Roasted Mushroom Quesadillas

I love that so many recipes in Mark Bittman's Food Matters Cook Book teach basic techniques, like the Roasted Mushroom Quesadillas recipe. Roasting mushrooms is pretty basic, but I'd never tried it before this recipe. I love the chewy, meaty texture of roasted mushrooms and will also make them for salads, wraps, or in pastas. I'd also never baked quesadillas before. Bittman was right: the whole wheat tortillas puff up, so this quesadilla was like a savory pastry that was wonderful. It would be fantastic with tofu sour cream and salsa. I had neither, but still really liked it served with Sauteed Collards for dinner. Roasted Mushroom Quesadillas
Makes 1 quesadilla

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 pound button or cremini mushrooms, sliced thinly
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon sage
• sprinkling of red pepper flakes (or a tablespoon minced chili pepper)
• 1/4 cup vegan shredded cheese (I used Daiya mozzarella)
• 2 whole wheat tortillas

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400. Add oil to baking sheet and put it in the oven for 2 minutes to let the oil get hot.
2. Add the sliced mushrooms, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and toss to coat.
3. Bake for 5 to 10 minutes, until shrooms start releasing their moisture. (Note that Bittman's recipe calls for baking 20 minutes, which seems way too long.)
4. Add the garlic, red pepper flakes, and sage and toss to coat. Bake another 10 minutes or so, stirring occasionally, until they're dry but not burned. When done, add more salt and pepper to taste.
5. Put the tortillas side by side on a baking sheet, sprinkle with the cheese (it's just enough to get the tortillas to stick together) and add the mushrooms. Bake 5-10 minutes until the cheese starts to melt and it starts to puff up.
6. Put the tortillas together and press so cheese melds together. Bake another few minutes until it's golden and crisp. Serve immediately.