Chicken and Black Bean Quesadillas

I'm a huge fan of cheese. Especially when it's oooey gooey and melty like in these Chicken and Black Bean Quesadillas!

I had some leftover rotisserie chicken and some extra Roasted Pepper and Corn Salsa (Recipe Here) and some fresh corn tortillas. Quesadillas seemed like they were destined to be my dinner. 

And of course I had a HUGE brick of cheddar cheese in the fridge. I am a midwestern country girl at heart afterall. 

That's where the inspiration came from. I added a little black bean for added fiber and some black olives just because I love them. And does anything really not taste fantastic with a little Chilola sauce? Not to mention the yummy Roasted Pepper and Corn Salsa!

And voila! I put it all in a hot skillet and let it simmer just like I would a delicious grilled cheese sandwich and there it was. 

Instant yummy Chicken and Black Bean Quesadilla on my plate! Delicious and nutritious!

There's nothing wrong with a dinner that takes only 5 minutes to prep and another 10 minutes to cook. And it doesn't matter what you have in your fridge. You can use leftover ham or turkey and green olives, chili peppers. Add some salsa and it's the Perfect Fast Weeknight Meal! 
All you need is tortillas and cheese. The rest is history!

Now on with the recipe!

Chicken and Black Bean Quesadillas

2 cups Shredded Chicken; rotisserie works great
1/2 cup Black Olives; sliced
2 cups 2 % Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1 cup Black Beans; Rinsed
8 Corn Tortillas
1 cup Roasted Pepper and Corn Salsa
1/4 cup Cholula Sauce

1. Start by shredding the chicken, slicing the black olives, shredding the cheddar cheese, and rinsing the black beans.
2. Then heat a large skillet over medium high heat and spray with cooking spray. Then add one corn tortilla and layer the salsa, chicken, black olives, cheese, and a sprinkle of Tabasco sauce and add a little more cheese for good measure.
3. Top with the second tortilla and allow to cook over medium low heat for 3-4 minutes, then carefully flip the quesadilla over and cook for another 5 minutes or so. I heated the oven to 200 degrees and placed the completed quesadillas in the oven to keep them warms while I finished making the other quesadillas.

4. Slice and serve with low fat sour cream and sliced peperochinis! Delicious! Just look how ooey and gooey and cheesey it looks! Yummy-licious!


Servings: 8 (half a quesadilla)


Nutritional Skinny:

260 calories / 12 g fat / 18 g carbohydrates / 4 g fiber / 21 g protein


Mental Health Benefit: This recipe is a lesson in balance. At least that's how I look at it. Beans are an amazing source of fiber, so are tomatoes. These quesadillas are also jam packed with protein from the lean chicken breast, the cheese, and the beans. But there is still the ooey gooey-ness that makes this warm quesadilla mouth-watering. So, the quesadilla's achieve a balance between yummy and nutritious. Balance... isn't that what we are all striving for? 


Here's to you!