Grilled Black Bean and Corn Quesadillas

Here's another great grilled meatless main dish for you.  Have you ever tried grilling quesadillas?  It's a cinch!  Not much different than doing them on the stovetop, and with the added benefit of being able to cook a lot of them at once.  On the stovetop it's always one at a time.  Since this was our meatless meal of the week, I just did a simple black bean and corn filling.  But you can stuff these with anything you like.  The possibilities are endless!

Grilled Black Bean and Corn Quesadillas

Ingredients:

1 (15 oz.) can black beans, drained and rinsed

¾ tsp ground cumin

Flour tortillas (12 small or 8 medium)

Olive oil

1 (15 oz.) can corn, drained

Shredded cheese

Salsa, sour cream, guacamole, if desired

Directions:

Preheat grill to medium-high heat.

Place black beans in a medium bowl and use a potato masher to mash them to your desired consistency.  They should be mashed enough that they will help hold the quesadillas together, but feel free to leave some chunks in there too.  Stir in the cumin.

Take a flour tortilla and lightly brush one side with olive oil.  Place it oil side down and spread a thin layer of beans on the other side.  Sprinkle with corn kernels and top with shredded cheese.  Press down on the cheese to adhere it and the corn to the beans.  Top with another tortilla and brush the top with more olive oil.  Repeat this process for however many quesadillas you want.  You can stack them on a plate or a platter to take outside to the grill.

Lay the quesadillas on the grill and press down on the top as soon as the cheese begins to melt.  Cook for a few minutes until grill marks form.  Carefully flip each quesadilla over and grill for a few more minutes, or until grill marks form on second side and edges begin to get brown and crispy.  Remove quesadillas from grill.  Cut into wedges and serve with salsa, sour cream, guacamole, or anything else you desire.

Makes 4 servings.

Beautiful grill marks.

These were a big hit with my family.  And since the ingredients are all pantry staples, this makes a great go-to recipe for busy weeknights or sudden changes of plans.  They're great for lunches too.