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Ultimate Vegan Quesadillas

Ultimate vegan quesadillas recipe without cheese or vegan cheese. Just plant based deliciousness! Flavor packed and protein filled quesadillas without meat in them.

Easy vegan quesadillas recipe packed full of protein and flavor. No meat, no dairy, no vegan cheese! It's a Mexican favorite gone vegan! #vegan #quesadillas #meatless #veganmexican #veganquesadilla #dinner #recipes

Meet the ultimate vegan quesadilla: made with simple plant based ingredients, packed full of “cheesy” flavor without the use of fake cheese, and guaranteed to make you want seconds!

Did anyone else grow up on Taco Bell Quesadillas?

I know I sure did and man did I love them. I don’t eat them anymore, but that doesn’t mean that I can’t create my own recipe at home!

One common thing that people assume about vegans and vegetarians is that they are missing out on the foods they love.

This just isn’t true for most. In my case, I find even more delicious (and healthy!) ways to enjoy foods that I love.

And today that means: these meat free vegan quesadillas.

These vegan quesadillas are all things yummy: “cheesy” creamy filling, fresh crunchy vegetables, and crispy edges browned to perfection.

Easy vegan quesadillas recipe packed full of protein and flavor. No meat, no dairy, no vegan cheese! It's a Mexican favorite gone vegan! #vegan #quesadillas #meatless #veganmexican #veganquesadilla #dinner #recipes

How to make Vegan Quesadillas

There are four steps to making these ultimate vegan quesadillas, are you ready?

Easy vegan quesadillas recipe packed full of protein and flavor. No meat, no dairy, no vegan cheese! It's a Mexican favorite gone vegan! #vegan #quesadillas #meatless #veganmexican #veganquesadilla #dinner #recipes

Step 1: Add your mushrooms, bell pepper, garlic, and onion and olive oil to a large skillet.

Cook over medium heat, stirring often, for 10 – 15 minutes, until the mushrooms cook down and release their liquid.

Be careful not to overcook the veggies, as leaving a little crunch to the peppers will add great texture. Nobody likes mushy veggies!

Fresh veggies add so much flavor to this recipe, and you know how I’m all about fresh garlic and onion!

They are the flavor base to so many of my recipes and always add that extra flavor that makes everything pop. Don’t skip these!

Garlic and onion are staples in my kitchen and I always have them stocked up.

Easy vegan quesadillas recipe packed full of protein and flavor. No meat, no dairy, no vegan cheese! It's a Mexican favorite gone vegan! #vegan #quesadillas #meatless #veganmexican #veganquesadilla #dinner #recipes

You will need a blendtec, vitamix, or food processor to make the filling for these quesadillas.

Step 2: I used my blendtec and it was so easy. Just place your enchilada sauce, cashews, nutritional yeast, salsa, chickpeas, lime juice, and spices into the blender.

The cheese sauce in this recipe is based off of my vegan queso.

Blend on high until smooth and creamy. We want super smooth here, no lumps.

Easy vegan quesadillas recipe packed full of protein and flavor. No meat, no dairy, no vegan cheese! It's a Mexican favorite gone vegan! #vegan #quesadillas #meatless #veganmexican #veganquesadilla #dinner #recipes

This filling is so flavorful. I wanted to eat it with chips!

Think vegan cheesy bean dip texture, but spread on a quesadilla it turns to creamy cheese like taste.

It is so addictive!

Easy vegan quesadillas recipe packed full of protein and flavor. No meat, no dairy, no vegan cheese! It's a Mexican favorite gone vegan! #vegan #quesadillas #meatless #veganmexican #veganquesadilla #dinner #recipes

The filling is very similar to the one I made for the tofu in my vegan breakfast burrito recipe but with the addition of chickpeas for added protein.

Cashews make it super creamy and the nutritional yeast adds that savory cheesy flavor.

I have loved nutritional yeast since I was a kid. It’s so “cheesy” tasting but hard to describe quite right if you haven’t had it before.

I really recommend trying nutritional yeast or “nooch” as it is sometimes called if you are on a vegan or dairy free diet. It will change your life!

Also necessary for the filling: enchilada sauce, fresh lime (always!), salsa, chickpeas and a few favorite spices to make the flavor pop.

Easy vegan quesadillas recipe packed full of protein and flavor. No meat, no dairy, no vegan cheese! It's a Mexican favorite gone vegan! #vegan #quesadillas #meatless #veganmexican #veganquesadilla #dinner #recipes

Blend it all up til it’s nice and creamy like this and you’re ready to go!

How to assemble the vegan quesadillas

First, spread the filling in an even layer onto one half of a tortilla. Not too thick but not too thin.

Place ⅛ of the vegetables on top and spread out.

Fold the tortilla in half.

Repeat steps for remaining 8 tortillas, until all filling and vegetables are used.

Easy vegan quesadillas recipe packed full of protein and flavor. No meat, no dairy, no vegan cheese! It's a Mexican favorite gone vegan! #vegan #quesadillas #meatless #veganmexican #veganquesadilla #dinner #recipes

Making the quesadillas this way allows them a better chance to get crispy all around, as well as making them easier to flip.

Coat a skillet with olive oil and make your quesadillas in batches. Cook for 2 – 4 minutes per side, until crispy.

The time will vary per side depending on your skillet, so just keep an eye on them closely.

Once you make one batch, you will have a better idea of how long each side needs and the rest will be a cinch!

Once you cook them on both sides, cut each one into three pieces like this:

Easy vegan quesadillas recipe packed full of protein and flavor. No meat, no dairy, no vegan cheese! It's a Mexican favorite gone vegan! #vegan #quesadillas #meatless #veganmexican #veganquesadilla #dinner #recipes

Serve alone, or with salsa, fresh lime, and sliced avocado.

Fresh lime is my favorite way to top any mexican dish. These were so protein packed that we ate them without avocado and were still stuffed!

Easy vegan quesadillas recipe packed full of protein and flavor. No meat, no dairy, no vegan cheese! It's a Mexican favorite gone vegan! #vegan #quesadillas #meatless #veganmexican #veganquesadilla #dinner #recipes

Easy no cheese quesadillas!

This recipe makes a ton and will easily serve 4 – 6 people as a main dish.

Each quesadilla is cut into thirds, so  this recipe yields 24 small quesadilla pieces.

I ate mine with no salsa or any garnishment and it was incredible!

Are you making this recipe? I can’t wait to see! Don’t forget to tag me on instagram @buildyourbite and hashtag #buildyourbite with your recipe creations!

Easy vegan quesadillas recipe packed full of protein and flavor. No meat, no dairy, no vegan cheese! It's a Mexican favorite gone vegan! #vegan #quesadillas #meatless #veganmexican #veganquesadilla #dinner #recipes

To see more meatless mexican recipes, visit my mexican archives. For more recipes, follow along on pinterest, twitter, facebook, or instagram!

More vegan recipes

Easy vegan quesadillas recipe packed full of protein and flavor. No meat, no dairy, no vegan cheese! It's a Mexican favorite gone vegan! #vegan #quesadillas #meatless #veganmexican #veganquesadilla #dinner #recipes

Did you make this recipe? Be sure to leave a star rating below!

Easy vegan quesadillas recipe packed full of protein and flavor. No meat, no dairy, no vegan cheese! It's a Mexican favorite gone vegan! #vegan #quesadillas #meatless #veganmexican #veganquesadilla #dinner #recipes

Vegan Quesadillas Recipe

Yield: 6 servings
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 45 minutes

The best vegan quesadilla recipe with cheesy filling and veggies.

Ingredients

  • 8 whole wheat tortilla shells
  • avocado, for serving
  • Salsa, for serving

For the filling:

  • 8 oz enchilada sauce
  • 1 cup roasted salted cashews
  • ⅓ cup nutritional yeast
  • ⅓ cup chunky salsa
  • 15 oz can of chickpeas, drained
  • juice of 1 large lime
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon chili powder

For the veggies:

  • 1 green bell pepper, diced
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 8 cloves of garlic, minced
  • 8 oz sliced mushrooms
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil

Instructions

  1. To a high speed blender or food processor, add enchilada sauce, cashews, nutritional yeast, salsa, drained chickpeas, lime juice, salt, cumin, and chili powder
  2. Pulse/blend until smooth
  3. Add bell pepper, onion, garlic, and olive oil to a skillet and saute over medium high heat for 10 - 15 minutes, until mushrooms cook down
  4. Heat a large skillet over medium to medium high heat and oil to coat
  5. Assemble quesadillas by spreading the filling mixture in an even layer onto one half of the tortilla
  6. Add vegetables on top, and fold tortilla over in half
  7. Repeat steps for remaining 7 tortillas
  8. Cook 1 - 2 quesadillas at a time depending on the size of your skillet
  9. Cook for 2 - 4 minutes per side, until crispy
  10. Oil pan again before adding new quesadillas each time
  11. Serve with optional salsa and avocado

Notes

This will serve 4 - 6 people as a main dish. We cut each quesadilla into 3 pieces, so this recipe will make 24 quesadilla pieces

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Nutrition Information:
Yield: 6 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 445Total Fat: 14gSaturated Fat: 4gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 8gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 1192mgCarbohydrates: 67gFiber: 17gSugar: 16gProtein: 18g

Did you make this recipe?

Be sure to tag me on instagram @buildyourbite and hashtag #buildyourbite with your recipe creations!

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Nicole

Tuesday 6th of July 2021

I’ve had this recipe saved for awhile and finally tried it tonight. Boy were we missing out. It was delicious! It’ll definitely be a regular in our house now. I’m not kidding when I say, it is one of the only meals all 3 of my kids have enjoyed. Usually at least one of them dislikes the meal and I have to make something else for them. Thank you so much for sharing this delicious yet healthy recipe! P.S. your blog is a lifesaver for me. We regularly make many of your recipes and have never once been disappointed.

Joy Shull

Thursday 8th of July 2021

Nicole,

That is so wonderful to hear! I'm so glad you have enjoyed this recipe and others. Thanks for taking time to comment :)

Linda

Tuesday 2nd of June 2020

omg!!! that cheese sauce was absolutely amazing! i left out the cumin...not a huge fan & knew the chili powder would be enough. This stuff is addictive. Might need some jalapenos! its a cheese..its a sauce..its a dip!!!

Linda

Joy Shull

Saturday 6th of June 2020

So glad you enjoyed the recipe Linda!

Jess

Thursday 9th of January 2020

Can we talk about how delicious the filling/cheese sauce is?! It is divine! I am now thinking of how I can put this on everything! I will certainly be using this for nacho dipping or really any nacho recipe. So much yum!!

Kristy

Sunday 17th of March 2019

Hi- What would be a good replacement for the cashews since we have a tree-nut allergy in my house? Thanks!

Ashley

Sunday 16th of September 2018

Really great recipe, filled with nutrition!

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