Recipe: Chicken Surprise Quesadillas

4 (6 inch) flour tortillas
1 chicken breast, cooked, diced
2 tablespoons salsa
1 small Granny Smith apple, cored, chopped
1/2 cup shredded Colby & Monterey Jack blend cheese

In large skillet, place one tortilla. Layer half of chicken, salsa, apple, and cheese. Place 1 tortilla on top. Cook over medium high heat until golden. Flip. Cook until golden. Remove. Cut into 4 wedges. Repeat process.  Makes 4 to 8 servings.

Recipe can be found on page 42 in MY KIND OF COOKING COOKBOOK

When I make this recipe I butter the outside of the tortillas. It not only adds flavor to the tortilla, it also adds a beautiful golden color. Use your contact grill (George Foreman type grill) when you prepare your quesadilla. It makes a simple quesadilla look gourmet by putting grill marks on the outside of your tortillas. And you don't have to flip your quesadilla, so the ingredients stay between the tortilla instead of falling out as you flip it over. It is the only way I made quesadillas now. 
I came up with this recipe when my husband, Stan, our son, Tyler, and I went to lunch at a downtown restaurant in Albuquerque.  Our son loves quesadillas, so we ordered their grilled chicken quesadilla.  When we bit into the quesadilla we all said "What is in this quesadilla?"  To our surprise, they put a green apple in the quesadilla.  I always carry a small notebook.  I pulled it out and made notes on how I would make it at home. I was stumped on how to get the grill marks on the quesadilla in an easy to make way. We were halfway home before it dawned on me I could use my contact grill and get the same results. 

This is another recipe I made for the Christian singer Steven Curtis Chapman and his band. They loved it! I took a copy of my cookbook to give to Steven's wife. His manager came to me with the book and asked if I could point out which recipes I had made.  When I did, he asked if he could make copies of the recipes. I gave him permission and the next thing I knew everyone was asking for copies. It just goes to show, you don't have to spend hours in the kitchen to make delicious food everyone will love.