When I am hungry, I am not picky. Â I can find a lot of different options in my refrigerator or pantry that will do the trick. Â Give me last night’s roasted sweet potato or a couple dates stuffed with pecans and coconut or even a sprouted grain tortilla smeared with almond butter and wrapped around a banana. Â Instant gratification. Â My kids don’t yet have the ability to see the potential lurking in our kitchen that I do. Â That or they are incredibly lazy. Â While we are blessed to have an ample supply of food in our house, my children still manage to complain…”there’s never anything to eat around here!” Â I know. Â Insane.
In my former life, this may have made me feel inadequate, like I’m a bad mom. Â I don’t want to have the house where there’s nothing good to eat! Â But I’m onto my kids. Â I can read between the lines. Â They’re not whining about the lack of food. Â They’re whining about the lack of prepared-ready-to-eat-tasty-not-leftovers-from-dinner food. Â And serve it on a silver platter while you’re at it! Â I’m sure my kids would love it if I had the pantry stocked with orange, crispy cheese-flavored curls or boxed cookies. Â But that’s not food and it sure won’t help them get through their homework or a 90-minute soccer practice. Â Unfortunately, despite what you might think, I don’t have the time to cook up homemade snacks all day, as much as I would truly enjoy that.
Instead, I have taken some advice from the Chinese proverb,”Give a man a fish and he will eat for a day. Â Teach a man to fish and he will eat for a lifetime.” Â The point is that I think it’s more beneficial to my kids if they learn how to make a thing or two in kitchen especially when I’m not available to whip up something fabulous. Â This has been a s-l-o-o-o-w process, which I might need to speed up since Daughter #1 is supposed to be leaving for college in a year and a half (gasp.) Â Among other things, I have taught the girls to make one of their favorite snacks/lunches of the last 10 years. Â Pizza Quesadillas is a very popular and oft-requested after-school snack in our house, and not just by my girls, but their friends, as well. Â They take minutes to make and I usually have the simple ingredients on hand. Â I don’t know that they’re any better for you than a typical quesadilla, which is merely cheese (cheddar or jack) melted in a flour tortilla. Â This is just a fun twist on a quesadilla and a pizza, where you use mozzarella and also a little marinara sauce. Â I can’t help but sneak in a few veggies, usually leftover from the night before. Â Anything with which you might top a pizza is fair game here. Â In general, I love using whole grain tortillas, either sprouted grain or whole spelt, both of which are more nutritious and more digestible than white flour tortillas. Â Are you gluten-free? Â There are fantastic brown rice tortillas by Food For Life! Â With all that fiber and protein, the girls fill up more quickly than if they had eaten a mess of packaged snacks and they also get the benefits of long-lasting energy until dinner time.
You my have noticed that I haven’t mentioned the apple of my eye, Mr. Picky in this post. Â I have taught him how to make a couple of snacks including smoothies, acai bowls, toast, and peanut butter and jelly on a rice cake. Â But cheese is just not on his “must try list.” Â One of his new years resolutions is to be less picky, which I find very endearing. Â But in the same breath he also added that he would sooner try eating insects before he ate cheese. Â Did I mention “s-l-o-o-o-w process?”
Spinach Pizza Quesadilla
Ingredients
- If you need to make some sautéed spinach:
- 1 Tablespoon unrefined extra-virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves of garlic minced
- 1 pound frozen chopped spinach defrosted and squeezed of excess water (I do this in a thin, clean dish towel)
- sea salt to taste
- 4 whole spelt sprouted grain or your favorite tortillas
- ½ cup marinara sauce
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella or vegan cheese Daiya is my favorite vegan cheese
- Pecorino Romano or Parmesan cheese to taste
Instructions
- Preheat your griddle to 350 degrees or a large, heavy skillet over medium heat.
- Heat the olive oil in a medium sized skillet over medium heat, add the garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add spinach and a pinch or two of salt and break up with wooden spoon or spatula. Sauté until heated through, about 5 minutes.
- If you are using a cast iron or non-stock griddle or skillet, place a tortilla on the griddle or skillet dry without any oil or butter. If using stainless steel, you may need a teaspoon of oil to prevent sticking. Spread 2 Tablespoons of marinara sauce on half of the tortilla. Follow with ¼ cup mozzarella cheese, a sprinkling of pecorino or parmesan, if desired, and ¼ cup spinach mixture on top of cheese. Fold the tortilla in half to make a quesadilla.
- Allow quesadilla to sit on griddle until underside is lightly golden brown and flip over. Cook until cheese is melted.
- Slice in half or in thirds and serve.
Notes