How to make Nicaraguan food

By Ileana Morales

For my 15th birthday, the family and I did a round of tequila shots before a dinner filled with rice, beans and other deliciousness. What can I say? I’m Nicaraguan – we do things a little different.

Especially when it comes to food. So if you like Mexican or Cuban food, take note: This is better. But be careful … this will not be a day of light eating.

This is one of several recipes that appear in this month’s magazine.

REPOCHETA

Repo-what? I know, relax. Say it slowly (Reh-poh-che-ta) and think quesadilla.

WHAT YOU NEED

• Tortillas: We use corn, but flour will do. You’ll need two for each repocheta.

• Queso Blanco (white cheese): The guys at Publix said they usually have it but were out when I was looking for some. Can’t find the big, white block of cheese? Use mozzarella. Don’t tell anyone.

• Canola oil

• Toothpicks

• Spatula

• Frying pan

• Knife

• Cutting board

DIRECTIONS

Heat your pan to medium. Add some oil. Be generous. I’m not going to tell you how many tablespoons or anything like that because I’ve never seen my mom measure it out.

On a cutting board, lay one tortilla flat. Cut slices of cheese about a ¼ inch thick, or about as thick as a CD case. Keep cutting until you fill up the tortilla. Yeah, some cheese will ooze out. That’s a good thing.

Here come the toothpicks. Take another tortilla and lay it on top of the cheese. Like in the picture, take a toothpick and pin down an edge of the repocheta like you would do with a pin on a shirt. It doesn’t need to be perfect. Cover the rest of the edge of the repocheta, maybe up to five toothpicks, to hold it together. Turn down the heat on your pan a bit and place the repocheta in. Watch it closely so you don’t burn the first one. When the bottom side starts to brown and cheese starts to melt, flip it over. Keep doing this, it’ll take a few minutes, until the tortilla is as crispy as you’d like and some cheese oozes out. Once it’s ready, don’t forget to remove the toothpicks.