Mediterranean Quesadillas

Hello and Welcome to Djalali Cooks! Today’s recipe is a fun mash up of Greek and Mediterranean flavors folded in a toasted flour tortilla. Yes, Mediterranean Quesadillas! This recipe is quick and easy; perfect if you’re cooking for one and great for any meal of the day. But this isn’t just a can of chickpeas tossed in a tortilla with veggies and cheese, we are going to jazz it up a bit by frying the chickpeas with herbs until their exteriors are golden, a little crispy, and their interiors are creamy and soft. So let’s get to the recipe!

The Chickpeas

Heat a few tablespoons of grapeseed or vegetable oil over medium-high heat until it’s shimmering. Toss in the drained can of chickpeas. Sprinkle with Kosher salt and paprika, stir every now and then, until the chickpeas are golden and their skins are crispy, about 5-7 minutes.

Then toss in the fresh chopped herbs. I have oregano and parsley. Fry with the herbs for another 2-3 minutes.

Set the chickpeas aside and wipe out the skillet. Then, transfer the fried chickpeas to a large mixing bowl.

The Veggies

For the veggies, we have cucumber, grape tomatoes, Kalamata and Chalkidiki olives and pepperoncinis. Dice the veggies and add them to the bowl with the chickpeas.

Stir to combine and set aside. Then, get your skillet warm over medium-low heat. Now we want to go low and slow with the tortilla. Feta is not a melting cheese, but we still want it to get warmed through and creamy before the tortilla gets too brown. So be sure to adjust your heat lower to keep control of the browning. Because we only wiped out the excess oil in the skillet, there should be enough to start with. Place the tortilla in the skillet and flip it once it begins to bubble slightly.

As soon as you flip it, add most of the feta to one side of the toasted tortilla.

Then add about half of the chickpea veggie mixture. The mixture will make 2.5 quesadillas, or you can save the other half for leftovers – it’s great as a salad!

Then add more feta. And use a fish spatula to fold the naked side over the filling and press on the folded tortilla.

To get nice, even browning we will do a series of flips. You will lose a little filling when you flip, and that’s ok – chef’s treats!

Drizzle and Flip

Before every flip, I am going to drizzle a little olive oil on the side facing up; drizzle and flip.

Continue the drizzle and flip until both sides are toasted to your liking. To make flipping easier, and minimize filling spillage, get your fish spatula under the open side and lift the side, while letting the bottom rest on the pan. Then, use another spatula to guide the other side down into the pan. It’s a two spatula flip.

When it’s toasted to your liking, nice and golden, transfer to a plate. I made a yogurt sauce to go along side, which is super easy – Greek yogurt thinned with pepperoncini brine, a little Kosher salt, some chopped parsley, a few stray pieces of diced cucumber, fresh cracked pepper and some feta crumbles. Just mix together and taste, add more seasoning to taste.

Slice the Mediterranean Quesadilla in half and drizzle with more olive oil if you like. Sprinkle on some more fresh parsley. I let some of my Italian parsley flower, so I am garnishing with parsley flowers. and serve with the yogurt sauce.

Mediterranean Quesadillas

Frying the chickpeas may seem like extra, and I suppose it is – but it’s so worth it! The chickpeas are herby and toasty with a great buttery texture on the inside. So much more flavorful than if they were straight from the can. The olives add seasoning, the pepperoncinis add briny spicy flavor; the tomatoes are a little sweet and the cucumbers add a nice crunch. Let’s not forget that feta! Salty and creamy, just the right amount of richness.

This is such a light, yet satisfying meal! Everything works together for a quesadilla that has great textures and fresh flavors. Mediterranean food is like that though! And this is an easy, hand held way to enjoy it. Check out some other Mediterranean-inspired recipes, like my Mediterranean Tuna Salad with Pasta. Find me on Pinterest and Instagram, thank you all so much for visiting Djalali Cooks. xo Kelly

Print Recipe

Mediterranean Quesadilla

(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

Loading...

Dinner, Main Course, Lunch – Mediterranean

By Kelly Djalali – Serves: 1-2

Prep Time: 15 Minutes – Cooking Time: 15 Minutes – Total Time: 30 Minutes

Lightly fried chickpeas mix with cucumbers, tomatoes olives and feta, wrapped in a golden, toasted tortilla.

Ingredients

• 2-3 tbsp. Grapeseed Oil
• 1 can Chickpeas, drained
• Pinch of Paprika
• Pinch of Kosher Salt
• Fresh Parsley, chopped
• Fresh Oregano, chopped
• 1/2 English Cucumber, diced
• Grape Tomatoes, halved
• Kalamata Olives, sliced
• Chalkidiki Olives, sliced
• Pepperoncini Peppers, sliced
• Feta, crumbled
• 1-2 Large Flour Tortillas
• Olive Oil

Instructions

1

Heat a few tablespoons of grapeseed or vegetable oil over medium-high heat until it's shimmering. Toss in the drained can of chickpeas. Sprinkle with Kosher salt and paprika, stir every now and then, until the chickpeas are golden and their skins are crispy, about 5-7 minutes. Then toss in the fresh chopped herbs. Fry with the herbs for another 2-3 minutes.

2

Set the chickpeas aside and wipe out the skillet. Then, transfer the fried chickpeas to a large mixing bowl.

3

Add the prepped veggies to the bowl with the chickpeas. Stir to combine.

4

In the now-empty skillet, over medium-low or low heat toast one side of the tortilla. Flip and add feta to one side of the tortilla.

5

Add some of the chickpea veggie mixture on top of the feta.

6

Add a little more feta on top of the veggie mixture and fold the tortilla over the mixture.

7

Press the tortilla and drizzle with olive oil and flip the tortilla.

8

Continue to drizzle and flip the quesadilla until it's nicely golden brown on both sides.

9

Top with more olive oil, fresh parsley and serve.