Week 1, Day 5 of My Eating Well Challenge. I was able to sneak in a fifth recipe this week. I had some sauerkraut left over from the vegetarian reubens the day before, and ham from the ham and cheese stuffed chicken breasts. I thought this recipe sounded intriguing. OK, maybe not intriguing; honestly I thought it downright bizarre at first. But when you stop to think about it, similar ingredients are found in a choucroute garnie, so what could be bad?
As it turns out, these are spectacular. The tortilla is crispy, the cheese is gooey, the ham is smokey, and the apple and sauerkraut are tart and sweet. I added the ham per EatingWell’s recommended variation, but it could certainly be omitted if not on hand or for a vegetarian option. We had them for lunch, but cut into quarters or eighths, these would be great as a hearty hors d’oeuvre for a small party.
Apple, Sauerkraut, Cheddar & Ham Quesadillas
From The Essential EatingWell Cookbook
1 cup sauerkraut, rinsed
1/2 cup water
2 9-to-10-inch (burrito-size) flour tortillas
1 1/3 cups grated reduced-fat Cheddar cheese
1 small Granny Smith or other tart, juicy apple, peeled and very thinly sliced
3 tablespoons ham, diced small
1. Put sauerkraut and water in a medium nonreactive skillet. Gently heat just until the liquid has evaporated but not so much that the sauerkraut begins to stick to the pan. Remove from the heat.
2. Gradually heat a large cast-iron over medium heat. Put one tortilla in the pan and immediately sprinkle 1/3 cup cheese over half of it. Quickly arrange about half the apple slices over the cheese, then top with half the sauerkraut, spreading it evenly, and half the ham. Sprinkle with another 1/3 cup cheese.
3. Fold the tortilla over the filled half and press gently on it with a spatula to seal. Heat the quesadilla until the bottom is golden, about 2 minutes, then carefully flip and lightly brown the other side. Slide the quesadilla onto a cutting board and cut it into halves or quarters. Prepare the second one in the same fashion.