Chicken Parm Quesadillas

Fusion cuisine combines contrasting culinary traditions from various regions into a single dish. So, I am completely taking liberties with the term when I combine an Italian American dish, Chicken Parmesan, with a Tex-Mex bastardization of a Mexican dish, cheese quesadilla, to get Chicken Parm Quesadilla. I don’t care if it is middle America, this mess was delicious!

You can make your own chicken tenders, your own marinara sauce and/or your own Italian Seasoning. Or you can do what I did-grab tenders from your grocery store’s deli, pick up a jar of Rao’s and make this delectable dinner with minimal effort.

You can offer your guests extra warm sauce for dipping. If you want to make the dish vegetarian, use frozen eggplant cutlets instead of chicken. I like Dominex for the same reason that I like Rao’s sauce, they both use all natural ingredients. If you use eggplant, follow the package directions for heating in a skillet. Then use my recipe to make Eggplant Parm Quesadillas. Add about 10 minutes to the cooking time.

 

Chicken Parm Quesadillas

Serves: 6 quesadillas (6-8 people probably)

Time:  Active time 10 minutes; Cook: 7 Minutes, quesadillas in 20 minutes

Hardware:  A cutting board and knives, measuring spoons and cups, a heavy skillet, paper towels, a silicone spatula, tongs, a sheet pan, and a pizza cutter (optional)

Ingredients:

• Butter (probably around ½ stick which is ¼ cup)
•  6-8-inch flour tortillas
• 1 ½ pounds prepared chicken tenders
• 8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese
• ½ cup of your favorite marinara sauce
• 6-½ teaspoons Italian seasoning

 1.      Slice the chicken tenders into bite sized pieces. Slice the fresh mozzarella into small chunks. Set aside.

2.      For each quesadilla, melt 2 teaspoons of butter over medium-high. When the butter is melted add a tortilla.

3.      Spread about 2 tablespoons or so of the marinara over the entire tortilla. Place a layer of cheese over the marinara. When the cheese is melty, put pieces of chicken on half the cheese. Sprinkle the entire quesadilla with Italian seasoning. Fold the side with just cheese over the chicken and mash down a little using the spatula If you need to you can use the tongs to push the filling back into the shell while mashing.

4.      You can keep the quesadillas warm on the sheet pan in the oven on the lowest setting while preparing the rest of the meal. Wipe out the pan between quesadillas.

5.      Use the pizza slicer to cut the quesadilla in to thirds. Serve warm.