Super Quick: Dairy-Free Quesadillas
Posted: January 31, 2013 Filed under: Lunch/Dinner, Recipes, Super Quick Meals 2 Comments »
I love cooking, but don’t love trying to prepare lunch while also making sure my 19-month old doesn’t fall off the bed playing “Star Wars” with his older brother.
Plus, my old “go-to” recipes contain many of my youngest son’s allergens. For example, frittata, quesadillas and grilled cheese sandwiches were some of our favorites. While an egg-filled frittata isn’t possible for us now, I’ve found a work-around for quesadillas, and it doesn’t involve fake cheese.
Full disclosure: The following recipe is not very exciting, nor is it difficult to make. It’s designed for people with limited time who can’t easily pick up prepared food or eat at a restaurant because food allergies make it nearly or totally impossible to do so.
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Refried Bean Quesadillas
The ingredient list below serves as a rough guide. I typically use chicken, but any leftover meat will do. Refried beans—which I recently rediscovered—are required however, because they are the “glue” for these quesadillas, since this allergy-friendly recipe omits cheese.
1 can of refried beans
1 package of tortillas
2-3 cooked chicken breasts, chopped or shredded
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
a handful of fresh cilantro, chopped
1 avocado
1 lime
salsa or hot sauce
Heat refried beans in a small skillet. Spread warmed beans on one side of a flour tortilla. Place chicken and cilantro on top of the refried beans. Fold the tortilla in half.
In a large skillet, heat one tablespoon of oil over high heat. Place filled and folded tortilla on the hot skillet and cook until the tortilla is lightly browned, about 1-2 minutes on each side.
Open the quesadilla and fill with sliced avocado, lime juice and salsa. Serve immediately.
Serves 3-4
Refried Bean Quesadillas – a quick lunch
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Please send me your “Super Quick” egg/dairy/nut-free recipes for lunch and dinner, as I would love to try them. My favorites will appear here as part of this new series. Just leave a comment below or send an email to dairyfreeswitzerland@gmail.com. Thanks!
I make Avocado Pasta. Cook pasta of choice (would also work with rice!) Sauté veggies (carrots, bell peppers, onions, zucchinis, etc.) Mash one avocado with citrus juice and salt. Serve pasta topped with veggies and avocado. You can also add meat for protein, but we like it vegetarian. My cheese-loving husband sometimes adds some shredded Gruyère, but he also likes it plain!
I often sauté veggies with meat and serve it over pasta or rice. It can be prepared in about 20 minutes and is easily fancified with the addition of sauces or cheeses for those who like, but can be seasoned wonderfully without any dairy.
If your family likes soup, you can make a big pot of a favorite soup and freeze portions for a fast lunch (assuming you have a bigger freezer than I do!)
Hummus can be made with any kind of smashed bean and seasoned in many different ways to make a sandwich spread, or used in a tortilla as the glue for your other fillings.
I hope some of these help!
Hi Stephanie! Great suggestions. Yes, we eat lots of rice and pasta too! Will have to try the mashed avocado pasta. And, our freezer is the size of a shoe box, but I still need to make more soup.
These definitely help, so please keep them coming… Hope you’re having a good week.