ISSUE #05 - SMALL WEB POTLUCK '26

a zucchini quesadilla sliced 6 ways on a colorful plate, covered in small avocado cubes.

small web potluck: zucchini quesadillas

i’m very excited to be participating in this year’s small web potluck, run by myrtletribe and skep..! i ended up making these zucchini quesadillas from smitten kitchen’s oeuvre, because i’ve been really invested in mixing up my quesadilla recipes. (my other favorite i’ve had lately is the breakfast quesadilla… turns out that egg and bacon are a great addition as well.)

ingredients include:

  • 2-3 zucchini or summer squash, halved and thinly sliced
  • 2-3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
  • ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes or hotter
  • 6 ounces monterey jack cheese (i used closer to 8 and it was fantastic)
  • kosher salt
  • 1 lime, halved

  • 10 6-inch tortillas (recipe calls for corn, i used flour. recipe also calls for 12 tortillas, but my household is pretty small and doesn’t eat that much.)
  • sliced avocado (recipe also calls for cilantro, which i skipped because one of my partners has the soap gene, and thinly sliced jalepeno, which i skipped because i forgot to buy it -_-)
  • olive oil

the experience of cooking this was a lovely one – simple, quick, and used very little dishes, which i always appreciate, considering i don’t have access to a dishwasher. besides the plates, it took one big bowl, one cutting board, one pan, and some knives. once the first quesadilla’s out of the pan the rest of them take very little time to get nice and golden-brown.

speaking of golden-brown… i really thought this recipe would come out more yellow!! no!! first of all, there was no good summer squash at the grocery store, so i ended up just using zucchini. tragic but it had to happen. second of all, monterey jack is a white cheese… so all the yellow here comes from the tortillas, which are not that yellow. c’est la vie.

surprising me, the leftovers were good in the fridge and good reheated (with the exception of the avocado which was just-perfect the night of and would not have lasted another day). we reheated them in the oven and they came out great! so for people who love leftovers, making the full recipe may be good even if you have a smaller household (although maybe not if you’re one person… unless you’re down for quesadillas all week every night) (i would not judge).

however… if you don’t like zucchini this will not be the recipe that changes your mind, and unfortunately for me i am not a huge fan of zucchini. i was REALLY hoping that mixing it in with the cheese and the lime would balance out the flavors enough for me, and while it helped with the texture, the zucchini flavor is very strong still! i imagine this is great for people who like zucchini (my household had nothing but good things to say) but for me it was a little disappointing. what i did learn is that i like avocado! the last time i’d had any was years ago when i was a much pickier eater and i wasn’t sure if i’d enjoy it now, but it’s a better texture for me than it was. maybe this is the year i get into guacamole…?

while breakfast quesadillas may have fit better with the potluck theme i’m still really happy with the excuse to try this and how it turned out :] of the recipes that other folks have brought i am particularly interested in trying the baked mac & cheese + the coconut cake… the way to a cat’s heart is through the dessert. everything looks so delicious!!