Grilled Veggie Quesadillas with Corn Relish
So...it's Monday again and if you're anything like me, you've spent the majority of this summer weekend not at home, thus making any advance prep for dinners kinda impossible. Deep breaths. Ok, so we're at square one. Doesn't mean we have to fret or panic because we can still put together a delicious, satisfying and healthy meal in under 45 minutes that won't even require putting on the oven. Enter these easy, very seasonal and truly tasty Grilled Veggie Quesadillas served with a side of fresh corn relish. Vegetarian to boot! You can breathe a sigh of relief now and thank me later!
For years I've seen recipes for putting tortillas on the grill but never thought it warranted the time and effort. Boy was I wrong!! Because laying these babies down for just a minute or two achieves that wonderful charred smokiness that no oven can quite reproduce. Look at all those delectable grill marks!!
And now imagine those crispy tortillas filled with layers of grilled zucchini, scallions, melted cheese (and anything else you can dream up, of course) and let the drooling begin. These are so simple but so darn good!!
Now, let's get to the corn relish which not only takes advantage of all the sweet fresh corn that's around but gives you an instant easy side that you can throw together while the veggies are grilling. Full of juicy tomatoes, scallions, lime juice and corn (duh), it complements the tastes and textures of the quesadillas just perfectly and rounds out the meal. And if you're very lucky, there'll be some leftover for next-day nibbles!
Even the most set-in-their-ways meat eaters are going to love this dinner. Monday's not looking so bad now, huh?!
Grilled Veggie Quesadillas with Corn Relish
Makes 4 servings
Prep Time: 20-30 minutes
Ingredients
- Olive Oil
- 4 ears fresh corn, shucked
- Large bunch scallions, half thinly sliced, half left whole
- About a pint of grape or cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
- Kosher salt and black pepper to taste
- Ten to twelve 6 or 8-inch flour tortillas
- 8 ounces freshly shredded Monterey Jack
- 3-4 medium zucchini or yellow squash or a combination of both, cut into fairly thick rounds (too thin and they'll burn on the grill)
The Recipe
1. Put a medium-large pot of salted water on to boil. Once water is boiling, add the corn, cover the pot and turn off the heat. Let sit for at least 20 minutes. If you have a chance you can do this ahead and store cooked corns in the fridge.
2. Meanwhile, turn the grill on and brush grates with oil or spray with nonstick cooking spray. Place the whole scallions and cut zucchini on a rimmed baking sheet. Drizzle with oil and season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. When corn is done, run hot cobs under cold water so that you can handle them. Dry and cut off the kernels with a sharp knife, placing them in a medium bowl. Add the chopped scallions, tomatoes, lime juice, 1 tablespoon of olive oil and toss well. Season to taste with salt and pepper, toss again and set aside.
4. Grill the veggies until tender with nice char marks. Scallions will cook more quickly than zucchini. Cut scallions into small pieces. When veggies are done, sprinkle half the cheese on half of the tortillas, divide the veggies evenly on top of the cheese, then sprinkle rest of the cheese evenly over the tortillas. Top each veggie/cheese mound with another tortilla and transfer to a buskin sheet. Brush the tips of the tortillas with a bit of oil, then flip the sandwich over to brush the other side. Carefully place each quesadilla on the grill so that none of the filling falls out and cook for a minute or two, using a large spatula to turn them over to cook on the second side. When cheese is melted and tortillas a bit charred, remove from the grill.
5. Cut the quesadillas into wedges and serve immediately with the corn relish on the side.
Note: Recipe very loosely based on this one from Martha Stewart. I cooked all the veggies including the corn instead of using them raw, added tomatoes to the relish and omitted the peppers and upped the amount of cheese for the filling. Be as creative as you like here!
