Recipe: Black Bean & Sweetcorn Quesadillas

This is a relatively quick and easy recipe, but the scotch bonnet makes it very hot, so this isn't for those who wince when they eat anything containing chilli powder. And I say "very hot" in terms of most normal people's heat rating--honestly, this is just standard hot for us ;) We try to use red scotch bonnets as they're the hottest, followed by yellow, then green.

Sadly, black beans aren't terribly popular in the UK. You can buy cans of them in Morrisons and most health food shops (Real Foods, Holland & Barrett, etc) but they tend to be relatively expensive. If you know you like them, it's more cost-effective to buy a big bag of dried black beans (found in most supermarkets and any health food store) and either soak them overnight or cook them in the slow cooker, before freezing them in reasonable portions (we tend to go for two cups per bag). 

Black Bean & Sweetcorn Quesadillas

Adapted from a Cooking Light recipe found at MyRecipes.

Serves: 2 (with leftovers or second helpings)
Prep. Time: 5 minutes
Cook. Time: 10 minutes

Ingredients
3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1 scotch bonnet chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
1 pepper, deseeded and chopped (bell or sweet)
1 (400g) can of chopped tomatoes
2 cups of cooked black beans
1 (326g) can of sweetcorn, drained
1 tbsp of balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp of lime juice
1 tsp of cumin, finely ground
1 tsp of paprika (smoked or ordinary)
Salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup of fresh coriander, finely chopped
100g of Mexicana cheese, grated
4-8 large flour tortillas (depending on how full you fill your quesadillas)

Directions
1. Heat some oil in a medium-sized saucepan and fry the garlic, scotch bonnet and pepper for a few minutes. 
2. Add the chopped tomatoes, black beans and sweetcorn, then the vinegar, lime juice and dried spices, as well as any salt and pepper you desire. Stir to combine.
3. Bring the mixture up to boil, before reducing to a simmer and adding the chopped coriander. 
4. Heat a very small amount of oil to a large frying pan. Once the oil is able to run about the pan like water, quickly fry a tortilla on both sides. Remove this tortilla from the pan and replace with a second one. Once you've fried it on one side, flip it over and top it with some of the black bean mixture and cheese. Once the tortilla appears to be cooked on the base side, top with the other tortilla and transfer (carefully) to a plate. Assemble the other quesadillas similarly. 
5. Cut into quarters with a pizza cutter and serve with sour cream, salsa and lime wedges, if desired.