Famous Foods Part 1

Quesadillas

In central and southern regions of Mexico, a quesadilla is a flat circle of cooked corn masa, called a tortilla, warmed to soften it enough to be folded in half, and then filled. They are typically filled with Oaxaca cheese (queso Oaxaca). Oaxaca cheese is a stringy (pasta filata) cheese that comes from Mexico. The quesadilla is then cooked on a comal until the cheese has completely melted. They are usually cooked without the addition of any oil. Often the quesadillas are served with green or red salsa, chopped onion, guacamole, and sour cream. While Oaxaca (or string) cheese is the most common filling, other ingredients are also used in addition to or even substituting cheese. These can include cooked vegetables, such as potatoes with chorizo, squash blossoms, mushrooms, epazote, huitlacoche, and different types of cooked meat, such as chicharron, tinga made of chicken or beef, or cooked pork. In some places, quesadillas are also topped with other ingredients, in addition to the fillings they already have: avocado or guacamole, chopped onion, tomato, serrano chiles and parsley are the most common. Salsas may also be added as a topping.


Mexican quesadillas are traditionally cooked on a comal, which is also used to prepare tortillas. As a variation, the quesadillas can be fried in oil to make quesadillas fritas. The main difference is while the traditional ones are prepared just filling the partially cooked tortillas, then continue cooking until the cheese melts, the fried ones are prepared like a pastry, preparing the uncooked masa in small circles, then topping with the filling and finally folding the quesadilla to form the pastry. It is then immersed into hot oil until the exterior looks golden and crispy


Churros 

Churros are traditional Spanish desserts. They are made from dough pastry-predominantly choux- which is fried and dusted in cinnamon sugar. They are popular in Spain, France, the Philippines, Portugal, South America and Southwestern United States. They can be long and thin or thick, straight or twisted and knotted. They are usually eaten for breakfast dipped in champurrado (a traditional hot chocolate based beverage) or cafe con leche.

Churros were developed centuries ago by Spanish Shepherds. The hard working men who spent most of their days working in the hills became hungry for a sweet treat but up high in the mountains, fresh baked produce was hard to come by. These ingenious shepherds came up with this delicious sweet cake-like snack that could easily be cooked in a pan over an open fire. The Churro was born and takes its name from the Navajo-Churro sheep, descended from the Churra sheep of the Iberian Penisula whose horns it is said to resemble.

Originally churros were were about the size of a breadstick and were eaten plain or rolled in cinnamon sugar. It was only a matter of time before Churros crossed the border and became popular in South America and other Hispanic countries. A hollow jumbo-sized churro was created and stuffed with all kinds of delicious fillings including chocolate, fruit and custard.

The original churro (often called a churrito) and the jumbo-sized churro (referred to as a churrisimo) are now widely eaten in Churrismo Cafe eateries.

Churros are piped from Churreras before being cooked.



Sources:
http://web.nmsu.edu/~carissa5/foods/page3.html
https://www.cambridgepaellacompany.com/about-churros/