ABRAMS Dinner Party: The Hog Island Book of Fish & Seafood...Featuring Rock Shrimp Quesadillas with Oaxacan Cheese and Tomatoes #HogIslandBookofFishAndSeafood #shrimp #quesadilla #seafood

The final installment for this year's ABRAMS Dinner Party blogging group is a food that's near and dear to my Gulf Coast heart: seafood! The Hog Island Book of Fish and Seafood offers readers 250+ recipes that feature literally any variety of seafood you can imagine. James Beard Award-winning chef author John Ash takes a comprehensive approach to preparing and cooking shellfish, crustaceans, finned fish...and many more. Ash features recipes from California-based Hog Island Oyster Bars, as well as other chefs who embrace their focus on sustainability. Recipes include regional favorites like San Francisco cioppino, Louisiana crawfish étouffée, and New England clam chowder.

I considered literally dozens of recipes to feature here, but ultimately kept coming back to the simple Rock Shrimp Quesadillas with Oaxacan Cheese and Tomatoes. They're ready to eat in less than 30 minutes, and they taste amazing! Whether you're looking for a Summer dinner that doesn't require heating your oven...or looking for a fun food to pair with margaritas for guests...this recipe is a perfect pick.

Rock Shrimp Quesadillas with Oaxacan Cheese and Tomatoes

from The Hog Island Book of Fish & Seafood

Ingredients (Serves 4):

• Eight 6-inch corn OR flour tortillas [NOTE: I used Mission low-carb flour tortillas]
• 2 tsp olive oil
• 1 cup sliced red OR yellow onion
• 4 tsp thinly slivered garlic
• 2 cups rock shrimp OR coarsely chopped peeled and deveined medium (31-35 count) shrimp
• Hot pepper sauce to taste
• 1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh cilantro
• 1 1/3 cups seeded, diced plum tomatoes
• Fine sea salt and freshly ground pepper 
• Fresh lime juice
• 2 cups shredded melting cheese -- Jack, Oaxaca, or low-moisture mozzarella [NOTE: I used Oaxaca cheese]
• Garnish: guacamole and cilantro sprigs

Directions:

Step 1: In a dry nonstick skillet, heat tortillas over Medium heat for a few seconds on each side. Transfer warmed tortillas to a plate, and cover with a clean kitchen towel to keep warm. Next, add olive oil, onion, and garlic to skillet. Sautè until softened. Add shrimp, season with hot sauce, and sautè 1 minute more. 

After shrimp are pink and cooked, stir in the cilantro and tomato. Season the shrimp mixture to taste with salt, pepper, and lime juice. 

Step 2: Transfer shrimp mixture to a bowl and wipe out the skillet. For each quesadilla, spread one quarter of the cheese and one quarter of the shrimp filling onto one tortilla. Then top with a second tortilla. 

Step 3: Add one assembled quesadilla to the skillet over Medium heat. Cook, carefully turning once, until the cheese is melted and the tortilla is golden brown -- approx. 3-4 minutes per side. Repeat process for each quesadilla. Cut each quesadilla into wedges and serve immediately, topped with your favorite guacamole and cilantro sprigs.

These quesadillas are so delicious! Melty cheese and toasted tortillas...and supremely flavorful shrimp filling with aromatic onion, garlic, and cilantro...and a nice amount of tomatoes. Then? The guacamole garnish brings all of these flavors and textures together. If you like your quesadillas spicy, add some chopped jalapenos when assembling.

The Hog Island Book of Fish & Seafood is a fabulous resource for preparing and cooking seafood. This encyclopedic cookbook showcases a variety of cooking methods -- including steaming, roasting, grilling, pan-frying, and curing. Bottom line? It's simply a must-have cookbook for serious seafood lovers!

Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of The Hog Island Book of Fish & Seafood as part of the ABRAMS Dinner Party blogging group. All opinions shared are solely my own.