This recipe isn’t so much a recipe, but an idea of how to expand your child’s eating habits. If, like me, cheese quesadillas are a big win in your house, a way you can food chain this into expanding your child’s food acceptance range is to change up the tortilla. This can be a big change! I recommend including a few of your standard tortilla quesadillas as well and just having the new one there too. This reassures your kid that they will for sure have something to eat, even if they’re not ready to try the new food.

Here are some ideas for different varieties of tortillas:

• flour
• whole wheat flour
• white corn
• yellow corn
• blue corn
• spinach
• roasted red pepper
• tortillas from your favorite local Mexican food spot (they’re always better there and can create a different eating experience)
• pita bread
• naan

Any time you can expand the idea of what is a “normal” tortilla, that is creating flexibility in eating (which is a really good thing for healthy kids and less stressful meal times).

Don’t stress if your kiddo doesn’t try the new quesadilla at first. It’s enough just to have them on the table. I like to cut all the quesadillas into 6 or 8 pieces, so trying a piece of a new one isn’t as intimidating as taking a whole big one. It also creates less food waste, which is a big frustration I hear from parents when it comes to feeding their opinionated eater new foods. After a few times of having a new food on the table family style, I like to put a piece of one on their plate for closer inspection. It’s okay if they don’t eat it this time either, but try to encourage them to keep it on their plate.

You do need special equipment to make your own blue corn tortillas. Corn tortillas are made using a tortilla press. They are too sticky to roll by hand. If you do not want to invest in a tortilla press (though I highly recommend as it is easy and fun), you can also find them pre made at specialty grocery stores or online. If all else fails, you can try nachos with blue corn tortilla chips.

I will take you through how to make the tortillas, but there are usually instructions on the back of the blue masa and you should follow those if they differ from my instructions. I really like the Masienda brand masa (unsponsored and available at your local specialty grocery store or online at their website). It is much easier to work with, but I have also had success using standard grocery store blue masa. I use a cast iron tortilla press that I got as a gift over a decade ago. It works well. My one complaint is that it is heavy and does most of the work for you, so kids often don’t get to squish it down as much as they would like. Masienda has one on their website, but I have not used it.

Blue Corn Quesadillas

Ingredients

1 cup blue masa

1 cup water

2 cups shredded cheese (mozzarella is excellent here for kiddos that love cheese sticks and mozzarella sticks, but I also love a blend of cheddar, mozzarella, and parmesan)

Guacamole, sour cream, salsa, or refried beans for dipping

Instructions

1. Cut a clean gallon sized zip top bag along the edges to give you two sheets of thick plastic.
2. Heat up a griddle or large iron skillet or other heavy bottomed pan.
3. Combine your masa and water in a medium bowl. Stir. Knead with your hands for 3 minutes or until it is soft and feels like play dough.
4. Make about 10 balls the size of ping pong balls. Cover your bowl with a wet kitchen towel or paper towel while you work so that your masa does not dry out.
5. Open your tortilla press and place a plastic sheet on the bottom. Put a masa ball on top and place the second plastic sheet on top of that. You do not want your masa to stick to the press.
6. Gently press your masa until it is about 1/8″ thick. Gently peel off your top layer of plastic and set aside.
7. Gently flop your tortilla over upside down so the masa side is on the palm of your flat hand. Gently peel back the top layer and flop the tortilla gently onto your hot griddle. Cook until the masa no longer looks wet and is speckled with light brown dots.
8. Once you have cooked all your tortillas, make your quesadillas. Place one tortilla back on your griddle, cover with cheese, and top with your second tortilla. Cook until your cheese has melted. Repeat with remaining tortillas.
9. Serve with your favorite toppings such as sour cream, refried beans to dip them in, salsa, or guacamole.