This recipe for quesadilla has been cooked on the island of El Hierro for a long time. However, there are few places left where they are cooked in the traditional way. The original recipe for this quesadilla has a touch of cinnamon and is baked in a wood-fired oven, although we make it in a simpler way, in a traditional oven.
This curious and characteristic silhouette is given by a flower or star-shaped mould, which can also be used for its preparation. A delicious dessert, easy to prepare and very representative of Canarian gastronomy and of the island of El Hierro.
Quesadilla, the classical dessert of El Hierro. | Shutterstock
Ingredients for the quesadilla:
- 1 kg of cheese from El Hierro (raw white goat’s cheese).
- 3 medium eggs
- 250 g of flour
- ½ kg of sugar
- A pinch of matalahúva (anise in grain)
- The zest of one lemon
- A pinch of cinnamon (to taste)
How to make the quesadillas:
- The first step to prepare the quesadilla herreña will be to grind the cheese. With the help of a masher grind the cheese. Now, add the eggs, a pinch of matalahúva to taste, the lemon zest and the sugar. Stir this mixture well and knead until you get a consistent dough.
- Then add the flour little by little. Keep kneading during this step, so that the ingredients are well integrated. Add a pinch of cinnamon if you want to, although many bakeries do not continue to add this ingredient.
- Take the typical flower or star-shaped mould (to get the traditional quesadilla silhouette), sprinkle a little flour on them, and cover them with baking paper. Now, divide the dough into portions and place them in the moulds, keeping the shape of the moulds.
- Meanwhile, heat the oven to 180ºC. Put the tray in the oven with the quesadillas already in the moulds and let them cook for about 50 minutes. When you see that the quesadillas have a golden colour, they are ready. If you don’t have individual moulds, you can also cook the dough in a large mould without any problem. However, we prefer to enjoy them in their traditional form. All that remains is to enjoy this delicious and typical Canarian dessert.
