Baked Mushroom Quesadillas

It doesn’t get any easier than this version of a mushroom quesadilla. Loaded with vegetables, it’s different than other quesadilla recipes. That’s because you make the mushroom and kale filling on the stove, assemble the quesadillas on a sheet pan and bake them in the oven all together. It is such a handy way to make quesadillas for an appetizer or a sheet pan dinner.  

You can also try these baked sweet potato black bean quesadillas.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

You can make all the quesadillas at the same time. Instead of cooking each quesadilla one by one in a skillet, they all can go into the oven on the same sheet pan. This is a very convenient way to make quesadillas for a game day snack, appetizer or even dinner.

These quesadillas are all about the mushroom-kale filling and aren’t overly cheesy. You can think of them like a healthier quesadilla recipe. My preference is to have bites that are mostly vegetables rather than a big stretch of cheese. 

You can save leftovers in the fridge or even freeze them. That’s one of the many reasons why quesadillas are so great. You can reheat them in the oven, and they taste like they did when you first made them.

The Ingredients

This is what you need:

• Mushrooms: You can use white mushrooms or cremini mushrooms, which are sometimes called baby bellas. It’s up to you if you buy them whole and slice them yourself or if you buy them already sliced. If they are whole, brush off any dirt before you cut them.
• Kale: Either curly kale or lacinato kale, also known as dinosaur kale, will work in this recipe. Just tear off the leaves from the thick stems and chop them.
• Jalapeños give them filling a little fresh spicy heat, but I don’t think they turn out too hot. If you are concerned with the spice level, then use half a jalapeño instead of the entire thing.
• Garlic: To layer in more flavor, I sauté a minced garlic clove with the jalapeños.
• Scallions are easy to slice ,and they give the filling mild green onion flavor.
• Cilantro: I sprinkle chopped fresh cilantro leaves into the quesadillas before I fold them over and bake them.
• Lime: I give the filling a squeeze of fresh lime juice when it finishes sautéing. Never use bottled citrus juice. Just slice a lime in half.
• Tortillas: My preference is using flour tortillas, but if you can substitute with another type like corn tortillas if you want the quesadillas to be gluten-free.
• Cheese: The recipe calls for a shredded Mexican cheese blend. These typically are a combination of cheddar, Monterey Jack and a few other cheeses.
• Salt & pepper season the sautéed mushrooms and kale.
• Oil: You can sauté the mushrooms in vegetable oil or olive oil.

How To Make This Baked Mushroom Quesadilla Recipe

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper. The quesadillas won’t stick to the pan, but lining it makes clean up fast and easy.

1. Sauté the mushrooms. Warm the oil in a large skillet or sauté pan over medium high heat. Cook the mushrooms stirring frequently for 5 minutes until they are browning. It will look like a lot in the pan at first, but the mushrooms will shrink as they sauté. 

2. Stir in the jalapeños, garlic, scallions, salt and pepper. Keep sautéing for 2-3 minutes. This gives the mushrooms time to take in all those fragrant ingredients.

3. Add the kale and lime juice. As you stir the mushroom mixture, the heat from the pan will soften the kale leaves in a few minutes.

4. Assemble and bake the quesadillas. Place 4 tortillas on the baking sheet. Sprinkle cheese on one half of the tortillas. Spoon on the mushroom filling, sprinkle with more cheese and chopped cilantro. Fold over the tortilla, gently pressing it. Bake the quesadillas for 10-12 minutes flipping over halfway through baking. They should be lightly browned with melted cheese. Cut into wedges and serve with salsa.

Storage, Leftovers & Freezing

You can keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator up to 3 days. Reheat them in a 400-degree F oven for 10 minutes, flipping over halfway through. This will warm the filling and lightly brown the quesadillas. Do not microwave them. This will soften the tortillas and make them soggy.

To freeze the quesadillas, place a piece of parchment paper or wax paper in between each one, so they do not stick together. Then freeze them in the same container. Again, I like to reheat them in the oven. You can do this in a 400-degree F oven. Frozen quesadillas will take longer than refrigerated leftovers. Give them 6-7 minutes per side. Quesadillas can be frozen up to 1 month.

Recipe Tips

Don’t be overwhelmed by the amount of mushrooms or kale in the skillet. As mentioned, the pan will be very full. Both of these ingredients get smaller as they cook. 

When you spoon the filling into the quesadillas, avoid the liquid in the bottom of the pan. Mushrooms tend to release moisture when they sauté. You don’t want to spoon this liquid into the quesadillas when you put them together.

Reminder: These are not super cheesy quesadillas. I like to think of the cheese like the glue that holds them together. 

Because you use the fold method to fill the quesadillas, you don’t need a second tortilla on top. It also makes them easier to flip over because they are folded into half circles.

More Sheet Pan Recipes

Chipotle Roasted Cauliflower Tacos
Sheet Pan Vegetarian Fajitas
Baked Sweet Potato Black Bean Tofu