Sweet Corn Quesadilla

My lovely wife, Betsy, and I have a fair amount of things in common. We both like the outdoors, we enjoy a good book, and we love poking our cat. But if had to pick one thing that was our most common bond it would probably be Tex-Mex food.

If I knew back during the courting days of our relationship what I know now, I wouldn’t have been nervous at all! Our first date would’ve been to a good Mexican food spot.

Instead I took her to a rat-infested burger joint.

But it all worked out in the end! And these days we both unabashedly eat Tex-Mex together at least once a week. This quesadilla was just the latest example!

Sweet Corn Quesadilla

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5 from 1 vote

Author: Nick Evans

Servings: 2 Servings

Prep Time: 15 minutes minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes minutes

Great spring ingredients with two kinds of cheese in a flour tortilla. Can’t be beat!

Ingredients 

• 1 Cup sweet corn, fresh or frozen
• ½ small zucchini, chopped thin
• ½ poblano pepper, seeded and diced
• Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
• Pinch of fresh thyme, or dried
• Pinch of salt and pepper
• 1 Tablespoon oil or butter
• 3-4 ounces pepper jack cheese
• 2 ounces Cotija Cheese
• Flour tortillas
• Optional toppings: Guacamole, salsa, sour cream, etc.

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Instructions

• Chop zucchini and peppers and cut corn off cob if you’re using fresh.
• Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add corn, zucchini, and peppers to pan and cook for a few minutes until veggies are hot and slightly tender.
• Add in thyme, red pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt and pepper.
• Grate cheese and heat oven to 400 degrees.
• On a baking sheet, lay out a flour tortilla.  Add a small handful of pepper jack cheese to half of the tortilla.
• Add half of the filling and top with more pepper jack cheese.  Sprinkle on some Cotija cheese if you want as well.
• Fold tortilla over and press it down well.  Bake for about 8 minutes per side.
• Cut up and serve salsa, sour cream, and guacamole.

Nutrition

Serving: 1Quesadilla | Calories: 372kcal | Carbohydrates: 20g | Protein: 18g | Fat: 26g | Saturated Fat: 16g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.2g | Cholesterol: 78mg | Sodium: 629mg | Potassium: 402mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 6g | Vitamin A: 1032IU | Vitamin C: 37mg | Calcium: 472mg | Iron: 1mg

Course: Appetizers, Main Dishes

Cuisine: Tex-Mex

Prepping the Ingredients

I had dreams of using fresh corn for these guys, but I think I jumped the gun a bit on fresh corn season. I wasn’t able to find any so I used frozen which is a perfectly fine alternative. I thawed my corn for a minute in the microwave, but I’m not even sure you need to do that. I think it would thaw fine in the pan when it cooks.

Once your ingredients are chopped, add the oil or butter (guess what I used) to a large skillet. Then add the corn, zucchini, and poblano peppers and turn the heat to medium. Cook for just a few minutes until the veggies are warm and slightly soft.

You want them to have some bite to them still though. Then add the thyme, pepper flakes, and a pinch of salt and pepper.

It’s a pretty mix for sure.

The Cheese

The key thing about any quesadilla is cheese. You want one that melts really well. I used pepper jack which is a very melty cheese. I also tossed in some Cotija cheese which is almost like a Mexican feta cheese. It doesn’t really melt at all and stays really crumbly.

It has fantastic flavor and texture though and works great if you can get your hands on some. You’ll probably have leftover cheese which works great on salads also, just like feta.

Cooking the Quesadilla

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Set a flour tortilla on a baking sheet and add a small handful of melty cheese to half of the tortilla. Then pile in half of the filling mixture.

Top with another small handful of melty cheese and some Cotija cheese if you’re using it.

Fold the top half of the tortilla over and press it firmly together. Bake this guy for 7-8 minutes per side. You want the cheese to be very melted and the tortilla to be nice and crispy.

Flipping the quesadilla isn’t that hard. Just use a spatula to carefully flip it over the crease of the tortilla.

I like to chop up my ‘dillas so you can eat them with your hands easily.

It should go without saying that these guys should be served with salsa at a minimum and probably also guacamole and sour cream.

I think these would only be slightly better with fresh corn honestly. There’s so much else going on that I’m not sure it really matters. They do have a nice spring feel to them though.

Give these a shot if you’re looking for a new quesadilla!