Chicken-Cheddar Quesadillas with White Bean-Green Pea Guacamole |

Chicken-Cheddar Quesadillas with White Bean-Green Pea Guacamole

Filed under Main Dishes - Chicken

Nov 23
I know it probably sounds crazy, but I feel kind of silly posting just a regular, everyday meal on the week of Thanksgiving. The internet is swimming with delicious ideas for Thanksgiving, and here I am posting about something you could have any night of the year. But hey – Thanksgiving is only one day, right? And I just realized that this would be a great way to use some of those turkey leftovers – just substitute some turkey for the chicken!

Regardless of whether it’s Thanksgiving or not, these quesadillas really would be great any night of the year. We are a total quesadilla family, and these are winners. Especially the “guacamole”. You’re going to want to make extra – mark my word – to eat with chips later on! That stuff is tasty!! The night we ate these, I think that Abbi ate more of the sauce than she did of the quesadillas, which is ok by me since it is full of peas and beans!

There is one thing I would change for next time – I would cook and then shred my chicken instead of cubing it. I’m not really a fan of cubed chicken in quesadillas – and I knew that before I made these, so I don’t know why I didn’t go with my initial intuition. They were still delicious, just a little harder to eat!

Chicken-Cheddar Quesadillas with White Bean-Green Pea Guacamole

from Quick Fix Meals

serves 4

total time: 30 minutes

Chicken-Cheddar Quesadillas

2 teaspoons olive oil

1 1/4 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch chunks

One 4-ounce can diced green chiles

1 teaspoon liquid smoke seasoning

Eight 8-inch flour tortillas

1 1/3 cups shredded reduced-fat cheddar cheese

White Bean-Green Pea Guacamole

2 cups frozen peas, thawed

1 cup canned white beans, drained

2 cloves garlic, minced

2 teaspoons fresh lime juice

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook, stirring, until browned on all sides, about 5 minutes. Add the chiles and liquid smoke and cook 1 minute to heat through.

Arrange four tortillas on a flat surface. Top each one with an equal amount of the chicken mixture to within ¼ inch of the edges. Top the chicken with cheese (1/3 cup of cheese per tortilla). Top with a second tortilla and wrap each quesadilla in aluminum foil.

To make the guacamole, in a medium bowl or blender, combine the peas, beans, garlic, lime juice, and cumin. Mash with a fork or puree until larger lumps disappear (leave it as lumpy as you desire!). Fold in the cilantro and season to taste with salt and pepper.

IF YOU’RE STOPPING HERE:
Refrigerate the quesadillas up to 3 days or freeze up to 3 months. Thaw completely in the refrigerator or microwave for 2 to 3 minutes on LOW before baking. Place the guacamole in a tightly covered container and refrigerate up to 3 days.

WHEN YOU’RE READY TO EAT:
Preheat the oven to 400°F. Place the foil-wrapped quesadillas on a baking sheet and bake until the cheese melts, about 10 minutes. Slice each quesadilla into 4 wedges and serve with the guacamole on the side.

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16 Comments

16 Responses to “Chicken-Cheddar Quesadillas with White Bean-Green Pea Guacamole”

Evan B said on November 23rd, 2010 at 2:10 pm

Thanksgiving meal or not, I'd eat it I'm intrigued by that "guac"

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Kitten with a Whisk said on November 23rd, 2010 at 3:12 pm

I think these would be great "Turkey-Cheddar" quesadillas! Gotta use up the Turkey any way you can!

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Jennifurla said on November 23rd, 2010 at 3:42 pm

Ok I love this dip and have to try it, how different and I bet texturely really fabulous

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Joanne said on November 23rd, 2010 at 4:09 pm

I'm all for posting non-Thanksgiving recipes this week. The big day has me a little stressed out and it's nice to think about quesadillas instead of cranberry sauce. Love that guac!

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Holly said on November 23rd, 2010 at 5:35 pm

This sounds so good-I love regular guac so this is really intriguing to me:)

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Keersten said on November 23rd, 2010 at 7:27 pm

Those look fabulous. Very interesting idea with the guacamole!

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claire said on November 23rd, 2010 at 8:40 pm

i have never heard of White Bean-Green Pea Guacamole… looks great though!

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Tasha said on November 23rd, 2010 at 11:12 pm

The guacamole sounds so interesting! I'll bet it is just delicious with the quesadillas.

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teresa said on November 24th, 2010 at 2:59 am

this is actually great because i could sub out turkey after t-day. i adore quesadillas, great post!

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Vivienne said on November 24th, 2010 at 9:52 am

first time ive seen guacamole w/o avocados! great idea and use of left over turkey!

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Paula said on November 24th, 2010 at 10:57 am

what a delicious blog! here is so many uncanny inspirations!

have a nice time,
Paula

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grace said on November 24th, 2010 at 2:22 pm

i'm pretty excited about that pseudo-guac! what a nifty twist.

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Monet said on November 24th, 2010 at 5:57 pm

This would be a great way to use leftover Turkey. I love your pea/white bean guacamole too! What a fresh take on one of my Mexican favorites. Thank you for sharing it with us. Happy Thanksgiving!

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diva said on November 29th, 2010 at 8:58 am

It's sometimes nice to read something not Thanksgiving related and these are exactly what I want to feast upon right now! Delish.

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Brown Family said on December 2nd, 2010 at 1:36 am

We had this for dinner tonight! My hubby and boys are very picky and the quesadillas were a hit with them! My two girls (ages 6 & 7) and myself loved the quesadillas and the guacamole. I made rice for a side and the guacamole was delish on top of the hot rice. Thanks for the recipe! I will definitely make this again!

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eatme_delicious said on February 1st, 2011 at 3:21 pm

I'm really intrigued by the white bean green pea guacamole!! It sounds really yummy.

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