Quesadillas Recipe
A favorite five-minute quesadilla - corn tortilla, egg, a bit of cheese, fresh herbs, and a dollop lemon-zested Greek yogurt or creme fraiche. The egg helps make it more substantial and extra good.
This is what I've been making for lunch lately. My five-minute lunch. Literally. It's also a great, quick dinner. I thought it would make sense to share it, in part, because it's ridiculous how often I make it. Or some slight riff on it. It's a quesadilla - sort of. I don't really like all-cheese, white tortilla quesadillas, so this is my take. Corn tortilla - unda style, a bit of cheese, fresh herbs, and a dollop lemon-zested greek yogurt or creme fraiche. The egg helps make it more substantial and extra good.
It's occurring to me that you might not know what unda-style means. I didn't until a couple years back. But there's a kati roll place nearby that makes kati rolls "unda-style" - which means, for an extra dollar, they throw a beaten egg down on the grill and top it with buttery-flaky roti bread. It sets, they fill and roll it. We joke around the house that I make everything unda-style now - crepes, quesadillas, anything flat and round.
The best part about this style of quesadilla is that you can skip the cheese-fest. A little cheese? Great. But I'm guessing a number of you will agree with me - lots of quesadillas are just overkill in that regard. Instead, I try to work in a bit of creaminess through something like the yogurt. Or a smear of avocado. I made another version last week with a handful of smashed beans, avocado, a bit of grated cheddar, and roasted tomato salsa. But I like this version in particular, the crunchy, toasty capers and cream are nice, and a tad bit unexpected.
Premium Ad-Free membership includes:
-Ad-free content
-Print-friendly recipes
-Spice / Herb / Flower / Zest recipe collection PDF
-Weeknight Express recipe collection PDF
-Surprise bonuses throughout the year
Quesadillas
This recipe makes a single quesadilla, feel free to scale it depending on how many you'd like to make.
zest of one small lemon
a generous dollop of creme fraiche, sour cream or Greek yogurt
fine grain sea salt2 heaping tablespoons capers
small splash of olive oil1 small egg
1 corn tortilla, room temperature
a bit of freshly shaved Parmesan
chopped fresh chives or marjoram
Whisk the lemon zest, yogurt, and a pinch of salt together in a small bowl. Set aside.
Now, take the capers, rinse them, pat them dry with a paper towel, and pan fry them over medium-high heat in a small splash of oil until browned and crinkly. Remove from pan and set aside. The should get a bit crunchy as they cool.
Beat the egg and a pinch of salt in a small bowl. Beat the egg really well, so it's uniform in color.
In your smallest skillet, over medium heat, add a tiny splash of oil. Let it heat, then add the egg to the pan let it set for just 10-15 seconds. Place the corn tortilla on top of the egg, the top of the egg should still be a bit runny, so it should attach itself to the tortilla as it sets. When you feel like the egg has set enough not to run, flip everything. Sprinkle with Parmesan, and some of the fresh herbs if you like. Cook until the cheese is melted and the tortilla is nicely browned.
Fold the tortilla in half, top with the yogurt, the capers and more herbs.
Serves 1.
Prep time: 2 minutes - Cook time: 3 minutes
Comments are closed.
Apologies, comments are closed.
Comments
Sometimes simplicity = amazing! It's been a while since I've been so compelled to try one of your recipes "as is" because we've switched to a gluten-free/grain reduced diet and we don't eat soy. But this? THIS is perfection!. I absolutely love the flavor combination of egg and masa and agree that the cheese addition is usually overkill. As for all those recipes you post that I/we would probably never eat without altering: I still enjoy your descriptions, methods and amazing photography. Bravo Heidi!
I just got finished making your farro salad. It was so good! I ordered your book from Amazon and can't wait to get it. I cook so many of your recipes. thanks so much for taking the time to share with all us readers. I feel like I am beginning to be a good cook, because of your recipes. I love cooking healthy and nutritious meals.!
I've enver heard of Unda-style, but it sounds great. Learn something new... I make "fusion" quesadillas with aioli, tomatoes and mozzarella. Perhaps an unda-version will be next? http://noshesthoughtsreves.blogspot.com/2005/09/quesadillas-daioli-tomates-et.html
Great idea to use eggs as protein for this yummy lunch... maybe I'll try this with spinach, black olives, diced tomatoes and feta cheese as a variation!
Ever since I was little I've always loved quesadillas. I never order them at restaurants because of, like you said, cheese overkill. And sadly, I rarely make them at home either! This recipe has re-inspired me to get back into the quesadilla grind. I also love capers, but I've never panfried them before! That sounds great!
Quesadilla making often happens on the day I clean out the fridge. Left-over steamed spinach, a sliced bell pepper, cooked brown rice, some shredded chicken. I used to make soup when I cleaned the fridge. Now it's quesadillas. Kathleeen
I think this sounds delicious and will give it a go but pardon my ignorance, I don't know what a quesadilla is and indeed have not even heard of one before. Please can someone enlighten me
Since capers scare me, I sauteed white onion & yellow potato (to make a Tortilla Espanola version), then added the egg and tortilla. After flipping, sprinkled Parm. Topping with Greek yogurt is a must!!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH for sharing this easy and delish idea!!!!
I love teh idea of the egg here - substantial but not so heavy/greasy! This looks just fantastic!
Love the simplicity of this. And the photos--simply beautiful!
Thank you for this fantastic idea! I did capers, finely chopped mushrooms, egg, and a sprinkle of parmesan and swiss. Super easy and quick basketball afternoon dinner. Perfectly delightful.
Yum! Made this for Lunch today. Didn't have capers on hand, so I improvised a twist by throwing in sautéed mushrooms. Delicious!!
Sunday morning about 11: Starving. Saw this...RAN into kitchen. Less than 10 minutes later I was eating it. Fabulous in every aspect!!!
I tested this on my teenager. Teenager-tested & approved. A+
Heidi, my daughter and I can't wait to get your book. Just made this for lunch, used flour tortilla, due to corn allergy. Got lucky with a double yolk egg from a farmer friend! Used 1 basil leaf, several tarragon leaves and a few chives, chopped together and sprinkled on the top. Love that herb combo with eggs. Added a little local chevre. Delicious!
Thank you so much for sharing your 5 minute lunch. I look forward to trying your "unda style" quesadilla. I'll admit that this is my first time hearing the term. ;-)
I make nontraditional quesidillas all the time also. I mostly fill them with seasonal greens, eggs, and lots of herbs. I also use a sprinkling of either soft goat or sheep's milk cheese. We make unda-style rotis all the time too. I have a couple of recipes for rotis (gluten-free as well) on my blog. It will be good to try it with capers though!
Ah! Quesidilla - I offer this as my Tuesday special at my cafe in Cape Town, with a slightly different take. Flour tortilla, grilled chicken, provolone cheese, red onions and sweet pimento peppers, yum !
I LOVE these for a snack. I have started making my own whole wheat tortillas - and they are SO much better than store bought. http://www.snack-girl.com/snack/homemade-whole-wheat-tortillas/
I have been doing alot with corn tortillas due to my wheat allergy. I do a versions for breakfast with egg and beans, different combos for lunch, and I also put a layer peanut butter with a drizzle of honey for a dessert version (folded and sprinkled with cinnamon) Corn Tortillas make my gluten free life possible :-)
Comments are closed.
Apologies, comments are closed.