This is like, “the week of quesadillas” at my house. LOL. When the concept for these super easy creamy quesadillas first came into my head I couldn’t decide whether to make them with chicken or do a vegetarian version, so I just made both! While I love both versions of this quesadilla, the incredible ease and low cost of these Creamy White Bean and Spinach Quesadillas might make them the winner. They literally only take about 20 minutes and are so freaking good.
If you want the chicken version, head over to the post for Creamy Chicken and Spinach Quesadillas.
What to Serve with Spinach and White Bean Quesadillas
Because the filling for these quesadillas is so rich and creamy, they really benefit from being served with a nice tangy salsa. The salsa I used is a smoky chipotle red salsa, which paired so well with the flavors of the quesadillas. Normally quesadillas would be served with some sour cream or guacamole dolloped on top, but there is so much creaminess already that I think that would be overkill.
What type of white beans should I use?
I definitely suggest using cannellini beans for this recipe because of their large size, firm texture, and ability to hold their shape. Other white beans, like navy beans, tend to break down and are better suited for use in soups, stews, or recipes where they’ll be mashed. If you want to read more about the common types of white beans and how they’re best used, check out this helpful guide from Camellia Beans.
Creamy White Bean and Spinach Quesadillas
Servings 4 quesadillasIngredients
- 1 15oz. can cannellini beans ($0.69)
- 3/4 tsp chili powder ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp ground cumin ($0.03)
- 1/8 tsp garlic powder ($0.02)
- 1/8 tsp salt ($0.02)
- 2 cups fresh spinach ($0.87)
- 4 oz. pepper jack cheese, shredded ($1.00)
- 1/2 cup sour cream ($0.35)
- 4 8-inch flour tortillas ($0.96)
Instructions
- Rinse and drain the cannellini beans well. Once well drained, transfer them to a bowl and add the chili powder, cumin, garlic powder, and salt. Stir to combine the beans with the spices.
- Roughly chop the spinach into smaller pieces. Add the spinach, cheese, and sour cream to the bowl with the beans, then stir to combine.
- Divide the spinach and bean mixture between the four tortillas, then fold them in half to close.
- Cook the quesadillas, one or two at a time, in a skillet* over medium heat until the tortillas are brown and crispy and the filling is melted and gooey (3-5 minutes each side).
- Cut the quesadillas in half, then serve.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Notes
Nutrition
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How to Make Spinach and White Bean Quesadillas – Step by Step Photos
Begin by rinsing and draining a 15oz. can of cannellini beans. Make sure they’re drained well, then place them in a bowl with 3/4 tsp chili powder, 1/4 tsp cumin, 1/8 tsp garlic powder, and 1/8 tsp salt. Stir to coat the beans in the spices.
Roughly chop about 2 cups of spinach into smaller pieces.
Combine the seasoned beans and chopped spinach in a bowl with 4 oz. shredded pepper jack cheese and 1/2 cup sour cream. Stir to combine these ingredients.
Divide the spinach and bean mixture between the four tortillas, covering half of the tortilla, then fold them in half to close.
Cook the quesadillas, one or two at a time, in a skillet over medium heat until the tortillas are brown and crispy, and the filling is melted. I don’t add oil to my skillet, but you can if you prefer a more fried-like texture to the tortillas. (The residue you see in the skillet is splatter from juices coming out of the quesadilla.)
Slice the cooked quesadillas in half and serve!
As mentioned above, I LOVE these Creamy White Bean and Spinach Quesadillas served with a nice tangy salsa!
These were really good! We all enjoyed them, and our 5-year-old especially gobbled them up. I scooped out 1/4 of the beans, spices, and spinach and mixed in homemade vegan cream cheese, with the remaining 3/4 made to recipe. Both versions went over well. They’re very filling and were easy to pull together quickly with two tiny sous-chefs. We served with the cilantro lime rice on this site. We’ll definitely add these to the rotation.
Pretty good! I tripled the seasoning, added onion, smoked paprika, and diced jalapeños and it was great. Got full off of 2 honestly
I can’t wait to try this, but I may mash the beans a bit and heat them up and use gf corn tortillas. This is such a great alternative to refried bean quesadillas! YUM! Thank you Beth!
I found these to be a bit plain, at least in part because the cheap chipotle salsa I bought was not good. In a second batch, I increased the chili powder and cumin by 1/4 tsp each and added 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper. That made a difference for me. I’ll definitely try these again with a better salsa.
I had leftover cream cheese mix from your cucumber sandwich recipe, so I added it to these along with the jack cheese. Super yum. Thanks for this tasty recipe!
Genius!
My toddler and my picky husband both loved this! Super easy to make. I used mozzarella because it’s what I had but followed the recipe otherwise. Delicious- thank you!
Made this for lunch today! Used frozen spinach (about 1 cup) and dairy free sour cream – it was great even with my substitutions! Really “beefed” up the regular lunch time quesadilla. Definitely felt full (which I don’t when I just use cheese and tortillas). My 8 yo also ate every bite, even though he “doesn’t like” spinach or beans :D .
Really good! I made these using corn tortillas because I needed them to be gluten free. They were awesome and my girlfriend loved them too and made sure I saved the recipe. Very easy to make.