This is a super simple recipe, so simple I feel a little bit silly sharing it! But it’s been requested a bunch of times since it’s appeared in my menu posts repeatedly.

I got this recipe from Dinner Illustrated, a very useful cookbook from America’s Test Kitchen; it’s nothing but dinner meals (which are the most necessary recipes, in my opinion!)

(Click here to read my full review of Dinner Illustrated.)

These quesadillas are vegetarian, and everything in the filling is inexpensive…corn, cheese, chilies, green onions, cilantro, and lime. 

If you don’t like chilies, you can leave them out (I’ve done that plenty of times when feeding spice-averse people!) 

Or if you are just a little sensitive to heat, you can reduce the number in the filling.

To make these, first brown frozen corn in a hot skillet with oil.

Put the corn in a bowl to cool down a bit, and then mix in the rest of the ingredients…cilantro, cheese, lime zest, green onions, and chilies if you’re using them. Plus salt and pepper to taste!

I only had cheese slices on hand, so I chopped them up. Shredded cheese DOES work better!

Then toss it all together.

Divide the filling evenly between four flour tortillas and fold each in half.

You can use corn tortillas if you’d like, but when I do that, I use two tortillas for each quesadilla.

a previous quesadilla I made, for illustrative purposes

Corn tortillas are so small and so inflexible, it doesn’t really work to fold them in half, so two, one for the top and one for the bottom, work perfectly. 

The original recipe calls for baking the quesadillas, which is handy if you are feeding a crowd. But since I am decidedly not feeding a crowd these days (!), I always just make my quesadillas in a skillet on the stovetop.

As an added benefit, this skips the heat from the oven, which is significant in the summertime.

I heat a skillet over medium heat, spread softened butter (oil would work too!) on the outside of the folded tortillas, and cook them for several minutes on each side, until they’re browned and the cheese is melted. 

And then I cut them into halves or wedges.

I usually serve these with sour cream. Or guacamole. Or salsa. Queso would work too. 

So would the cilantro-lime dipping sauce from this kebab recipe.

And you could also just eat the quesadillas as-is, with no sauce. But we know I would never do that. 😉 

Scroll down for the printable recipe! 

Corn and Chile Quesadillas

Yield: 4 quesadillas

Prep Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 10 minutes

Total Time: 25 minutes

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Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 cup frozen corn
• salt and pepper
• 10 ounces Monterey Jack cheese
• 4 ounces chopped canned green chilies
• fresh cilantro
• 2 scallions
• 1 lime
• 4 10-inch flour tortillas

Instructions

1. On medium-high, heat a tablespoon of oil in a skillet until shimmering. Add corn; cook and site occasionally until corn is browned, 6-8 minutes. Transfer corn to a medium bowl; season with salt and pepper to taste and let cool.
2. Shred cheese, pat chilies dry, chop 1/4 cup cilantro, and grate 1 teaspoon lime zest.
3. Toss cooled corn with the cheese, chilies, cilantro, scallions, and lime zest.
4. Divide filling mixture evenly between the four tortillas; fold each in half.
5. Heat a skillet over medium heat, and add a small amount of butter or oil (or brush outsides of quesadillas with butter/oil).
6. Cook quesadillas, two at a time, until browned on one side, about 3 minutes. Flip and cook on the other side until browned and cheese is melted.
7. Cut into wedges and serve with choice of guacamole, salsa, or sour cream.

Notes

If you want to bake these instead, heat your oven to 450 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil, then lightly brush the surface with oil. Place the quesadillas on the baking sheet, and brush the tops lightly with oil. Bake for 10 minutes (top surface should be brown), then flip and bake for another 5 minutes, or until second side is browned.

Nutrition Information

Yield 4 Serving Size 1
Amount Per Serving Calories 508Total Fat 29gSaturated Fat 15gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 12gCholesterol 63mgSodium 850mgCarbohydrates 41gFiber 4gSugar 2gProtein 23g