These black bean, sweet potato, zucchini quesadillas have become a family dinner favorite and a great way to integrate more vegetables into our kids’ meals. I make sure to prepare enough for leftovers because they make an easy, nutritious school lunch. Not a fan of some of the vegetables? These easy veggie quesadillas are simple to alter to your family’s tastes by subbing ingredients.
Top these quesadillas with salsa, sliced avocado, sour cream, cilantro, or whatever toppings you like. I recommend that you double the recipe and use half as a base for chili later in the week. These quesadillas also freeze well for up to 2 months; I wrap each individually in foil before freezing which makes it easy to place in the oven for a future meal. Leftover filling can be frozen in an airtight jar, too.
Ingredients:
- 1/2 white onion chopped
- 1 bell pepper chopped (any color you like)
- 1 small zucchini chopped
- 1 small sweet potato chopped (*You can use peeled or unpeeled- your choice. The smaller you chop the potatoes, the faster the will cook.)
- 1 can black beans rinsed (*You can substitute pinto, navy, or kidney beans)
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/8 teaspoon chili powder (*I like chipotle chili powder here, but you can use any)
- 1/8 teaspoon cumin
- 1/8 teaspoon coriander
- 1/8 teaspoon oregano
- 1 cup grated cheese
- 16 corn tortillas
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil for cooking
- Salsa, sour cream, guacamole, cilantro all make great toppings.
- After chopping vegetables, add 1 Tablespoon of olive oil to a medium saucepan (or my personal favorite- an enameled cast iron pan-sauté the onion, sweet potato, and peppers using medium heat until the onions sweat.
- Cover with a lid for 5 minutes to steam the sweet potatoes.
- Add the zucchini, beans, salt, and spices and sauté an additional 3 minutes until zucchini is tender. Cover with lid until ready to build quesadillas.
- In a separate skillet or large saute pan, add 1 Tablespoon of olive oil.
- Place tortillas in single layer and top each with 1-2 Tablespoons of cheese and 1/4 cup of the vegetable filling.
- Top that with another Tablespoon of cheese and another tortilla. Allow cheese to melt and tortilla to crispen (2-3 minutes).
- Flip quesadillas with a spatula and allow other side to cook (1-2 minutes).
- Place on a plate, add the toppings of your choice and enjoy!
