I don’t even know where to begin. I was OVERJOYED (yes – overjoyed) with how this veggie quesadilla recipe turned out. I could live on these quesadillas and my guacamole and homemade corn tortilla chips (and maybe some dark chocolate) for the rest. of. my. life.
This is some serious goodness, I tell ya. Best quesadilla I ever had. Just make it for yourself, you’ll see – (oh and I forgot to mention these are also gluten-free)!
My husband (who I call Hubs on this blog) has started to refer to himself in the third person as “Hubs.” He thinks he’s funny. When he took a bite of the quesadilla, he said, “Hubs loves it!”
Props to Kieran at Health is Happiness for coming up with this masterpiece. I adapted it ever so slightly to make it gluten-free and to use up some veggies I had on hand. A friend gave me a huge bag of mini sweet peppers, which is what brought me to this recipe.
I was looking for a way to use them up, and this recipe certainly helped. Of course, you can just use regular bell peppers instead.
They taste as good as they look – I promise.
YIELDS 3-4 LARGE QUESADILLAS (depending on how full you pack ’em)
***
Vegan Amazing Veggie Quesadillas (Gluten-Free)
Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp. coconut oil
- 1 medium to large red onion, diced
- 1 large green pepper + 1 large red pepper, chopped (or about 10-12 mini sweet peppers)
- 1 jalapeño, minced or chopped
- 1 can of black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 cup fresh mushrooms, chopped
- 1 tsp. ground cumin
- 1 tsp. ground coriander
- 1 tsp. dried oregano
- 3 cups fresh spinach, chopped
- sea salt and black pepper to taste
- 6 or 8 Food for Life Brown Rice Tortillas (wheat and gluten-free)
Extras:
- Daiya Pepperjack Style Shreds
- sliced avocado
- fresh cilantro
- lime juice
- salsa (gluten-free, if need be)
Notes
I used ALL of the extras in my quesadillas and I would highly recommend it. The Daiya cheese is important because it holds it all together. The avocado makes it creamy and delicious. Cilantro, lime juice and salsa help to amp up the flavor factor. You could also add minced garlic in STEP 1 if you like.
You’ll need 6 or 8 tortillas, based on how full you stuff them. I used 6 and had a little filling left over, but not much. If you can find the brand I mentioned above, use it – they brown up perfectly and get nice and crispy on the edges (they are also great for wraps). Locals, you can find them at Apple Valley.
Instructions
STEP 1
In a large, deep skillet over medium or medium-low heat, add coconut oil, onion, and peppers (including jalapeño) with a pinch of sea salt. Sauté for 15 minutes until softened and translucent. You don’t want them to brown, so reduce the heat if necessary. Cook it slowly so everything gets soft and sweet.
STEP 2
Add black beans, mushrooms and spices. Mix everything together and continue cooking for 5 minutes.
STEP 3
Add spinach and continue cooking for a few minutes, until spinach wilts. Add salt and pepper to taste and remove from heat.
STEP 4
I used a large, shallow pan (sprayed with cooking spray, over medium heat) to cook the quesadillas. This makes it easy to flip if you use a large plate or thin cutting board to sandwich the quesadilla and flip the pan upside down.
You can totally use store-bought tortillas, which is what I used in this recipe. The second time I made them I used my flour tortilla press and they came out AMAZING. Perfect amount of crunch.
Then slide the quesadilla off the plate/cutting board back onto the pan so you can cook the other side.
I assembled the quesadillas directly on the pan. Begin with one tortilla, topped with about ¼ cup Daiya Shreds (cheese), followed by some of the bean/veggie filling. Do not spread the filling to the edge of the tortilla. It will spread out as it’s cooking.
Add your preferred extras (avocado slices, cilantro, salsa, lime juice). Add a little more cheese on top, then top it off with a second tortilla.
I set a cast iron skillet on top of the quesadilla while it was cooking. The weight helps everything stick together inside. Cook for about 5 minutes (until tortilla browns up slightly), then flip and repeat.
STEP 5
Cut quesadilla in half, then cut each half into 6 triangles. Optional – garnish with chopped cilantro, serve with salsa and/or guacamole.
Don’t you just want to eat these up right now!?!?
They are the perfect combination of flavor, spice, creamy and crunchy. I may have done a little victory dance when I took the first bite. Thanks again, Kieran!
The leftovers reheat perfectly in the toaster oven. Looks like I’m all set for a day or two ;)
Enjoy!!!
Read next: Is Guacamole Vegan?
I’m doing the food dance just looking at these! I’ve never eaten the daiya cheese (too rubbery) but I might have to make an exception with these babies!
I know, I’m usually not a big Daiya fan either, but it worked REALLY well in this recipe.
I had to laugh when I read about the horrible aftetraste because the same thing happened to me. Feeling so desperate for some type of bread, namely a tortilla, I decided to give them another try thinking I could find a way to do something to them even though the taste was disgusting. I am glad I did because the second batch was fine for me and did not have that aftetraste. I think I had a had batch the first time as these tortilla’s don’t seem to have any kind of shelf life other than a few days. I keep out a few at a time and then freeze the rest. Anyway, good luck. I used food for life but have not tried Trader Joe’s. Kim
Haha, I too did a happy food dance upon seeing this recipe (literally!). Super excited to try it, thanks for sharing!! Xx :)
These look delicious! Can’t wait to try them out!
I could go for one of these for lunch right now! They look delicious. Beautiful photos as always.
Mmmmmm. Perfect Cinco de Mayo addition! Thank You!
Wow, these quesadillas look amazing. I can’t wait to try this recipe.
Great recipe. Followed it pretty closely tonight and they turned out great. Strong recommendation: Use a panini skillet. Those grill marks are a game changer! I also left out the avocados and used them for a raw vegan ranch dip on the side. So good!
I have used the daiya cheeses in quesadillas before and it turned out lovely. I am excited to try this receipe. I just found out about daiya cheese and I’m in love! ! Thanks for sharing this! ..
These are super delicious! Will be adding these to the family meal rotation. Not really a fan of Daiya so I used Follow your Heart mozzarella!
There are times, especially when it’s hot out, that I get tired of cooking the same old but I’m going to try this tonight. I’m actually exited and looking forward to making dinner!
Hi Leanna! I don’t think you’ll be disappointed. These quesadillas are sooooo good!!! Lmk what u think :)
So yummy…..Best quesadillas I’ve ever had! Tthanks for sharing Livvy.
I made these for the first time, and they were SO FREKIN GOOD! My brother a die hard meat fan was raving about them so much he even asked me to make these again. The best part about these is how amazingly filling they are. Thank you SOOO much for posting this recipe!
Hi Katie! So glad you and your brother enjoyed them. Thanks for reading and commenting!
I’ve made this twice now for my family – one vegan, one vegetarian, one meat eater. We all love it, great recipe. :)
I love QUESADILLAS! This recipe is really amazing. Coconut oil is a great idea, I’ll try for sure. Many thanks fro inspiration :)
Very delicious…teenager approved! Yum !
I just made these and they were wonderful! I had to change just a few minor things…I used the cheddar cheese flavor, i had gluten free brown rice tortillas, and i had to exchange spinach for diced kale. Other than that, i followed the recipe exactly! It was wonderful! I froze the extra filling to make for another meal. I know its an old post, but thanks for sharing!
Just tried this tonight and it was a real hit for the whole family! Thank youu!
I made these today and they were awesome! Thank you for the recipe. This one is definitely a keeper!!
Thank you so much for this recipe Livvy! It made me really enjoy a recipe containing vegan cheese, mushrooms, and avocado, all of which I’m trying to learn to like :)