Garlicky Prawn, Roasted Pepper and Goat Cheese Quesadillas

Posted by Darlene at recipegoldmine.com 1/29/2002 8:33 am

You will never have enough of these! Good hot or cold!

Serves 6.

10 extra-large flour tortillas
20 large tiger prawns, 16 count, shelled and deveined
2 teaspoons chopped garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper
1 ounce tequila
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese or 3/4 cup ricotta and 3/4 cup goat cheese
1/2 cup fresh salsa (can use any good salsa)
1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon mild chili powder
1 large head garlic, roasted*
8 ounces jalapeno pepper jack cheese, grated
3 large red bell peppers, roasted (can be in jars)**
4 large poblano peppers, roasted (can substitute whole Ortega chiles)**
1/2 cup sun-dried tomatoes in oil

Marinate (2 hours) the prawns with the chopped garlic, olive oil, cayenne pepper, salt and tequila. Place prawns on a barbecue and cook 1-1/2 minutes on each side or until pink and opaque.

Mix the ricotta cheese into a spread with the roasted garlic, salsa, cilantro and chili powder. Cut the roasted red bell peppers, roasted poblano peppers, and dried tomatoes into julienne strips.

Assembly: Spread the Ricotta mixture on 1/2 the tortilla. Cut the prawns in half lengthwise and place 4 halves across the bottom 1/3 of the tortilla. Add about a tablespoon each of the red bell and poblano peppers, and 1 teaspoon sun-dried tomatoes on top of the prawns. Top this off with a generous amount of shredded pepper jack cheese. From the bottom, fold up the tortilla on itself to make a 1 1/2- to 2-inch flattened roll. Set aside until all ten tortillas are filled. (These can be made a few hours ahead of time.) Grill on each side for 2 minutes on a hot barbecue or until the cheese is melted. Cut into four even pieces and serve hot with green salad, rice and beans.

*Roasted Garlic: Peel outer skin layer from head of fresh garlic, leaving cloves and head intact. Place head on double thickness of foil; top with 1 teaspoon olive oil and a sprig of fresh rosemary or oregano [or 1/4 teaspoon dried]. Fold up and seal. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 1 hour. Let cool. Squeeze cloves to release roasted garlic and set aside. Discard skins.

**Roasted Peppers: On a charcoal barbecue or a gas fired barbecue place the whole peppers on the grill and roast, turning occasionally, until the skins are blackened. Remove from the grill and let cool until they can be handled for peeling off the blackened skin.