The simple way to get all of the flavors of jalapeño poppers with minimal work. These Vegan Jalapeño Popper Quesadillas are creamy, crunchy and a little spicy.
I tell you time and time again how much I love spicy food.
Especially if jalapeños are involved.
And while I love making a batch of my Vegan Baked Jalapeño Poppers, sometimes you just want that flavor without putting in all that work.
I'm talking the de-seeding, the breading, the baking.
With these Quesadillas we are simply going to sauté some onions until tender, add in some garlic, jalapeño slices and seasoning, then wrap it all up in a tortilla with some vegan cream cheese.
Throw it on the stove for a couple minutes per side and you are ready to eat.
It really is that simple.
TSV TIP: My favorite vegan cream cheese brands are Trader Joe's, GoVeggie, Tofutti and Kite Hill.
These quesadillas pack so much flavor into a small package.
Not so big on a lot of spice?
Deseed your jalapeños before sautéing them. They will already lose some spice as you cook them down, but the seeds are where the spice lives. By removing those, you will cut down the spice level significantly.
I made these more "appetizer-style" by using two medium sized tortillas per quesadilla.
You could easily swap out the two medium tortillas for one large one. Rather than placing another tortilla on top, you will just fold it in half.
Vegan Jalapeño Popper Quesadillas
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 red onion sliced
- 2 jalapeños sliced in rounds
- 4 cloves garlic peeled and diced
- 1 tsp chili powder
- salt & pepper
- 4-8 oz vegan cream cheese*
- 2-4 teaspoon vegan butter
- 8 medium flour tortillas**
Instructions
- Heat olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add onion and saute until onions are tender (approx. 7-10 minutes), stirring frequently.
- Add jalapeños, garlic, chili powder, salt and pepper to the pan and continue to cook until jalapeños have softened (approx. 2-4 minutes). Remove from heat.
- Spread 1-2 tablespoons of cream cheese on each tortilla.
- Divide onion mixture between 4 of the tortillas. Top with remaining tortillas (cream cheese side down).
- Heat ½ teaspoon of butter*** in a pan over medium heat. After it has melted, add 1 quesadilla to the pan. Cook until the bottom is browned and crispy (approx. 2-4 minutes). Flip and cook until the other side is browned and crispy. Remove from the pan.
- Add additional butter to the pan and repeat with remaining quesadillas.
- Slice and serve immediately.
Notes
This post may contain affiliate links. If you click on one and make a purchase I will receive a small percentage of the sale. Please know I would never link a product unless I have personally used it and loved it!
If you make this recipe be sure to snap a photo + post it + and tag #thissavoryvegan and @thissavoryvegan!
Margaux
This is my new favorite party appetizer! It's simple, delicious and a total crowd pleaser! Vegan cream cheese is just the right amount of creamy without the fake cheese taste.
Rene
Woo who! So glad you liked it!!!
Lauren
I can't believe I only just discovered this recipe! Extremely tasty and EASY to make. I love that the vegan cream cheese also makes them reasonably healthy; I used Tofutti and it worked great.
Rene
Awesome! So glad you liked these!
Mae
I made these twice this week—they are *that* amazing!! i am thrilled to find a new delicious, culinary use for my Kite Hill cream cheese.
Rene
Yes! Love Kite Hill - so glad you liked these.