chicken (I cooked the chicken in my Crock Pot during the day and seasoned it with garlic powder, onion powder and cumin. You can easily use leftover roast or grilled chicken.)
1 - 8 oz can of whole kernell corn, drained
1 - 10 oz chopped spinach, thawed and drained
1 - 15 oz can of black beans, rinsed and drained
2 cups of Colby Jack shredded cheese
4 tbsp garlic powder
4 tbsp onion powder
2 tbsp cumin
tortillas
vegetable cooking spray

Directions

Mix chicken, corn, spinach, and beans in a large bowl. Season with garlic and onion powders and cumin.

To assemble quesadillas, heat a griddle pan and spray lightly with vegetable cooking spray. Place a tortilla on the griddle. Sprinkle 1/8 cup of cheese on half of the tortilla. Spoon 1/4 cup of chicken mixture on top of cheese. Sprinkle an additional 1/8 cup of cheese on top of the chicken mixture. Fold tortilla over on itself. Press firm with a spatula. Cook for 1 minute and flip cooking other side for an additional 30 seconds to 1 minute.

Cut quesadilla into fourths and serve hot.

Southwest Corn Chowder

With the cooler temperatures and rainy weather we've been treating ourselves to lots of comfort food. I had some fresh Jersey corn in my freezer that I wanted to use before it was destroyed by frost bite. Velvety and warm corn chowder was just the thing to make. I don't particularly care about the calories from using heavy cream but if you do you could easily substitute half and half or light cream instead. Serve this with some crusty bread and you have a warming and satisfying meal.


Ingredients
5 ears of corn, kernels cut off
1 1/2 cup of heavy cream
32 oz of chicken or vegetable broth
1 yellow onion, diced
4 cloves of garlic, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
1 tbsp flour
2 tsp of chili powder
2 tsp of paprika
1 tsp of extra virgin olive oil
salt
pepper

Directions

In a large stock pot, add oil and onions stirring to coat. Cook over medium heat until onions begin to carmelize. Add garlic and continue cooking until pale golden brown, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle flour over onions and garlic and stir to coat. Add chicken broth and bring to a vigorous boil. Continue to boil for 10 minutes. Add the heavy cream and continue to boil for an additional 10 minutes, be sure to stir to prevent the cream from burning or boiling over. Add the corn and red peppers, simmer for 5 minutes or until corn is tender. Add paprika and chili powder, salt and pepper to tasty. Serve hot. You can garnish with cheddar cheese and/or scallions.