Ham And Cheese Quesadillas With Crispy Cheese Edges

This post contains affiliate links. This means that I receive a small commission for items bought through some of the links in this post, at no cost to you. All opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting Gracious Cooking.

Let’s talk about lunch. For me, lunch is by far the hardest meal of the day to get on the table. I just don’t want to do it, but I have these cute children who want to be fed at least three times a day. On top of all that, I have to feed myself. Ugh. Luckily, I have ham and cheese quesadillas with crispy cheese edges to come to my rescue.

Full disclosure, my children will not eat these. They will only eat cheese quesadillas that have been microwaved. They refuse to eat a golden, crispy tortilla with honey mustard spread, ham and cheese filling, and gloriously crispy fried cheese edges. No. Only a sad tortilla microwaved with some cheese. Kids are silly.

So, while I prepare their silly goose quesadillas, I start heating up the pan for my far better lunch. These ham and cheese quesadillas are easy, quick, filling, and satisfying. In other words, all the things I love in a lunch. Let’s get crackin’.

Ingredients For Ham And Cheese Quesadillas

These are infinitely flexible. Don’t eat ham? No problem. Use chicken, veggies, or anything else you have kicking around in your fridge. This is how I make the ham and cheese version, but know that this same method will work for an infinite number of quesadilla combinations. For these I use:

• 8 inch flour tortillas
• Honey mustard spread
• Shredded medium cheddar cheese
• Sliced deli ham

That’s right- just four ingredients stand between you and an actually good lunch.

How Do I Make Those Crispy Cheese Edges?

The crispy edges are made of cheese that is cooked directly on the pan. To do this, you will need a good nonstick skillet. I have the OXO frying pans recommended by America’s Test Kitchen, and I will never use another nonstick pan. Here is the link to the regular version, and here is the induction version. Absolutely nothing sticks to these pans, including glorious crispy cheese.

I like to use a 10 inch skillet for these, but a larger one would work fine too.

Alright, to get those crispy edges the keys are:

1. After you put your tortilla in the preheated skillet, immediately sprinkle the whole tortilla, and the area around the tortilla with cheese. Yes, you are going to put cheese o the naked pan right around the tortilla. The first time you do this it will feel wrong. It is so, so right. Place your other toppings on top of the tortilla
2. Do not attempt to fold your tortilla over until the cheese around the edges has darkened slightly, and holds its shape when you poke it a little bit with the spatula. The cheese will bend, but shouldn’t just fling everywhere when you fold the quesadilla over.
3. Confidently fold the tortilla in half over itself.

Follow these simple steps, and you will be rewarded with a crispy cheese halo for your ham and cheese quesadillas.

Here is a photo of how the cheese will look when you first put it in the pan. Look closely and you will see the edges of the tortilla, and that the cheese goes about an inch beyond that. The quesadilla is not ready to fold over at this stage. The cheese will darken a little bit and become more solid.

How To Make Ham And Cheese Quesadillas With Crispy Cheese Edges

Now that we’ve covered how to get those magnificent crispy, cheesy edges, let’s talk about the rest of the process. It’s short.

1. Preheat your pan over medium heat, maybe a tick over medium.
2. Very lightly butter the pan.
3. Spread a thin layer of honey mustard spread over the tortilla.
4. Add tortilla to the pan, honey mustard side up.
5. Sprinkle cheese all over the tortilla and beyond for crispy edges.
6. Add ham.
7. Cover with a lid to heat the ham through.
8. Remove lid and cook until cheese edges are more solid and ready to fold.
9. Fold tortilla in half over itself, remove from pan, cut in half, and enjoy!

There is a recipe card at the bottom of this post for your convenience, but this is really one of those “no recipe recipes.” You can use whatever filling you’d like. Sometimes I like to add avocado, for example. The world is your oyster. Clean out that fridge.

Sharing Is Caring

Please share this post with your easy lunch loving friends! Maybe they have older children who will appreciate a good quesadilla. Tell them to talk to mine.

Slowly but surely, Gracious Cooking is starting to grow. I’m so grateful for each of you here in our tribe. Please say hello in the comments so I can get to know you!

Lastly, here is a pin to save for later.

Happy cooking!

Carli