Fast Food for Harried Days

My son, Liam, 13, never eats lunch at school. I harp about how it isn’t healthy; I tell him that he needs some energy in the afternoon. But he wants to play basketball or football during recess, and no matter how much I nag, lunch goes uneaten. So eventually I stopped packing sandwiches for him.

Unsurprisingly, he is often famished and grumpy after school, so I try to get something nutritious into that growing adolescent body as quickly as possible. Quesadillas are always a good bet: It takes less than a minute to spread something good on a corn tortilla, sprinkle on some grated cheese and slap another corn tortilla on top. I zap the quesadilla in the microwave for one minute or so, cut it into wedges and it’s good to go.

Liam scarfs it up, sometimes asks for more, drinks a glass of milk — and he’s human again.

These quesadillas have little in common with fast-food varieties, which are made with flour tortillas and a lot more cheese. A Taco Bell cheese quesadilla has 480 calories and 1,000 milligrams of sodium; if you order cheese quesadillas at Baja Fresh, you’re asking for 1,200 calories and 2,140 milligrams of sodium.

I make a meal out of quesadillas by including beans or vegetables with the cheese, and I use corn tortillas rather than flour. Another plus: Quesadillas make a great destination for leftovers.

Baked Bean and Cheese Quesadillas

Beans in a thick sauce make a delicious and comforting quesadilla filling.

2 corn tortillas

1/3 cup cooked baked beans, homemade or canned, with sauce

1 ounce grated Monterey Jack, Cheddar or mixed cheeses (1/4 cup)