It was tough competition this semester for “Best Sports Nutrition Recipe” in my BMS 430 class. We had lots of great foods, such as homemade sports gel, middle eastern rice with mint, and stuffed dates. The students finally chose a winner, and it is Korey Brown, Sports Medicine and Athletic Training student, who made breakfast quesadillas. These were delicious and he even made the tortillas from scratch. This recipe is a great combination of carbohydrates and protein and easily adaptable to fit an athlete’s preference, as it can be filled with lots of combinations of eggs, meat and vegetables. Congratulations Korey, great job, everyone enjoyed these at our “Training Table Potluck.”
Homemade Tortillas (makes about 10)
3 cups of flour
1 teaspoon of salt
1 teaspoon of baking powder
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 cup of warm water
1. Combine flour, salt and baking powder in the bowl of a stand mixer. With the dough hook attached mix dry ingredients until well combined. Add oil and water with mixer running at a medium speed. Mix for 1 minute, stopping several times to scrape the sides of the bowl. After about 1 minute, or when mixture comes together and begins to form a ball, decrease mixing speed to low. Continue to mix for 1 minute or until dough is smooth.
2. Transfer from mixing bowl to a well-floured work surface. Divide dough in half, then in half again. Continue until you have 16 fairly equal portions. Form each piece into a ball and flatten with the palm of your hand as much as possible. If dough is sticky, use a bit more flour. Cover flattened balls of dough with a clean kitchen towel and allow to rest for 15 minutes before proceeding.
3. After rest period, heat a large pan over medium-high heat. Roll each dough piece into a rough circle, about 6-7 inches in diameter, keep work surface and rolling pin lightly floured. Don’t stack uncooked tortillas on top of each other or they will get soggy.
4. When pan is very hot, place one dough circle into pan and allow to cook about 1 minute or until bottom surface has a few pale brown spots. The uncooked surface will begin to show a few little bubbles. Flip to other side and cook for about 30 seconds. Remove from pan with tongs and stack in a covered container or zippered bag till all tortillas are cooked. This will keep them soft and pliable.
5. Wipe out the pan in between tortillas if flour is started to accumulate.
Quesadilla Filling-Loaded Scrambled Eggs
12 eggs
1 pound lean turkey sausage
1 red pepper and 1 green pepper, diced
1 small tomato, chopped
White American Cheese
1. Dice up the peppers and cook them in olive oil at medium heat.
2. Brown up the turkey sausage in a separate pan at medium-high heat.
3. In a separate bowl whisk together one dozen eggs and add a pinch of salt and pepper.
4. Pour the whisked eggs in with the peppers and cook them until they are firm but still moist.
5. Brush the outside of the tortillas with olive oil.
6. Combine the eggs with the sausage and place the mixture between two tortillas, then top with cheese.
7. Grill on both sides in a panini press or non-stick skillet.
8. Then cut into the desired amount of pieces (usually 6-7) and voila, super awesome breakfast quesadillas.
Nutrition Information Per Slice
167 calories, 11 grams of fat, 9 grams of protein, 10 grams of carbohydrate, 1 gram of fiber