Sheet-pan quesadillas, six at once
The whole batch crisped in the oven while you stand around doing nothing.
At a Glance
Story
A quesadilla is, by its own name, a little cheese thing, queso with a diminutive tacked on, and it needs nothing else to be right. The sheet pan's dry heat does what a crowded skillet cannot: crisps all six tortillas to bronze at once while the cheese underneath goes properly molten.
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp avocado or canola oil
- 6 flour tortillas5 to 6 inches
- 2 cups shredded Mexican cheese blendpepper Jack or mozzarella (about 8 oz)
- 1 cup corn kernelsfresh or frozen (optional)
- chipotle chile powdergochugaru, Aleppo or smoked paprika, to taste
- sliced avocadodiced onion, cilantro, lime, salsa and hot sauce, to serve
- salt
Method
A single quesadilla on the stove is the work of a moment, but six of them, one pan, no standing over a skillet flipping and swearing. Lightly oiling the tray gives you the richness of the pan-fried version with none of the babysitting.
- Heat the oven to 425. Pour the oil onto a large sheet pan and use one tortilla to wipe it around, then lay all six out with space between them.
- Divide the cheese among the tortillas and sprinkle with as much chile powder as your nerve allows. A pinch of salt on the bare tortilla is worth it, it wakes up the corn-and-wheat flavor that is otherwise just a vehicle. Scatter the corn over, if using.
- Bake until the cheese melts, about 5 minutes. Pull the pan and fold each tortilla over itself into a half-moon with a spatula.
- Sprinkle with salt and return to the oven until crisp and bronzed at the edges, 3 to 5 minutes more.
- Serve straight away with whatever cold, sharp things you like: avocado, raw onion, cilantro, lime, salsa, hot sauce. A spoon of crème fraîche would not go amiss.
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