Name: Chipotle Quesadilla with Avocado
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 20 min
Yield: 4
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 1 recipe Spicy Chipotle Sauce; 15-ounce can black beans; 1/4 teaspoon cumin; 1/2 tablespoon olive oil; 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt; 2 avocados; 1 1/2 cups shredded Mexican blend cheese; 1 cup corn kernels, frozen or fresh; 8 whole wheat tortillas (or gluten-free tortillas); Cilantro, for a garnish

Avocado makes this chipotle quesadilla recipe creamy without overloading on the cheese, and the chipotle tahini sauce sends it over the top.

This post is sponsored by the Hass Avocado Board. All opinions are our own.

I’m a strong believer in baby steps. You know, those small steps that when added together, propel you toward a major change? I’m impatient by nature, so it’s taken me a while to get on board with that theory. But when Alex and I set out to change our diet from fast and processed food to home cooking, there’s no way we could have gone cold turkey.

What inspired us was a book that said we didn’t have to change all at once: just start taking small steps in the right direction. It took a lot of the pressure off, and helped us to feel free to experiment and find what worked for us. Recipes like this avocado black bean chipotle quesadilla are exactly what helped us to eat more plants in a delicious way. Keep reading for how to make this quick weeknight dinner!

Avocado Black Bean Vegetarian Quesadilla

Why make this chipotle quesadilla

This vegetarian chipotle quesadilla recipe is about small steps toward a major diet change. If you aren’t quite ready for one of those hippie style Buddha bowls of vegetables but want to start cleaning up your diet, this one’s for you. It’s a familiar recipe with mass appeal, but it’s homemade with natural whole foods and full of both nutrients.

Most importantly, this chipotle quesadilla is bursting with flavor — the kind where both Alex and I both mutter “Whoa” while still chewing the first bite. The star ingredient here is creamy avocado, which adds healthy fats and richness to the filling without the need for a massive amount of cheese. And the zesty chipotle lime tahini sauce is the showstopper. I may have licked the bowl clean (ok, I did).

Eating this chipotle quesadilla isn’t a health elixir, but research is beginning to show that eating well has a major effect on preventing conditions like Type 2 diabetes and heart disease. Simply cooking whole foods at home can add up to making a huge impact on your health and those around you. Baby steps. But someday, those baby steps may add up into a giant step towards sustainable health.

Avocado nutrition facts

Given our passion about the link between diet and health, we created this vegetarian chipotle quesadilla recipe out of a partnership with the Hass Avocado Board. The Hass Avocado board has teamed up with the American Diabetes Association in a national Stop Diabetes movement to increase awareness about the role that good fats play in daily nutrition. Not that you need any more motivation to eat the avocado, but it’s full of healthy fats and nutrients! Here are some avocado nutrition facts:

Avocados have naturally good monounsaturated fat and are cholesterol free. Research now shows naturally good fats are an important part of a healthy diet.
Over 75% of the fat in avocados is unsaturated, making them a great substitute for foods high in saturated fat.
Avocados are nutrient-dense and have 8% the daily value of fiber per serving. Diets rich in foods containing fiber have been found to potentially reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes. Fiber also adds bulk to a sensible diet, which helps provide a feeling of fullness.
Avocados have less than 1 gram sugar per 1-ounce, the least amount of sugar per serving of any other fresh fruit.
Avocados have nearly 20 vitamins, minerals and phytonutrients, making it a good choice to help meet nutrient needs. Although phytonutrients are not essential, they may promote human health.
Avocados act as a “nutrient booster” by helping the body to better absorb fat-soluble nutrients, such as alpha- and beta-carotene and lutein, from foods that are eaten with the fruit.

Step it up a notch! Make this quesadilla with Grilled Avocado.

Chipotle quesadilla with avocado and black beans | Vegetarian quesadill

What’s in this chipotle sauce?

The chipotle in this chipotle quesadilla comes from a bit of adobo sauce from a can of chipotle chilis. Chipotles in adobo sauce are sold in most mainstream grocery stores here in the US, available next to the Mexican products. The small can includes chipotle chiles, which are smoked and dried jalapeños that then are rehydrated and canned in adobo sauce, a purée of tomato, vinegar, garlic, and some other spices.

Most of our recipes call for a very small amount of adobo sauce, because it’s super potent! In this sauce, we’ve called for only 1 teaspoon of adobo sauce (which includes little bits of chipotle chilis). You can freeze the remainder of the chipotle chile in adobo sauce for future use.

Related: Try these quesadillas with homemade Mexican Crema or Cashew Cream drizzled on top!

More avocado recipes

Outside of this chipotle quesadilla with avocados, here are a few more healthy avocado recipes on A Couple Cooks and beyond:

This chipotle quesadilla recipe is…

Vegetarian. For gluten-free, use corn or gluten-free tortillas.