Archive | 4:39 pm

Mama loves Mexican

9 Nov

I LOVE Mexican food!  It’s all I wanted to eat both times I was pregnant.  Whenever I have a sitter and want Mexican, I go to Mad Dog and Beans on Stone Street in the Financial District.   I always order their shrimp quesadilla.  It is delicious.  Yesterday I had a craving for it and decided it would be fun to have the girls make shrimp quesadillas for mommy and daddy.  We made our own version with spinach (what a perfect way to hide veggies).  Before the girls got started, I prepared all the ingredients and set them up for the girls.  Once it was prepared and I let them create their own quesadilla, adding however much cheese, spinach, and shrimp they wanted.  Maddie, 3, loved it but Pela, 19 months, wasn’t feeling good so she let Maddie make hers. When she was done creating she watched me cook them on our panini press.  Pela picked out the shrimp and ate the rest. Maddie ate most of hers.  She was so proud of her creation and that she made dinner for Mommy and Daddy. See how we did it below images.

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 lb uncooked shrimp, peeled and devained
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • Cilantro (about 1/4 cup)
  • Salt and Pepper (to your liking, I didn’t use much salt)
  • Cayenne Pepper (to your liking)
  • Chile Powder (to your liking)
  • 1 Lime (cut and use juice )
  • 1 block mild cheddar (used about 3 cups, shredded)
  • 1 block pepper jack (used about 1 cup shredded)
  • 1 package tortillas (I used Maria and Ricardo’s FiberRich Whole Wheat Tortilla: Fajita size)
  • 1 cup baby spinach
  • Guacamole
  • Salsa
Directions:
Adult Preparation:
  1. Cook Shrimp: In a large skillet, heat olive oil, add shrimp, salt, pepper, chile powder, cayenne, cilantro, and lime juice.  Cook all the way through.  Once cooked pull off tails and cut into small pieces.
  2. Meanwhile shred cheese (this can also be done earlier in the day as a fun activity for older children).  You can also buy bags of shredded cheese but my girls like to snack on pieces of cheese through out the day so I get a block and shred it myself.
  3. Put cheese in small bowls for each child.
  4. Fill a small bowl with spinach
  5. Put 1 tortilla on plate with about 2 shrimp cut into little pieces for kid size portion.  Use 2 tortilla and about 4-5 shrimp for adult portion.
Kids Preparation:
  1. Tell the kids what they are making.  Make sure they wash their hands good before touching food.  Let them wear an apron to “pretend” they are a chef.
  2. Put all the ingredients (cheese, spinach, shrimp, and tortillas) on table or counter.  I used their small table because there wasn’t enough room in our kitchen.
  3. Let the kids put as much on as they want.
  4. Once finished creating have the kids bring their quesadilla to you, pull up a chair or step stool, and let them watch it cook.
Use a Panini press/grill or quesadilla maker to melt cheese in the middle.  Make sure you use PAM, butter, or oil to keep the quesadilla from sticking.
Melt cheese completely.  Serve with guacamole and salsa.

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