I have been meaning to share this meal for quite a while…it is a go-to regular in our house this summer, and especially useful for keeping up with all of our CSA produce. This meal is a fast, super easy meal to prepare, and it also doesn’t require the oven. It is always, and was tonight, our perfect last-minute summer meal.

Tonight’s quesadillas were made as usual–with whatever I could find in the fridge. Clockwise from the top, that included chopped garlic scapes (Denison CSA), grated carrots (Denison CSA), chopped swiss chard (Denison CSA), a scrambled egg (egg share in Denison CSA), some cherry tomatoes (my garden), corn off the cob (Denison CSA). I also defrosted some butternut squash puree from the freezer. The beauty of this meal is that you can actually use ANY veggies you have or want. I even add veggies that Lainey hates, and she doesn’t even notice (for example, she hates tomatoes...kale often makes its way in, too!).

The glue, and key ingredient, in our quesadillas is the cheese–this one, Palatine Mild Cheddar, is local and fabulous–gotta try it if you haven’t yet. I’m convinced that the smattering of cheese around the vegetables is what makes this dish work. I don’t even use that much, but cheese works miracles in our house.

So, after all the veggies are prepped, just spray some oil in your frying pan, toss in the tortilla (my bottom tortilla was smeared with some of the butternut sqash puree), top with a small handful of grated cheese, then your veggies, another handful of cheese (the glue to hold each side together!), and top with the second tortilla. Press down to squish everything together. When the bottom tortilla is browned, carefully flip to the other side. Brown for a minute or two, and serve!

The final key to this dish is what Lainey calls “dip it”: a spoonful of plain yogurt for dipping. Dip it comes in many varieties for us (yogurt, mustard, salad dressing…), and much like cheese, makes many meals happen for us. Even the yuckiest foods can become totally Lainey-friendly. It’s fun and tasty, too. Enjoy!