Our family loves these Bean and Cheese Quesadillas even though they thought they wouldn’t!
This idea is not new or innovative. No one will actually be very impressed. But it is still worth sharing because we all need to be reminded from time to time of the best and easiest lunch or snack ideas!
We’ve always been a simple cheese quesadilla family.
Cheese quesadillas are no-brainers. Tortillas. Cheese. Melted together. In a skillet. That is all. Cut them into triangles. Dip them in salsa. Serve them with fruit. This is lunch.
But in an effort to figure out:
- how to get my toddlers to eat more protein
- what other soft foods our barely-has-any-teeth- 1-year-old baby can gum
- more ideas for easy lunches, suppers, or snacks our whole family will like
- inexpensive ways to feed our army of children
I decided to open a can of refried beans to smear on our tortillas when I made quesadillas one evening.
Yeah. Wow. I opened a can. It’s so easy I’m wondering why this hasn’t always been my go-to meal idea?? We can always wonder about this.
How my kids first responded
When my kids asked what we were eating for dinner and I said “Bean and Cheese Quesadillas” my 6-year-old said, “Ok, but can you make mine with just cheese and no beans please?” And then my 17-year-old asked the very same thing. Because change is hard? Beans are hard? We don’t know. The bean version just didn’t sound good to them.
Fair enough. But I told them that I wanted to eat the bean version first and then if they really didn’t like it, I’d make them a plain cheese version.
Man, this story is not that exciting. Laura told her kids she was putting beans in their quesadillas. They were nervous. She made them try anyway. Thank you for sharing.
How my kids liked the Bean and Cheese Quesadillas after trying them
Well, I couldn’t keep up. I stood at the skillet and kept making quesadillas until the entire package of tortillas was gone. I cut the quesadillas into triangles and kept throwing them onto plates. I cut the babys’ quesadillas into tiny bites and kept throwing them onto the high chairs.
The 6-year-old forgot about the beans. She just ate her first quesadilla triangle and asked for another. And then another. And then another. So there you have it.
The 17-year-old? Same story. He ate his fair share and was like, “Wow Mom. These are actually good.”
Meanwhile, the 8-year-old, the 2-year-old, the 1.5-year-old, and the nearly-toothless 1-year-old ate and ate and ate.
I served the quesadillas with these smoothies, therefore we also loaded up on greens and fruit:
Bean and Cheese Quesadillas are a WINNER!
But you probably already knew that. This is old news. Everyone already makes these. Laura is 24 years behind.
Just in case, here’s how to make these:
- Whole Grain Tortillas
- Shredded Cheese
- Can of Refried Beans
- Smear beans on a tortilla.
- Sprinkle shredded cheese on top.
- Top it with another tortilla to make a "sandwich."
- Heat it on low in a skillet until the cheese is melted, turning from time to time to heat both sides.
- Cut the quesadilla into trianges and serve as-is or with salsa, sour cream, and/or guacamole.
Add Bean and Cheese Quesadillas to your go-to fast meal idea list!
We looove quesadillas around here, and in an effort to make them even tastier, easier, and more nutritious, here’s how I do it (in case you really want to mess with your kids and try something different next time ;) ):
Open a can of black or pinto beans (whole ones), rinse them, and dump in a bowl. Add shredded cheese– at least a couple cups for five whole quesadillas’ worth (as in, ten tortillas or a whole package). Add some salsa. Mix it all up. You can mash up the beans if you want, but the cheese holds the beans in the quesadilla pretty well.
Then, get out two big baking sheets. Lay tortillas over them, as many as will fit without much overlap. Spread the bean/cheese/salsa mixture on each tortilla, and then sandwich them with more tortillas on top. Bake at 350 (which you can start warming up when you start prepping everything) for about 10-15 minutes or until the cheese melts.
While they bake, you could make those smoothies and get out plates. No standing over a stove and flipping individual quesadillas! :D
Leftover ground beef (especially if it’s already taco-seasoned!) or cooked chicken make great quesadilla fillings too. And veggies for the adults/more adventurous eaters. ;) My kids will sometimes eat spinach if I sneak it in there! And I love mixing salsa and sour cream for a dipping sauce.
I was going to feed the kids PB&J for supper, but now I’m thinking this sounds even better! :D
Funny – I rarely comment but decided to come here to share how we make quesadillas even simpler for our large family and saw that Jaime beat me to it!
I started this when camping this summer as an easy meal. This was how all my kids decided to love refried beans, before then they all said they were gross. Now they always want this.
This is such a great reminder!!! Simple is SO good!!! Thank you. I have grand babies now, this will be perfect!! When my babes were little (and I was young!!) we had simple meals often and they were so good and warm and just fit us. Why did I move away from that??? Anywho, life story…sorry, thank you for this perfect reminder <3 !!
I also wanted to share about the oven method of making quesadillas! Hope it helps you, Laura! And whenever I read your posts I always pray for your family and this incredible calling God has given you.