What’s for Dinner?: Quesadillas with a Fajita Twist

I’ll admit, this week’s recipe isn’t rocket science.  Far from it.  But would you believe that I’ve never made quesadillas at home?  Just more evidence of my sheltered culinary upbringing, I guess.  It seems that whenever I want quesadillas, we go out for dinner.  I’ll even head out to a fast food place before making them myself.  But then I thought “Why not!”.  And so, quesadillas became our recipe of the week (although he was initially a little hesitant, my husband is quickly warming to this idea of trying a new recipe each week).

As I researched recipes online, most said to use plain grilled chicken for the filling, but that didn’t sound terribly appetizing to me.  I wanted something with a little more flavor.  And then it came to me – the fajitas we had a few weeks ago were pretty good, how about I use that seasoning?  Add in two types of cheese and you have a winning recipe, at least in my book.  And my family’s too, because these were gobbled up in no time!  

You will need:

Large tortillas (I think mine were 10″ and were actually labeled for Burritos, but that’s okay)

1 lb. chicken, cut up into small pieces

1 cup sharp Cheddar cheese, shredded

1 cup Montery Jack cheese, shredded

Small onion, diced

1/2 a red pepper, diced

1/2 a green pepper diced

1 package Fajita seasoning

1 Tbsp vegetable oil

1/4 cup water (or whatever amount is indicated on the seasoning package)

Step 1 – Place both Monterey Jack and Cheddar cheeses in a medium size bowl and mix until well combined.  Place to the side.

Step 2 – Place vegetable oil in a medium sized skillet over medium high heat.  Once heated, add chicken and cook until no longer pink in the middle.  Add fajita mix, water, onion, and peppers and prepare as directed on package.  Once meat is cooked and seasoned, remove from heat and place skillet to the side.

Step 3 – Melt 1 Tbsp of butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Once melted, place the tortilla in the skillet.  When you see small bubbles of air forming under the tortilla, add the cheese to one side only.  Then add fajita chicken mixture and top with a little extra cheese.  Using a spatula, fold the tortilla in half, so the side with cheese/chicken is covered (similar to an omelet).

Step 4 – Heat on each side until toasty brown, flipping with a spatula.  It only took about 30-60 seconds on each side for mine to be done.  Once browned on both sides, remove from heat and place quesadilla on a cutting board or plate. 

Step 5 – Using a pizza slicer, cut the quesadilla into 4 somewhat equal sections. 

Step 6 – Serve with your favorite side dish and watch them get gobbled up!