I had this random sweet potato sitting on the counter for weeks. It was leftover from some soup I made. I was planning to roast it or mash it or do something with it, but I kept forgetting. So it sat there withering away, until it was so wrinkly and soft that I tossed it out. Then literally two days later I saw this recipe and wanted to make it immediately, so I had to go out and buy a new sweet potato. Sigh. I hate when that happens.

The good news is that it was totally worth it. These quesadillas are awesome. I know, I know, you’re thinking, how good could a quesadilla without cheese be? But I swear you won’t even miss it. They are smoky and spicy and a little crunchy. I don’t think I’ve ever had grated sweet potatoes before, and it was a bit of a revelation. The jalapeño provides just the right amount of heat, and the corn adds these little pops of sweetness. So good!

To make quick work of grating the sweet potato, feed it through the food processor using the shredding disc. You can make the filling in advance and then assemble and cook the quesadillas before dinner. Serve them with salsa, diced avocado, cashew cream, or regular sour cream. If you don’t have smoked paprika, substitute chili powder or increase the amount of cumin to 1 1/2 teaspoons.

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Sweet Potato and Corn Quesadillas

Vegan (cheeseless!) chili-spiked quesadillas with sweet potato and corn.

Total Time 40 minutes

Servings 4

Author Cheating Vegan

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 1 small onion diced
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 medium to large sweet potato about 3 cups, peeled and coarsely grated
• 1 jalapeño seeded and minced
• 1 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup fresh or frozen corn kernals
• 6 flour tortillas 8-inch

Instructions

1. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and translucent, 8 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for 1 minute more.
2. Add the sweet potato, jalapeño, cumin, smoked paprika, and oregano, and season with salt and pepper. Toss to combine. Cover and cook until the sweet potato is crisp-tender, 5 to 8 minutes. (If your skillet doesn't have a lid just tent it with foil.) Stir in the corn and toss until heated through.
3. Spread about 1/2 cup of the filling on one half of each tortilla and fold to enclose. Wipe out the skillet, then coat with nonstick spray and heat over medium-high heat. Working in batches, cook the quesadillas until crisp and golden brown, about 3 minutes per side.