This was made from leftover boiled chicken and cabbage. I saved half of a chicken breast to make chicken salad for lunch for the next day but before I made the chicken salad, I could not think of what to cook for dinner that night. I did not think chicken salad would be good for dinner but may be good for lunch. So I came up with this idea and I split the shredded boiled chicken breast. Part of it would be for the salad and the other part would be this quesadilla.
I was not sure if my picky eater husband would be happy with my concocted quesadilla, but what the heck, I had all the ingredients to make it and so I did. I was surprised that he ate the whole quesadilla on his plate served with trimmings and a serving of refried beans. He was saying how good it was as he was eating it. I could not believe it! He even suggested we have it again soon because it was so good. So, I have to write down how and what I put in it before I forget what I did. And here it it.
This makes about 4 small quesadillas (7 inches).
Ingredients:
- 1-half chicken breast, previously cooked or boiled then shredded
- A handful of fresh spinach cut up or about 1/2 cup frozen cut spinach (optional)
- 1/2 med. size onion diced small (about a cup)
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- 1/4 green pepper diced
- 1 fresh jalapeno pepper diced (optional)
- Mexican Blend grated cheese
- Monterey Jack cheese, grated or slices
- dash of cumin powder (optional)
- Flour tortillas (7″ diameter or 10″ diameter)
- Butter
- Salt and pepper to taste
Heat 1 TBS. butter in a skillet. Saute the onions until soft and translucent. Add the garlic and stir for a minute then add green pepper and diced jalapenos. Stir, cook for a couple of minutes then add the spinach and the shredded chicken. Cook, stir until the spinach is wilted and the chicken is heated through. Add a dash of ground cumin if desired. Add about 1/4 tsp. salt and stir a couple of seconds or so then taste. Adjust the salt to your taste and add a dash of ground pepper. Take out from heat and set aside.
Clean and dry the skillet or use a fresh one that will fit your tortillas. Cast iron skillet or a griddle is excellent for this.
Divide the chicken mixture into how ever many quesadillas you want to make. You will need two tortillas per quesadilla and about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of the chicken mixture on a small burrito size tortilla. The amount of cheeses is up to you. The more cheese, the better.
Heat the skillet on medium heat. Lightly spread butter one side of one tortilla. When the skillet gets hot, place the tortilla on the skillet buttered side down. Immediately lay a slice or two of Jack cheese on the tortilla then fill and spread some chicken mixture on the cheese. Add about one and half handfuls of grated Mexican blend cheese on top of the chicken spreading it to near the edges. Quickly spread butter lightly on another tortilla and lay the unbuttered side on top of the cheese.
Using a wide spatula or turner, lift the quesadilla a little to check if the tortilla at the bottom is getting brown. If it is browned (but not too brown), turn it over with the turner, holding and pushing the top down with your fingers to prevent spilling. Heat until the bottom is browned and the cheeses are melted. Transfer to a plate and make more until everything is used up. Remember to maintain the heat to medium and not too hot.
Don’t over butter the tortillas because it may make it soggy. Browning the tortillas is only to melt the cheeses and to semi-toast them to make them a little crisp.
It’s as easy as making grilled cheese sandwiches.
Cut them in wedges to serve. Garnish and serve with anything you like such as pico de gallo (chopped onion, tomatoes and cilantro), avocado or guacamole, sour cream and pickled jalapenos for nachos. Drop a spoon of it and a dollop of sour cream on top of each wedge.
Enjoy them with beer. Bon appetit!
Kusina ni Norie 
You must be logged in to post a comment.