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Turkey, kale and cheese quesadillas

Turkey, kale and cheese quesadillas, a great way to use leftovers.

To tell you my husband Ted and I loved these quesadillas would be an understatement. So, I'll just tell you that we devoured them three days in a row, which, if you have lots and lots of turkey leftovers, is a good thing to know. Pull out any shredded cheese you have in your freezer, any salsa (or chutney, or even leftover cranberry sauce) from the fridge, and any type of tortillas you have on hand; I love these habanero-lime tortillas from Trader Joe's, which are both orange and spicy. Cook the kale with salsa or sofrito to give it a bit of a kick, and you have a quesadilla so good you'll forget you're eating Thanksgiving leftovers.

Stick lots of leftovers into these turkey, kale and cheese quesadillas.

Turkey, kale and cheese quesadillas

From the pantry, you'll need: tortillas, onion, olive oil, grated or shredded cheese, salsa (or sofrito).

Serves 2; can be multiplied.

Ingredients

2 tsp olive oil
3 Tbsp chopped onion
4-5  cups chopped kale
2 Tbsp salsa or sofrito
2 large tortillas, any flavor
1/2 cup shredded cooked turkey
1/2 cup grated Cheddar cheese

Directions

In a large nonstick frying pan, heat the oil over low-medium heat. Sauté the onion for 2-3 minutes, until lightly browned. Add the kale and salsa or sofrito, and stir until the kale wilts and reduces in volume by half. Remove the pan from heat.

Preheat a griddle or a larger nonstick frying pan over medium heat.

Assemble the quesadillas: place the tortillas on your countertop. On one side of each of the tortillas, layer 2 Tbsp of cheese, half of the cooked kale, half of the chicken, and the rest of the cheese. Fold the tortilla in half, and place it on the griddle.

Cook until the tortilla is browned on the bottom, and the bottom layer of cheese has melted. With a spatula, gently flip the tortilla and cook until the second side is lightly browned.

Remove the quesadilla to a cutting board, and let it rest for 4-5 minutes before cutting into wedges with a serrated knife. Serve with additional salsa.

[Printer-friendly recipe.]


More turkey leftovers:
Turkey salad with grapes and walnuts, from The Perfect Pantry
Bacon, kale and turkey stew, from The Kitchn
Leftover turkey tacos with cranberry salsa, from Love and Olive Oil
Turkey chilaquiles with homemade sauce, from Cooking With The Whineaux

Turkey, kale and cheese quesadillas, perfect with leftover Thanksgiving turkey or rotisserie turkey at any time of year.


Disclosure: The Perfect Pantry earns a few pennies on purchases made through the Amazon.com links in this post. Thank you for supporting this site when you start your shopping here.

Comments

Yummm.... I will have to look for those delicious sounding tortillas at TJs!
I actually used up my leftover kale from our salad with some crumbled cooked sausage and tomato sauce in a "pasta bake!"

I will have to wait to Christmas until I have left over turkey but I will definitely be trying these, they sound delicious!

I am on a huge kale kick right now, so these quesadillas are the perfect way to satisfy my craving!

Carol, you always do such interesting things with leftovers!

Jayne, try these quesadillas with sliced roast chicken, too.

Kelly, this is my year of eating more kale, and of all the dishes I've made, this is one of my favorites!

I just love this idea for using up leftover turkey - great way to get the green veggies in too!

My goodness this sounds fantastic.

These look so tasty...I love greens in quesadillas, such a great addition.

Jeanette, no hiding those green veggies in this dish -- I really pack them in!

Kita, thanks, I hope you try these quesadillas.

Sara, believe it or not, I've only recently started adding greens to my quesadillas. Now I love it.

Mmmm great meal and without leftovers I'd be willing to make a bit of chicken just for these.

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