Italian Vegetable Quesadillas

Hi there! How are you?

Did you have a good long holiday weekend?

Oh good!

I had an amazing weekend too! With my parents visiting with friends at the beach, I had a big Tex-Mex BBQ at my house with my close friends. It was a great time filled with good food and even better conversation.

Coming from a long line of Greek cooks, I whipped up enough food to feed A LOT of people… which means one thing – leftovers. (yay!) I wanted to save the main stuff for a welcome home dinner with the parents, but there was just enough grilled veggies for me to whip up a delicious and easy lunch.

Italian Vegetable Quesadillas!

I know that quesadillas are a traditional Tex-Mex dish, but I hate all cheese (have I mentioned that before?) except for mozzarella (yes, I’m weird). So I decided to try an Italian spin on this old classic using the leftover veggies and the one cheese that doesn’t gross me out (definitely stepping out of my comfort zone).

It starts with a pan set over medium-low heat and coated lightly with cooking spray.

Place in a small tortilla – this is a 6” whole wheat one (I think they call it “fajita-style”) – that is spread with some pesto (homemade or bottled… your choice!).

Sprinkle on some mozzarella cheese.

Because what is a quesadilla without melty cheese?

And then place on the grilled vegetables.

Sprinkle on a little more cheese to help “glue” the quesadilla together.

And then top with another tortilla coated with some more pesto!

Grill the quesadilla until golden brown on both sides, about 1-2 minutes per side.

All that’s left is to place the quesadilla on to a cutting board.

And cut into quarters!

Serve with a spoonful of your favorite marinara sauce and a garnish of basil.

A simple, delicious, and interesting twist on the traditional Tex-Mex classic!

Enjoy, kiddos.

Your leftover lovin’, quesadilla grillin’ friend,

C

Italian Vegetable Quesadillas

 

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Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

10 mins

Total time

20 mins

 

Simply A (RD) Fact: This quesadilla is packed with dietary fiber - from the vegetable to the whole wheat tortillas, this recipe brings in 17gm of dietary fiber (which is more than half of your daily recommended amount!).

Serves: 1 quesadilla

Ingredients

• 2 6” tortillas, preferably whole wheat
• 2 tablespoons pesto, divided
• 1 cup grilled vegetables, like zucchini, summer squash, bell pepper, onion
• ⅓ cup grated mozzarella cheese, divided
• Cooking spray
• Marinara sauce for dipping

Instructions

1. Place a medium-sized skillet over medium-low heat. Spray lightly with cooking spray.
2. Coat one side of both tortillas with pesto (one tablespoon per tortilla). Place one tortilla pesto-side up in the skillet. Sprinkle on half of the mozzarella cheese over the pesto and arrange the vegetables in one even layer over the cheese. Sprinkle on the second half of the cheese over the vegetables (to act as the “glue”) and top with the second tortilla, pesto-side down.
3. Cook the quesadilla 1-2 minutes per side until it becomes golden brown and the cheese gets melty.
4. Transfer the quesadilla to a cutting board, cut into wedges and serve with marinara sauce and some fresh basil.
5. Enjoy!

Nutrition Information

Serving size: 1 quesadilla Calories: 454 calories Fat: 32gm Saturated fat: 8gm Carbohydrates: 34gm Sodium: 783mg Fiber: 17gm Protein: 25gm Cholesterol: 27mg

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