For an easy-to-make snack, look to the toaster sitting on your countertop. Though you might only associate the convenient appliance with golden pieces of toast or sliced bagels, the cooking slots can also accommodate wraps and tortillas. With the right folding technique, you can heat up a cheese-filled tortilla to make a warm, gooey quesadilla any time of the day.
Place your choices of cheese, shredded chicken, spices, or diced vegetables into the center of a tortilla and fold the sides inward to create a food envelope. You’ll want to fold the tortilla strategically, moving the sides towards each other before making another fold in half so that the ingredients are held snugly in place, and there’s only one opening. As you insert the filled and folded tortilla into the toaster, be sure that the opening of this tortilla pocket is facing skywards and the sturdy base is pointed at the bottom of the device. Toast the pieces just as you would slices of bread, or set the toaster setting for a bit longer if you’re looking for an extra-crunchy finish for your toaster-quesadilla.
A toaster quesadilla is a tasty snack in a flash
Pay close attention to the way you fold your tortilla rounds before inserting them into the slots of the toaster to avoid any unnecessary mess. You may need to scale back the amount of cheese and other ingredients you place into tortillas, but the quick efficiency of this cooking method will make up for any lack of ingredients. Use store-bought tortillas or make your own flour tortillas from scratch to have on hand for the next time hunger cravings strike.
Once you’ve mastered the toaster-quesadilla folding technique, you may find yourself reaching for tortillas more often. While this easy-cook approach can be used to make cheesy quesadillas, you can also fill whole grain tortillas with peanut butter, sprinkles of cinnamon, flaky sea salt, and slices of fruits like bananas, apples, or pears. You may want to eat your quesadilla straight out of the toaster, but just because your cooking method is quick doesn’t mean you have to skimp on presentation. You could plate your quesadillas with cilantro or avocado slices or drizzles of honey for nut-butter versions and serve them as if you’ve taken the pieces straight off a sheet pan pulled out of a hot oven.
