Barbecue Chicken Quesadillas

This is one of our favorite weeknight dinners.  So easy and everyone in my family gobbles it up!  There's some spice to it, so if you're serving it to your kiddos as well, you may want to omit the jalapenos and customize it to their taste.

But, that's what's awesome about quesadillas - you can make them any way you like them!  I used McCormick's Montreal steak spicy grill seasoning to season the chicken - tons of flavor and I like the spice.  The cheese I used is a blend of Mexican cheeses and taco seasoning.  Use your go-to seasoning for chicken (even taco seasoning on the chicken would be great) and whatever cheese you love.

  

I make my own salsa a LOT.  My husband can't get enough of it!  You can get the recipe here, or just use your favorite store brand.  

I wrote this recipe for 2 quesadillas, but you'll probably have enough chicken to do another 1/2 (just use one tortilla and fold it over).  I don't like a ton of chicken on mine, so I use less than my portion, then make a smaller one for the kids!     

Serves 2-3 

Barbecue Chicken Quesadillas

1 large boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced
olive oil
1 tablespoon Montreal steak spicy grill seasoning
1/2 cup barbecue sauce, plus more for drizzling
4 flour tortillas (soft taco size)
2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese
2 tablespoons diced jalapenos
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro

In a skillet over medium, heat olive oil until it starts to ripple, then add chicken.  Sprinkle the grill seasoning over the chicken and cook until done throughout.  Remove from heat and stir in the 1/2 cup of barbecue sauce.  Set aside.

Preheat quesadilla maker or a large skillet (if using a pan on the stove, you'll need to brush each side of the tortillas with olive oil or vegetable oil and spray the skillet with non-stick spray).  On one tortilla, sprinkle about 1/2 cup cheese.  Top with 1/2 of the chicken, 1 tablespoon of jalapenos and 1/2 tablespoon cilantro.  Top with another 1/2 cup of cheese and then drizzle more barbecue sauce (to taste).  Top with another flour tortilla.  Repeat to make the other quesadilla.

Place assembled quesadilla onto the quesadilla maker and close lid.  Cook until cheese is melted and top is golden brown, about 4-5 minutes.  If using the stove, cook for a couple minutes on one side, until the cheese starts to melt and the tortilla turns golden, then flip to heat the other side.

Serve with salsa and other favorite toppings.  

Barbecue Ranch Chicken Wraps

This was a weekend creation that started with my husband wanting a wrap for lunch.  You know, something a little more substantial than our normal pb & j (as much as I cook, my kids live off of them during the week!).  He diced and cooked the chicken with a little seasoning salt and grill seasoning and I got the veggies ready. 

I've had quite a few barbecue chicken wraps at different restaurants so when we asked what else I wanted on it, I immediately thought Ranch dressing and barbecue sauce.  Instead of cheese to keep it a bit lighter, I topped it all with Santa Fe tortilla strips that I normally use on my salads (found with the croutons in the grocery store).  Oh my goodness...talk about lick your fingers good!

Makes 4 wraps

Barbecue Ranch Chicken Wraps

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts diced

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons seasoning salt or grill seasoning (or combination of both)

2 Roma tomatoes, sliced

3-4 leaves Romaine lettuce

4 tablespoons barbecue sauce 

4 tablespoons light ranch dressing

4 tablespoons Santa Fe tortilla strips

4 soft taco size tortillas

Add olive oil to a medium skillet and heat over medium for a couple of minutes.  Add chicken and seasoning and cook until done throughout.  In the meantime, assemble the wraps.

Place the tortillas between two damp paper towels and heat in the microwave for 30 seconds.  In the middle of the wrap, place a couple of pieces of lettuce, topped with 3 or 4 slices of tomatoes.  Top with about 1/3 cup chicken.  Drizzle about 1 tablespoon of the ranch dressing and barbecue sauce (each) over the chicken, topped with about a tablespoon of the tortilla strips.  Roll up and cut if desired. 

Ranch and Jalapeno Pinwheels

This is such a quick and easy recipe to throw together as an appetizer for game day.  I'm all about fun food for game day!  You can double this recipe and use 4 12-inch size tortillas.  They will be bigger around and a more substantial bite - I would definitely do this if I was having a party or taking them over to someone's house.

Spread the cream cheese mixture to the very edges of the tortilla - you can see that I didn't even follow my own instructions!  It makes a difference, because it will help seal the ends.  

Other add-ins that would be good too - diced black olives, diced green chilies (instead of jalapenos), green onions.  The pimentos and jalapenos you can find already diced in jars and cans.

 Serves 4

Ranch and Jalapeno Pinwheels

3-4 flour tortillas (soft taco size)
1 (8 oz) package of cream cheese
1/2 package Ranch dressing mix
2 tablespoons diced pimentos
1/4 cup diced pickled jalapenos

Mix all the ingredients together.  Spread evenly (but generously) all over the tortillas, right up the edges.  Roll and slice.  Store in refrigerator and serve chilled.

Crispy Buffalo Chicken Wraps

We have Buffalo chicken wraps for dinner a lot...in fact, we really love anything Buffalo.  Stromboli, dip, wraps, you name it.  And I know we're not alone.  If you're a Buffalo fan, you will LOVE this! 

Start with a burrito size flour tortilla...layer with shredded cheese, chicken tossed in Buffalo wing sauce and top with Ranch!  My mouth is watering just thinking about it...

After the tortillas are rolled up, you give them a little spritz of vegetable spray and cook for just a couple of minutes in a skillet on medium.  This gets them nice and crispy and melts the cheese inside. 

Makes 3-4 wraps

Crispy Buffalo Chicken Wraps

2 large, boneless skinless chicken breast, cut into bite sized cubes

1 tablespoon spicy grill seasoning (I used McCormick)

1 cup of Buffalo wing sauce (I used Sweet Baby Ray's)

3-4 burrito size flour tortillas

1 1/2 cups Mexican blend shredded cheese

1/2 cup ranch dressing

In a medium skillet over medium-high heat, cook the diced chicken tossed with the grill seasoning until cooked throughout.  Once done, remove from heat and toss with Buffalo wing sauce.  Set aside. 

Preheat a large skillet over medium and grab the tortillas.  Sprinkle about 1/2 cup of the shredded cheese on each tortilla, leaving about a 1/2 inch border.  Spoon about 1/4 cup of chicken right down the middle.  Top with a drizzle of ranch dressing.  Fold in the sides of the tortilla, and start rolling the bottom up toward the top.  Spray with vegetable spray and lay seam side down in preheated skillet.  Cook for 1-2 minutes, then flip and cook 1-2 minutes on the other side.  Repeat with other filled tortillas.

Baked Southwestern Flautas

I love Southwestern egg rolls - you know, the kind you can get at any number of restaurants like Chili's or Applebees.  I love the crispy outside and melty center, but they're not exactly the best things for you!  All in moderation, I suppose.  I decided to try baking these and making them more of like a flauta instead of an egg roll and they turned out great!  Skinny flautas, yay!  No more frying for me.    

Chicken and veggies, black beans and tons of flavor from the cumin and chili powder.  I know your whole family will love these.  They make a great party food dish too - very easy to multiply this recipe if you need to make more.

Serves 2-3 

Baked Southwestern Flautas

1 boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced

1/2 tablespoon grill seasoning (I use Weber's Kick'N Chicken)

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 tablespoons minced bell pepper

1/3 frozen corn

1/4 cup black beans, drained and rinsed

2 tablespoons diced, canned jalapenos

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon chili powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

pinch of cayenne pepper

3/4 cup Mexican blend shredded cheese

five 7-inch flour tortillas

vegetable oil for brushing

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat and add chicken and grill seasoning.  Cook until chicken is almost done; add bell pepper and saute until tender, 2-3 more minutes.  Add corn, black beans, jalapenos, cumin, chili powder, salt and cayenne to pan and cook for another 4-5 minutes.  Remove pan from heat and stir in cheese until melted.  

Place tortillas between 2 damp paper towels and microwave for 45 seconds until soft.  Spoon about one-fifth of the mixture down the center of the tortilla and wrap tightly, placing on baking sheet seam side down.  Repeat until all tortillas are filled.  

Lightly brush the top of the tortillas with vegetable oil and sprinkle with salt.  Bake for 15 minutes until golden brown.  Serve topped with more shredded cheese, sour cream, ranch, etc.
  

Chicken Fajita Tostados

We love anything with tortillas in our house...flour or corn, it doesn't matter.  Just an overall love for Mexican food I guess.  I make these quite a bit because they are easy, delicious and really are pretty good for you!  Lots of chicken and veggies.  I use short cuts like frozen chopped bell peppers, so that saves me on the time it takes to chop, chop, chop.  

Throw the frozen peppers, frozen (or fresh) corn and salsa on a baking sheet to roast while you cook your chicken and your dinner is done in under a 1/2 hour.  Love that! 

The corn tortillas are toasted before being topped, sprinkled with chili powder.  So much flavor packed into this very simple dish.  I use a blend of Mexican cheese that also has seasoning in it, but other cheese such as Colby jack or cheddar would be great too. 

5-6 Tostados

Chicken Fajita Tostados

1 cup chopped bell pepper

1 cup corn kernels 

1/4 cup salsa (or you can use Rotel)

3 tablespoons olive oil, divided

1 large boneless, skinless chicken breast, diced

1 tablespoon spicy Montreal steak grill seasoning

5-6 corn tortillas

1 teaspoon chili powder

1 1/2 cup of Mexican blend shredded cheese

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  On a 11 x 18-inch baking sheet lined with foil, combine peppers, corn, salsa, 1 tablespoon olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.  Roast for 15-20 minutes, tossing occasionally, until slightly charred.  Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a medium skillet over medium high heat.  Add the chicken and grill seasoning and saute until chicken is cooked through.  

Once the chicken and veggies are done, combine the two into a bowl and set aside (reserve baking sheet but remove foil).    

Arrange the corn tortillas on the baking sheet and brush on a light coating of the remaining tablespoon of olive oil (or I used my Misto to just spray it on).  Evenly sprinkle the chili powder over the tortillas and sprinkle salt to taste.  Bake for 6-8 minutes until lightly toasted (not too toasted because they are going back in the oven later).  Remove from the oven to assemble the tostados.  

Turn the oven to broil.  Scoop the chicken and veggie mixture evenly onto each tortilla and top with cheese (about 1/4 cup on each tortilla).  Put back in the oven under the broiler until the cheese is melted.  Top with salsa and sour cream if desired (we like ours just as is!).
  

Shrimp Tacos with Corn and Avocado Salsa

 This meal is the like the epitome of summer time meals.  In fact, when the weather turns warm, this is one of the first meals we crave.  It's my husband's favorite dinner and he will request it for special occasions (actually he had me make this on Father's Day for him!), but I love it just as much and so does our toddler.  And great for me, because there's really nothing to it.
  

So this is the really easy (but just as delicious) way to make these tacos, but I'm also going to give you a couple of hints on how you can go above and beyond if you have the time.  Like using fresh corn and grilling it before making the salsa.  If I had the time, I would do this every time - grilled corn is fabulous!!  I have another amazing recipe for grilled corn that involves lots of butter, lime and chili powder, but that's for another day...soon, I promise!!

P.S. These are amazing with my Light and Easy Margaritas!

Makes 2-4 servings

Shrimp Tacos with Corn and Avocado Salsa

Salsa

1 Roma tomato 

1 can whole kernel corn (or 4 ears of fresh corn, shucked)

2 tablespoons fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon minced jalapeno (I used jalapenos from a jar but you can use 1 small jalapeno if you want to use fresh)

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1 avocado, diced

Shrimp

1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 tablespoon olive oil

2 teaspoons fresh lime juice

1 tablespoon spicy McCormick grill seasoning

8 flour tortillas

1 cup Mexican blend shredded cheese 

To make the salsa:  Cut tomato, remove seeds and dice.  In a medium bowl, combine tomato, drained corn (or corn cut from the grilled corn cob), lime juice, jalapeno, olive oil, cumin and salt.  Fold in avocado.

To make the shrimp:  Combine the first four ingredients in a bowl.  Cover and let stand for 30 minutes.  Saute over medium high heat until shrimp turns pink, 3-5 minutes (or place on skewers and grill for 2-3 minutes on each side).  

While shrimp is cooking, place tortillas between 2 damp paper towels and microwave for 45 seconds to warm.  

Assemble tacos with tortillas, shrimp, corn salsa and cheese.

                        

Spicy Chipotle Chicken Enchiladas

I LOVE Mexican food...oh my goodness, I could eat it almost everyday!  These chicken enchiladas are a huge hit in my house and are just as good as anything you can get out to eat.  They don't take much time to prepare or assemble (hey, if I can do it while I have a 5 month old on my hip, then anyone can!).  The chicken is pan-steamed so there is no added oil or fats and pulls apart really easily.  

They are incredibly spicy.  You can cut the amount of chipotles in adobo or omit that all together if you want.  They add a nice smokey flavor, but the cumin and chili powder give these enchiladas most of the flavor anyway.   The cheese I used was a Mexican style blend that had Cheddar and Monterey Jack cheeses blended with taco seasoning.  

Serves 4

Spicy Chipotle Chicken Enchiladas

2 large chicken breasts

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/4 cup flour

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon minced canned chipotles in adobo

1 tablespoon chili powder

1 can reduced-sodium chicken broth

8 corn tortillas

1 cup shredded cheese
Chopped tomatoes and sour cream (optional toppings)

In a large pan that has a tight-fitting lid, bring 1 inch of water to a boil.  Add chicken and cover; reduce the heat to medium-low.  Simmer for 10-15 minutes then remove from heat.  Let chicken steam for another 5-10 minutes until cooked throughout.  Shred with two forks and set aside.   

While the chicken is cooking, heat oil over medium heat in a medium saucepan.  Add garlic and cook about 1 minute.  Add flour, cumin, chipotles and chili powder and whisk about 1 minute.  Whisk in broth and 1/2 cup water; bring to a boil.   Reduce to a simmer and cook, whisking occasionally until the sauce has thickened, 5-8 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper and pour 1 cup of the sauce over the shredded chicken.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.  Pour 1/4 cup of the sauce into the bottom of 9 x 13-inch baking pan (or something similar - I used my oval baking dish).  Warm tortillas by stacking them and wrapping with a damp paper towel; microwave for 45 seconds.  Place about a 1/3 of a cup of the chicken mixture down the middle of each tortilla and roll up.  Arrange in your pan seam side down.  Cover with remaining sauce and top with cheese.  Bake for 15-20 minutes until the cheese is hot and bubbly.  Let stand 5 minutes before serving.

(Source:  Adapted from Martha Stewart's Everyday Food)

Crock Pot Chicken Burritos

Are you ready for how freaking simple this is?  I literally assembled the first steps of this in maybe 2 minutes. And it makes a ton!!  Six large burritos is definitely being generous...I probably had enough to do closer to 8.  Needless to say, we ate this for a couple nights in a row and were lucky enough to have my dad visiting so we could share it with him, too!

My daughter, who is 2, also learned a new word, "spicy."  Jules is so good about eating whatever we make, but sometimes if I feel like something is too spicy for her, I will make her something separate.  Honestly, I shouldn't even be worried about it...Jules loves her chicken spicy (ha, Seinfeld)!  She could not get enough of these burritos and then kept fanning her mouth like it was too hot (but kept going back for more).  It all depends on the type of salsa you use because that is the only thing adding any heat to this.  I used medium and it had just the right kick. 

6 servings

Crock Pot Chicken Burritos

2 large frozen chicken breasts

2 cups salsa (your favorite)

1 can corn, drained

1 can black beans, drained

1 8oz brick of reduced fat cream cheese

1/2 cup light ranch dressing

Cooked rice

Large flour tortillas

Shredded cheese (I used a taco blend, but it's your preference)

With your Crock Pot on high, put in your chicken breasts followed by the black beans, corn and salsa.  Let cook for 5-7 hours until the chicken is cooked through and can be shredded.  

Once cooked through, remove your chicken, shred and put back into the Crock Pot.  Add the cream cheese and ranch and continue cooking on low until the cream cheese is melted, for at least 1/2 hour.  Meanwhile, make your rice for the burritos.  

On the flour tortillas, place a layer of the chicken mixture, followed by the rice, then cheese.  Roll and Enjoy!!