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Ciudad de México's summer quesadilla, blue corn masa folded around squash blossoms wilted with epazote and serrano, queso Oaxaca pulling in long strands from the center, toasted dry on a comal from June to September.
This is a Ciudad de México quesadilla. Specifically the comal-toasted, hand-pressed kind you find at Mercado de Medellín, at Mercado de Coyoacán, at the puestos that set up before sunrise in Colonia Roma and Condesa. Blue corn masa, squash blossoms, queso Oaxaca, epazote, chile serrano. That is the dish. And yes, in CDMX a quesadilla can be made without cheese. Don't get into that argument right now. Ours has cheese.
Flor de calabaza is a seasonal ingredient. June through September. The blossoms appear in the mercados in tied bunches, bright orange against the green of the stems, and the women selling them will tell you to cook them today, not tomorrow. They wilt fast. If you find them out of season at a fancy supermarket, they were flown in and they will taste of nothing. Esto no es comida de un solo México. CDMX cooks with the seasons because the mercado tells them to.
Epazote is the herb that ties this dish together. Not cilantro. Not parsley. Epazote, with its sharp medicinal green smell that is unmistakable once you know it. Pregúntale a las señoras del mercado and they will hand you a sprig. Without epazote, you have a cheese turnover. With it, you have a CDMX quesadilla.
My mother made these every summer when the blossoms came to the puesto on Calle Orizaba in Colonia Roma. She pressed the masa by hand because we did not own a tortilla press until I was twelve years old. She would press, fill, fold, and toast in one continuous motion, three quesadillas going at once on the comal. She never measured the masa. She knew the weight in her hand. That is the kind of knowing this dish asks for. Saber cocinar es saber vivir.
The squash blossom has been part of Mesoamerican cooking since before the conquest, used by the Mexica and other Nahua peoples as part of the three-sisters agricultural system of corn, beans, and squash. The pairing of flor de calabaza with epazote and chile in a corn-masa wrapper predates the cheese version by centuries; queso Oaxaca, a stretched-curd cheese developed in the Etla valley of Oaxaca in the late 19th century, became a Ciudad de México staple in the 20th century when Oaxacan migrants brought their cheese-making traditions to the capital's markets. The ongoing debate over whether a quesadilla must contain cheese is genuinely a CDMX-versus-the-rest-of-Mexico dispute: in the capital, a quesadilla is defined by its folded masa form and cheese is optional, while in most other states the cheese is the whole point of the name.
Quantity
2 cups
preferably nixtamalized, such as Masienda
Quantity
1 1/4 cups
plus more as needed
Quantity
1/2 teaspoon
Quantity
2 tablespoons
softened
Quantity
2 large bunches (about 4 cups loosely packed)
Quantity
1 tablespoon
Quantity
1/2 small
finely chopped
Quantity
2
finely chopped
Quantity
1
finely chopped (seeds in for heat, out for less)
Quantity
1 medium
finely chopped
Quantity
1 large sprig
leaves stripped and coarsely chopped
Quantity
1/2 teaspoon, plus more to taste
Quantity
8 ounces
pulled into thin strands
Quantity
for serving
Quantity
for serving
| Ingredient | Quantity |
|---|---|
| blue corn masa harinapreferably nixtamalized, such as Masienda | 2 cups |
| warm waterplus more as needed | 1 1/4 cups |
| kosher salt | 1/2 teaspoon |
| lard (manteca de cerdo)softened | 2 tablespoons |
| fresh squash blossoms (flor de calabaza) | 2 large bunches (about 4 cups loosely packed) |
| lard, for the pan | 1 tablespoon |
| white onionfinely chopped | 1/2 small |
| garlic clovesfinely chopped | 2 |
| fresh chile serranofinely chopped (seeds in for heat, out for less) | 1 |
| ripe tomatofinely chopped | 1 medium |
| fresh epazoteleaves stripped and coarsely chopped | 1 large sprig |
| kosher salt | 1/2 teaspoon, plus more to taste |
| queso Oaxacapulled into thin strands | 8 ounces |
| salsa verde cruda (optional) | for serving |
| lime wedges (optional) | for serving |
Work over a bowl. Pull off the green sepals at the base of each blossom, the small leafy points that flare out where the flower meets the stem. Pinch out the pistil from inside each flower. Tear the blossoms in half lengthwise and shake out any insects hiding inside. Do not wash them under running water. They will collapse. If they need a rinse, swish them briefly in a bowl of cold water and lay them on a towel.
In a wide bowl, combine the blue corn masa harina and the 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Add the softened lard and rub it into the dry masa with your fingers until the mixture looks sandy. Pour in the warm water and bring the dough together with your hands. Knead for two or three minutes until smooth, supple, and the color of wet slate. The masa should feel like firm modeling clay. Press a piece between your fingers: if it cracks at the edges, the masa is too dry, work in another tablespoon of water. If it sticks to your palm, it is too wet, add a little more masa harina. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and let it rest 15 minutes.
Melt the tablespoon of lard in a heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the chopped white onion and a pinch of salt. Cook for two minutes, until the onion turns translucent but does not brown. Add the garlic and the serrano. Cook another 30 seconds, until the kitchen smells sharp and green. La manteca es el sabor. Do not use vegetable oil here. The lard carries the chile.
Add the chopped tomato to the pan. Cook for three minutes until it breaks down and the pan looks wet but not soupy. Now add the squash blossoms in two handfuls, stirring after each addition. They will collapse fast, like spinach. Cook for two minutes total, just until the blossoms wilt and turn deeper orange. Stir in the chopped epazote and the 1/2 teaspoon of salt. Pull the pan off the heat. Taste. The filling should taste of the flower, the herb, and the chile in that order. If it tastes flat, more salt. Let it cool until just warm.
Heat a comal or heavy cast iron skillet over medium-high heat while you press. Cut a quart-size plastic bag along the sides to make two squares. Divide the masa into six equal balls, about 2 ounces each. Keep them covered with the damp cloth so they do not dry out. Place one ball between the plastic sheets in a tortilla press and press to about 6 inches across and 1/8 inch thick. A little thicker than a tortilla for tacos. The quesadilla needs body to hold the filling.
Peel the top plastic off the pressed disk. Place a generous tablespoon of the squash blossom filling on one half of the disk, leaving a half-inch border. Lay a small handful of pulled queso Oaxaca on top of the filling. Using the bottom plastic to help, fold the empty half of the masa over the filling to form a half-moon. Press the edges gently to seal. The masa is forgiving. If it cracks, pinch it closed with damp fingers.
Carefully transfer the quesadilla to the hot dry comal. Cook for three to four minutes per side. The masa should develop dark toasted spots and the surface should puff slightly. Flip with a wide spatula. When you can hear the cheese sizzling inside and the second side has charred spots, the quesadilla is ready. Press lightly with the spatula to make sure the cheese has fully melted and the two sides of masa have bonded.
Pull the quesadillas off the comal and serve at once. The cheese has to be pulling when you tear the first one open. Set a bowl of salsa verde cruda and lime wedges on the table. Each person spoons their own salsa. Eat with your hands. Quesadillas wait for nobody. Recetas probadas y garantizadas.
1 serving (about 225g)
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