Easy Jack O Lantern Quesadillas Recipe

At every age, the Halloween holiday (October 31) is one single fun, festive day to look forward to each year. However, for many Halloween lovers, it is not just a holi-DAY we are talking about, but rather, an entire season! For recipe developer Kristen Carli, a registered dietitian in private practice at Camelback Nutrition & Wellness, Halloween starts as soon as the calendar changes over to October. "I love to make easy but cute Halloween food throughout the entire month of October," Carli says.

This particular recipe for jack-o'-lantern quesadillas happens to be one of Carli's favorites, because it offers such a fantastic return on one's kitchen-related investment, so to speak. As Carli explains, these jack-o'-lantern quesadillas are "an easy way to get festive for Halloween," according to Carli, offering "adorable" results but not requiring a whole lot of "time or effort." And certainly, much less time than it would take to carve an actual pumpkin into a jack-o'-lantern!

As you might have already guessed, making Carli's recipe for jack-o'-lantern quesadillas requires nothing in the way of pumpkins. However, if you're craving the seasonal flavor and texture of pumpkin, then Carli has a recipe for pumpkin curry sauce. 

Now, back to this certifiably no-pumpkins-were-harmed-for-this recipe for jack-o'-lantern quesadillas. What you will need are tortillas and cheese. Specifically, Carli's recipe calls for two large flour tortillas and ½ cup of shredded cheddar cheese for each individual jack-o'-lantern that you plan on making. So if you are cook for four, you'll need eight large flour tortillas and 2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese. So, do keep that in mind when shopping.

This recipe for jack-o'-lantern quesadillas is essentially a fun, Mexican-inspired version of grilled cheese, and you're going to need some heat in order to melt the cheese. However, you won't be doing your cheese-melting on the stove, but rather in the oven. So go ahead and preheat your oven to 350 F. 

While you're waiting for your oven to heat up, take out one tortilla, and using a paring knife, carve out your jack-o'-lantern face. It doesn't have to look exactly like the one in the photo above! In fact, you can also use jack-o'-lantern stencils (they're fairly inexpensive on Amazon) to create any design you'd like. Repeat this step for each jack-o'-lantern quesadilla you plan to make. 

In this step, you'll be giving your jack-o'-lantern its distinctive orange color and stuffing it with the goodness of cheddar cheese. So, take the un-carved tortilla, and place it on a plate. Place ½ cup of cheese in the center of the tortilla, and spread it out so that it covers most of the tortilla, leaving around an inch at the margin. Now, place the tortilla that you "carved" over the cheese. Repeat this step for each jack-o'-lantern quesadilla you plan to make.

Give your pizza pan a spritz of nonstick spray. Then, when your oven has preheated to 350 F, carefully slide your assembled, stuffed jack-o'-lantern quesadilla from plate to pizza pan. If you feel intimidated, Carli assures us it's easy — especially if you use two spatulas. Slide your quesadilla into the oven, set a timer for five minutes, and at the end of five minutes, check to see if the cheese has melted. If so, then you're ready to serve. Repeat this step for each jack-o'-lantern quesadilla you plan to make.

After serving, but prior to eating, you can slice the quesadilla into wedges to enjoy as finger food, Carli recommends. This is a fun meal to make for family or friends, or for any Halloween gathering you are planning!