Arepas with Fresh Peach Pico de Gallo #CrazyIngredientChallenge

I love the idea behind the Crazy Ingredient Challenge (CIC). In the CIC, we are assigned two ingredients to cook and create. This month, Kelly of Passion Kneaded is hosting. So, here goes...

July's Crazy Ingredient Challenge = peaches and corn

Masa harina is the traditional Mexican flour used to make tortillas, tamales, and other cornmeal-based dishes. Literally translated from Spanish, it means "dough flour," because the flour is made from dried masa. To make masa harina, maize (or field corn) is dried and then treated in a solution of lime and water. It's then ground to make flour.

Ingredients

makes 16 cakes

Arepas

• 2 C masa harina
• 1 C hot water
• 1 C hot chicken stock
• 4 T butter, softened
• 2 egg yolks
• 1 C crumbled queso fresco
• butter or oil for cooking the arepas
• crema Mexicana or sour cream, for garnish

Peach Pico de Gallo

• 3 donut peaches, chopped (approximately 1 C)
• 1 tomato, chopped (approximately 1 C)
• 1/2 sweet onion, chopped
• 1 jalapeño pepper, chopped
• 2 to 3 sweet peppers, chopped
• 1 T freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 T  honey
• 1/8 C fresh mint leaves, roughly chopped
• 18 C fresh cilantro leaves, roughly chopped
• freshly ground salt
• freshly ground pepper

Procedure

Peach Pico de Gallo

Place all of the ingredients - except for the salt and pepper - in a small mixing bowl. Blend gently and let stand for 15 minutes to blend flavors. To make this more spicy, adjust to use more jalapeno peppers.

Arepas

Place the masa harina in a large mixing bowl. Add the hot water and stock. Stir with a spatula or wooden spoon until well-combined. Stir the egg yolks and butter into the dough. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 15 minutes.

Separate the dough into 16 pieces and roll each piece into a ball. Make an impression in the ball with your thumb. Spoon some queso fresco into the hollow. Then press the dough together into a ball again, trying to keep the cheese enclosed as much as possible. Flatten the dough to about 1/2" thick. 

Melt a pat of butter in a large, flat-bottom pan. Cook arepas in batches, adding more butter if needed.

They should cook approximately 5 minutes on each side - till the outside is dry and crusted, but the inside is creamy and soft. Serve hot, garnished with crema Mexicana and the peach pice de gallo.

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