Skip to main content

Pear Quesadillas

A unique and delicious sweet and savory quesadilla recipe.
Video

Cooking for a Crowd

Cooking for a Crowd

Use these recipe sheets to prepare for larger groups:

Plate of golden tortilla folded over a cheese, pear and vegetable filling.
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Makes: 8 wedges
Nutrition Facts: View label

Ingredients

1 cup grated cheese (try cheddar, jack, or pepper jack)
1 cup pear slices (fresh or canned and drained)
½ cup finely chopped bell pepper (any color)
2 Tablespoons minced onion (any type)
4 medium whole-wheat tortillas

Directions

  1. Wash hands with soap and water.
  2. Rinse or scrub fresh fruits and vegetables under running water before preparing.
  3. Divide cheese, pears pepper and onion between the tortillas, covering about half of each tortilla. Fold each tortilla in half over the filling.
  4. Heat a skillet or griddle to medium (300 degrees F in an electric skillet). Place one or two folded tortillas on a dry skillet and heat until cheese melts and the tortilla browns slightly, about 2 to 4 minutes.
  5. With large spatula, gently turn quesadillas over and cook the other side until a little brown, 2 to 4 minutes.
  6. Remove to a plate and repeat until all tortillas are heated.  Cut each quesadilla in half and serve.
  7. Refrigerate leftovers within 2 hours.

Notes

  • Put pear cubes on a paper towel for a couple of minutes to help dry them out. This will help your quesadilla stick together!
  • Out of pears? Try diced fresh apples, halved grapes, sliced bananas or peaches.
  • Flavor boosters: add some chopped cilantro, or use pepper jack cheese.
  • Try adding cilantro on top for more flavor.

Comments

I tried this recipe for Pear Quesadillas because the Snap Ed/Food Hero folks in our office was making it for some youth they were working with. We truly enjoyed the recipe but I thought it was some what bland. I made this with canned peaches and loved the way the flavors popped.

Celia, thanks so much for sharing your adaptation of the recipe for Pear Quesadillas. We added peaches to the list of fruit suggestions to try! From the Food Hero Team

The ingredients remain the same but we have revised the directions so it is a little easier to heat and turn the quesadillas - especially for kids!

The Food Hero Team

Update:  We followed the above recipe, but added a few cooked black beans, and fresh baby spinach -- it was even better than before! 

This is really good with gouda cheese!

Lots of people doubt this recipe but if you can convince them to try it (sample!) they are hooked. I tell other moms it is a great way to sneak fruits and veggies into your kiddos. You can sub zuchini or tomatoes for the peppers and sub apple for the pears if you've got them on hand. All combinations have been delicious!

These were a big hit with my classes, both teen and adult.  It *did* take the teen chefs longer to prepare the recipe (30 minutes, not 10), and it was VERY difficult for both teens and adults to flip the quesadilla, when adhering to above directions.  We even tried the "slide to a plate, then use the plate to flip the quesadilla", but that didn't prove much easier.

We found that instead of making one GIANT quesadilla (using 2 tortillas) it was easier to use one tortilla, folded in half.  It was much easier to flip the tortillas when they were smaller, with one edge closed off.

Some students thought that pears sounded really weird in this recipe -- but then they tried it, and really liked it. 

The whole family loved these! We used pepper jack cheese, added some chiles and topped with some low-fat sour cream and salsa.

These are great! The pear really adds a lot to it!

These are so tastey! Love the Pear Crunch!

ou! this sounds interesting! I'll try it for dinner tonight!

You might also like...

Recipes A to Z (without photos)

Green Salad with Peas
Lettuce bed topped with peas and feta cheese on a plate.

Green Salad with Peas

Fresh green salad, tossed with peas, cucumber and creamy feta.
Prepare:
15 minutes
Makes:
6 cups
My Personal Pizza
Platter of English muffins with red sauce, vegetables and melted cheese.

My Personal Pizza

A great recipe for kids to make, these pizzas made on English muffins can be topped with all your favorites!
Prepare:
10 minutes
Cook:
15 minutes
Makes:
1 pizza
Vegetable and Beef Skillet Meal
Casserole dish with melted cheese coating a rice and vegetable mix.

Vegetable and Beef Skillet Meal

Warm and comforting meal with beef and veggies over warm rice and topped with cheese.
Prepare:
10 minutes
Cook:
45 minutes
Makes:
8 cups
Roasted Brussels Sprouts
Platter of tender brussels sprout halves.

Roasted Brussels Sprouts

Sweet, nutty and smokey with a dash of tangy lemon.
Prepare:
5 minutes
Cook:
20 minutes
Makes:
6 Cups
Baked Berry Oatmeal
A piece of spiced baked oatmeal with juicy blackberries and raspberries is shown on a plate.

Baked Berry Oatmeal

Healthy baked oatmeal recipe with berries. A great make-ahead meal that kids love!
Prepare:
15 minutes
Cook:
30 minutes
Makes:
6 cups
Wheat Berry Salad
Bowl of wheat berries with a colorful vegetable mix.

Wheat Berry Salad

Whole grains and fresh vegetables make this salad filling and satisfying.
Prepare:
20 minutes
Cook:
60 minutes
Makes:
6 Cups
Was this page helpful to you?
CAPTCHA
This question is for testing whether or not you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submissions.