Description
Fun and delicious, this vegan sheet pan quesadilla is easy to assemble in 10 minutes and bakes in the oven making it an easy dinner!
Ingredients
Scale
Quesadilla
- 8- burrito-size tortillas (or more smaller tortillas) (see note 1)
- 4-ish cups (about 900g) vegan cheese, like 2 batches of my melty cheddar (see note 2)
- 2 batches vegan shredded chicken or 2 cups beans/vegan meat replacement (see note 3)
- ½ medium red onion (or any), diced
- 1 cup fire roasted corn (or any), thawed
- 1 cup pico de gallo (or chopped tomatoes, see note 4), excess liquid drained
- 6.5 oz can (about 184g) sliced black olives, drained, optional
Dipping Sauces
- Salsa (I like Frontera Roasted Tomato Salsa)
- Guacamole
- Vegan Sour Cream
Instructions
- Note on Equipment: For the quesadillas themselves, you need at least one half sheet pan but I’m going to recommend you use two, preferably the same brand (but not necessarily). It seems a little strange, but the quesadilla is more successful & browns on top easier when it has an even weight on it.
- Make the Cheese: If you want to make your own cheese, you can use my recipe for vegan melty cheddar, it’ll take you 5 minutes. If not, proceed to the next step.
- Prepare: Preheat your oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit (218 degrees Celsius). And line one of your sheet pans with parchment paper.
- Line the pan with tortillas: Now, lay out the tortillas, one by one (you’ll use 7 in this first step and we’ll save the 8th for later). You want 2 tortillas overlapping on each long side, and one on each short side. You want the tortillas to be half on the tray, half off. Don’t worry if there’s an empty space in the middle, we’ll use the 7th tortilla to cover that up. See photos in the article above for a visual guide for this step, but you basically just want to cover the whole sheet pan, with a large tortilla border all the way around. Set up the 2 tortillas on each of the long sides first, then 1 tortilla on each short side.
- Homemade Cheese: If using my cheese, use a spoon to place 9-12 LARGE dollops of cheese in even rows on the tortilla-covered sheet pan, then use the back of the spoon or a spatula to spread it, taking care to spread it over seams and along the inside ridge of the pan. Don’t skip corners. Don’t go overboard, but you do want a nice even layer of cheese.
- Store-bought Cheese: If using store-bought vegan shredded cheese, spread half of it evenly over the inside of the pan, not skipping corners.
- Add Fillings: Next, sprinkle the vegan chicken or beans, then add your other toppings in the same way. If adding tomatoes/pico de gallo/salsa, drain off the excess liquid first so it doesn’t make your quesadilla soggy. If using corn, make sure to thaw or microwave it first. Otherwise the ice will melt and make the quesadilla watery or soggy inside.
- More Cheese: Finally, add dollops of cheese on top, going for about 75-80% coverage (if you do too much you won’t be able to taste any of the fillings!), or if you’re using store-bought vegan cheese just sprinkle it over the top, covering your toppings as much as possible.
- Seal It Up: Place the 8th tortilla in the center, pressing down lightly. Then, fold all the rest of the tortillas in, starting with the short ends, where you left off. Tuck in the corners. If you’d like, you can add a bit of neutral flavored oil (like avocado--spray, or brush other oil), but it’s not necessary. If not using oil, add another layer of parchment paper and place the other half sheet pan directly on top of the parchment or oiled quesadilla (do NOT turn it upside down). Fit it in there nicely, and press the pan on top down with a good amount of pressure. This helps seal the quesadilla.
- Bake: Place your vegan sheet pan quesadilla in the oven, leaving the 2nd tray on top during the whole baking process. Bake for about 20 minutes, and then remove from the oven. Let it sit for about 10 minutes before carving it up.
- Divide and Consume: Slice the quesadillas into 8ths, 12ths, or however many squares/triangles/blobby shapes you prefer. I find it easiest to use a pizza cutter for this.
- Serve: Garnish with cilantro and lime juice, dunk in guacamole, salsa, or vegan sour cream. Enjoy!
- Store: Refrigerate leftover quesadilla in an airtight container for up to 3-4 days. Reheat in the air-fryer or oven to get the crispy exterior back, or in the microwave if you don’t care.
Notes
- Note 1: The bigger, the better for this, though you can use smaller tortillas (like 8-10 inches), but you may need two packs. The most important thing is that everything overlaps by enough that the cheese can seal it together so it won’t fall apart. There are gluten-free burrito size tortillas out there... I’ve seen (and eaten, they’re really good) some by the brand Siete, and I’ve seen them at Whole Foods, local health food stores, and occasionally I can find them at my regional chain grocery store.
- Note 2: I love to use my 2 batches of my vegan cheddar sauce--it’s not just a regular cheese sauce, it’s cooked with tapioca starch to make it stretchy, melty, and therefore it will hold together our quesadilla well. It’s also inexpensive and only takes a few minutes to make. A regular vegan cheese sauce might get soggy or just spill out and your quesadilla will be kinda mushy. Store-bought vegan cheese will work, but you’ll need quite a bit of it, about a pound or a little more.
- Note 3: I used my easy 5-minute jackfruit shredded chicken but with some taco-ish spices (I used chipotle powder, garlic powder, cumin, paprika, and sea salt) for a vegan chicken quesadilla flair, but it’s not necessary. You could swap store-bought vegan chicken (or any other meat alternative), soy curls, beans or just omit this.
- Note 4: Pico de gallo typically has tomatoes, onions, serrano peppers (or some people use jalapenos), salt, lime juice, and sometimes cilantro. You can make it yourself or buy it from a store. Just make sure to strain out the excess liquid so your quesadilla doesn’t get soggy. You could use chopped tomatoes instead, but I’d use a less juicy tomato like grape tomatoes, and quarter them before I put them in this. Or use a chunky salsa, again straining out the excess liquid.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Category: Entree
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American, Mexican
Keywords: Vegan, Oil-Free, Nut-Free, Sugar-Free, Can Be Soy-Free, Can Be Gluten-Free, Vegan Sheet Pan Quesadilla