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This Vegetarian Quesadilla Recipe is made with pesto, zucchini, and baby eggplant. It’s super healthy and more importantly delicious!
Vegetarian Quesadilla Recipe
Guy’s, this Vegetarian Quesadilla Recipe is so tasty and good for you! This light vegetarian meal is really quick to put together and didn’t take a whole lot of energy to make. Keep on reading and make this for lunch today!
Main Ingredients Needed
A few weeks ago, I tweeted about getting a ton of fresh produce. I’m talking loads and loads of vegetables like carrots, kohlrabi, swiss chard, collard greens, zucchini, baby eggplants, and basil! These items don’t usually make it onto my grocery lists for the week, so I was happy to get some new foods to work with. So, my mind went to work on what I could make with all of this food and I instantly thought of pesto. I love the fresh creamy flavor that pesto has and I hadn’t made it in a while. THEN, I came up with this Vegetarian Quesadilla. Oh mama, was I happy I did! Here’s what you’ll need.
For the Pesto:
- Basil Leaves – the main ingredient in all pesto recipes!
- Toasted Pine Nuts – this adds a nutty flavor that is so tasty.
- Garlic – you can’t go wrong with garlic.
- Parmesan Cheese – freshly grated for best results.
- Salt and Pepper – season to taste.
- Light Olive Oil – a light olive oil has less flavor than regular olive oil. Since we saute the vegetables in regular olive oil I opted for a lighter one for the pesto.
For the Quesadillas:
- Flour Tortillas – if you want to make this recipe even healthier, use whole wheat tortillas.
- Mozzarella – more cheese! Fresh and light flavors.
- Olive Oil – used to saute the vegetables.
- Zucchini – cooked until soft but with a slight crunch still.
- Baby Eggplant – also called Italian Eggplants, these have a more intense flavor than normal eggplants.
- Butter – used to toast the tortillas and add flavor.
Variations
Add Protein. You can easily add in some protein here by adding chicken, pork, or beef. If you want to keep it vegetarian, try adding some chickpeas to this recipe.
Use Different Veggies. You don’t have to use the vegetables I used for your vegetarian quesadilla. Try mushrooms, cauliflower and/or carrots.
Make it Vegan. Replace tortillas with vegan tortillas, the butter with oil, and the cheeses with your favorite vegan cheese.
Pesto
- Place all ingredients into the bowl of a food processor except for olive oil. Pulse for 15 seconds or so and then turn the machine on and drizzle in olive oil until desired consistency is reached.
- Store in refrigerator in an airtight container until ready to use.
How to Make Vegetarian Quesadillas
- In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat and saute zucchini and baby eggplant until crisp-tender, 5-7 minutes. Remove from skillet and return to heat.
- Spread pesto evenly on two tortillas. Sprinkle cheese over top of the pesto and then line cooked vegetables on half of the tortilla.
- Melt 1 teaspoon of butter in skillet and place open quesadilla into the hot pan. Cook until the bottom of quesadilla has browned and cheese has melted. Fold tortilla in half to cover the veggies and press down lightly to press them into the melted cheese, so they stay in place. Repeat with another tortilla. Serve warm.
Side Dishes
Love Pesto? More Recipes to Try!
The crunch from the tortilla paired with the creamy chewiness of the cheese along with the eggplant, zucchini, and pesto was pretty darn tasty if I do say so myself. And I don’t have to feel too guilty about eating it because it’s loaded with vegetables. If you don’t have baby eggplants and/or zucchini then you can substitute with whatever veggies you do happen to have. OR, just do pesto and cheese. Any way you choose to make it would be fabulous!
The printable recipe card is below, enjoy!
Vegetarian Quesadilla Recipe with Pesto
Ingredients
for the pesto-
- 3-4 cups fresh basil leaves enough to fill your food processor bowl almost completely
- 1 cup toasted pine nuts
- 1 clove garlic minced
- 1/2-2/3 cup parmesan cheese freshly grated
- salt and pepper
- 1/4-1/2 cup light olive oil
for the quesadillas-
- 4 flour tortillas
- 2 cups mozzarella grated
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 zucchini sliced into thin discs
- 1 baby eggplant sliced into thin discs
- 2 teaspoons butter divided
Instructions
for the pesto-
- Place all ingredients into the bowl of food processor except for olive oil. Pulse for 15 seconds or so and then turn the machine on and drizzle in olive oil until desired consistency is reached. Store in refrigerator in an airtight container.
for the quesadillas-
- In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat and saute zucchini and baby eggplant until crisp-tender, 5-7 minutes. Remove from skillet and return to heat.
- Spread pesto evenly on two tortillas. Sprinkle cheese over top of the pesto and then line cooked vegetables on half of the tortilla.
- Melt 1 teaspoon of butter in skillet and place open quesadilla into the hot pan. Cook until the bottom of quesadilla has browned and cheese has melted. Fold tortilla in half to cover the veggies and press down lightly to press them into the melted cheese, so they stay in place. Repeat with another tortilla. Serve warm.
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[…] had some pesto left over a week or two ago from making these, and thought turning it into a creamy pasta sauce would be outright delicious. Lo and behold, I was […]
Wow! This was so good! My daughter and I enjoyed this for lunch today. It was a great way to use up the basil from our garden before the snow comes. Thanks for the great recipe!
[…] had some pesto left over a week or two ago from making these, and thought turning it into a creamy pasta sauce would be outright delicious. Lo and behold, I was […]
Thanks, Lauren. You can make a tempting delectable meal from so many different things. These sound delightful.
Oooh, can you believe I’ve never made pesto? I’m very tempted to buy a basil plant at Trader Joe’s, so I can start growing my own and making loads of pesto!
Have fun at Costco today! 🙂