I made pupusas for my friend Dominic and he asked me if we were eating butterfly.

“Butterfly?” I asked. “What does that mean?”
“The pupal life stage is a phase in a butterfly’s life. It’s integral to complete metamorphosis.”
“Oh. No, these are pupsas—stuffed Salvadoran tortillas—basically the best quesadilla you’ve ever had.”
“Ahh. That sounds much better than butterfly.”

Here, I added pan-roasted corn, jalapeño, onions and garlic. Way, way better than butterfly.

Note: To make the classic cabbage slaw shown here that pupusas are often served with, simply toss together 1/2 cabbage, sliced thinly, juice of 1 lime, 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 1 handful fresh cilantro, chopped, salt and pepper to taste. Top with your favorite prepared salsa.

• ingredients
• 1 tbsp olive, canola or vegetable oil Pantry
• 2/3 cup frozen (or fresh) corn kernels $1.50 for 10 oz.
• 1 jalapeño, chopped $0.25
• 1 handful fresh cilantro leaves, chopped $1 for a bunch
• 1/2 red onion, diced $0.50
• 1 clove garlic, minced Pantry
• salt and pepper Pantry
• 4 cups masa harina $2 for 1 lb
• 2 cups water
• 1 1/2 cups shredded Monterey jack or queso blanco $3.50 for 8 oz

Total cost of Ingredients $8.75

Directions

Heat oil in a large frying pan over medium- high heat. Add corn, jalapeño, onion and garlic. Cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally, until corn is lightly charred. Season with salt and pepper to taste and remove from heat.

Mix masa harina, a pinch of salt and water together in a bowl to make a sticky dough (add a touch more water if it’s too crumbly after stirring well). Divide the dough into 8 balls.

Place a ball between two pieces of wax paper and roll out, using hands or a rolling pin, into a 6” circle. Set on a plate coated lightly with masa harina. Repeat with remaining balls of dough.

In a mixing bowl, combine the corn mixture with the shredded cheese. Place 1/4 of the mixture on top of one dough round. Spread out evenly. Top with a second dough round and pinch edges gently to seal. Repeat with remaining dough and corn-cheese mixture.

To cook, heat an ungreased griddle or pan (preferably cast iron) over high heat. Cook the pupusas for 2-3 minutes on each side, or until lightly charred in places.

Serve hot, with cabbage slaw and salsa if desired.

Makes 4 pupusas.