Granny Apple Quesadilla

Flour tortillas (whatever your preference)
1 Granny Smith apple
2 medium sweet yellow onions, chopped (These will be caramelized. They cook down a lot!)
baby spinach and arugula
crumbled goat cheese
sharp white cheddar cheese
chicken breast fillet
balsamic vinaigrette
rosemary (dried or fresh)
1 tsp white sugar
1 tsp salt
olive oil
*Makes 2-3 quesadillas

Apples can put an unexpected and unique twist on a variety of savory dishes. Quesadillas are one of my go-to options if I'm wanting something to eat fast, so I thought it would be a cool idea to throw some apple in the mix when making dinner with my friend, Zara.

For the most part, this meal can be prepared fairly quickly, however, caramelizing the onions does take time (20-30 min). So, I would begin with this step. Heat your olive oil on a medium-low heat in a large skillet, and add your onions, making sure that they are coated in the oil. Then sprinkle the salt on them, as it helps them caramelize a little faster. Also, don't worry, because your onions will cook down a lot, even if it looks like there are way too many onions in the pan for a couple of quesadillas. Stir the onions occasionally. If they slightly stick to the pan, this is ok. It is all part of the browning and caramelizing process. Just be sure there is enough oil in the pan that they are not burning. After about 20 minutes, you can add sugar to heighten sweetness and aid in the caramelizing process, and by about 25-30 minutes, your onions should be done!

While your onions are cooking, you can prepare the chicken. Chopping up the chicken breast first helps it to cook quickly, just be sure not too over-cook it! Simply saute the chicken in some olive oil, balsamic vinaigrette, and rosemary until thoroughly cooked.

Now that both the onions and chicken are done, you are ready to assemble the quesadilla. I spread a thin layer of margarine on the sides of the tortillas that would be on the pan so that they would get nice and crispy. Then, I layered the crumbled goat and cheddar cheeses, caramelized onions, chicken, thin apple slices, spinach and arugula between the tortillas, and cooked the quesadilla on a medium heat for a few minutes. The trickiest part, is flipping the layers of deliciousness!

This is one of the best quesadillas I have had. I hope you can say the same if you try it!

-Ianna