Quesadilla Cups with Nectarine Salsa

I have a confession: whenever I host a party or dinner, the appetizers I serve are – for the most part – bought at a store. In other words, I usually don’t make appetizers from scratch because they tend to be time-consuming and I would rather spend my time preparing the main course and dessert. That is one of the reasons why, up until today, I haven’t posted any appetizer recipes.

This week Jen and I (remember Jen, my partner in crime when it comes to cooking) made two new recipes: quesadilla cups (appetizer) and chipotle chili cornbread bake (main dish, I will tell you about it later). We both were under the impression that the quesadilla cups were going to be time consuming because they looked quite fancy on the recipe card. I am happy to report that we were wrong. The quesadilla cups were very easy to make, were ready in approximately 15 minutes (and gone as fast), and were delicious. In addition, the ingredients are easily available. You can cut the time in half by preparing the accompanying salsa a day or few hours ahead. If you are looking for low-maintenance appetizers that look high-maintenance, this recipe if for you. I assure you, your guests will be asking for the recipe.

Jen eating a quesadilla cup

Quesadilla Cups with Nectarine Salsa
Courtesy of The Pampered Chef (have I told you how much I love their products?)
Servings: 24 cups

Ingredients:  
4 oz. Chihuahua or Monterrey Jack Cheese
3 flour tortillas (6-inch)
1 tbs. extra virgin olive oil
1 medium, ripe, nectarine (diced)
¼ cup roasted red peppers (patted dry and diced)
1 Serrano or jalapeno pepper (diced)
2 tbs. finely chopped onion
2 tbs. finely chopped cilantro
1 tbs. lime or lemon juice
Salt and Pepper

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Cut cheese into twenty-four ½-in. (1-cm) cubes.
2. Brush both sides of tortillas with oil. Stack tortillas and cut into eight wedges (for a total of 24 wedges).
3. Press tortillas into a mini-muffin pan. Place one cheese cube into each cup and bake 5–7 minutes or until edges of tortillas begin to brown and cheese is melted.
4. Meanwhile, for salsa, mix the nectarine, roasted pepper, Serrano pepper, onion, cilantro, lime juice, salt and pepper.
5. Remove pan from oven. Cool cups in pan 2–3 minutes. Carefully remove cups from pan to serving platter.
6. Right before serving divide salsa evenly among cups.

Notes:
a. If you don’t like spicy food, instead of skipping the Serrano pepper, cut it lengthwise and discard the seeds and veins carefully before dicing it. The heat from the pepper does not come from the seeds, it comes from the veins. The seeds are attached to the veins and therefore, people often think that the seeds are the “heat” source.
b. Jen and I believe that replacing the nectarine with diced mango would be a good combination.