When my sister, brother and I were younger the three of us were fascinated by my father's Aunt, Antoinette. She loved to play Indian poker with us, which is popular variation of classic poker. Using one deck of cards, the dealer deals a card, face down, to each player around the table. The players then place the cards on their foreheads with one hand, so all players except themselves can see what they’re playing with. We always played the games with pennies and every time she heard we were coming for a visit she would say "bring your pennies".
In addition to her crazy poker game she also lived in Tucson and was a fan of the Tostada. She made these for us all of time, but as I grew older and started eating at Mexican restaurants I realized that her "tostada" was really a quesadilla. Tostada is a Spanish word translating to "toasted" in English and, in Latin American cuisine, refers to a flat tortilla that is toasted or deep fried.
So this weekend my friends threw a Treso de Mayo party (the third of May as opposed to the fifth) and I made a version of Antoinette's "tostada". My Chorizo and Roasted Garlic "Tostadas" were a hit.
Note that if you already have roasted garlic in the fridge this recipe will take no time, but if you do not have the garlic, place your cloves into a big piece of foil, add olive oil, tent to allow the garlic some space to cook and place in the oven at 350 for about 30-45 minutes.
- 1 lb of chorizo, sauteed over medium heat until cooked through
- 1/2 medium sized onion sauteed over medium heat until translucent
- 20- 30 cloves of garlic, roasted and mashed using a mortar
- 2 cups each of cheddar and monterey jack cheese
- 20 medium sized flour tortillas
Spread a little bit of the roasted garlic onto 10 of the tortillas. Place about 1/4 cup each of the cheeses onto one of the tortillas, cover with about 1/4 to 1/2 cup of the chorizo on top of the cheese, add about 1/4 cup each of the cheeses on top of the chorizo and then place another tortilla on top of the meat and cheese pile.
Place into a sautee pan or grill pan and toast on each side for about 3-4 minutes. Once one side has toasted use a spatula to flip over.
Complete until all of your meat and cheese has disappeared in between two tortillas. Cut into triangles and serve.
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