Hummus Quesadillas!
These quesadillas are made with hummus instead of cheese, and they are absolutely delicious! Hummus quesadillas are a healthy dairy-free and vegan meal.
Updated by Kathryne Taylor on October 1, 2024
Yesterday was not my day. I made a very dumb, very expensive mistake, and I need you to tell me you have made a very dumb and expensive mistake before, too. I hit the side of my car against… a pole. A stationary pole.
To be fair, the turn requires a sharp right past the pole, and there is no curb to protect cars from hitting the pole. Yet, I have driven by this pole 100 times without hitting it before. It happened in broad daylight outside my favorite local health food store, as I was on my way to buy these tortillas.
I called my mom, drove home and put these expensive tortillas to good use. I made quesadillas, with hummus instead of cheese! Did you know that’s an option? I stumbled upon this idea after successfully testing a variation of quesadillas with vegan sour cream instead of shredded cheese for my cookbook.
As a dairy eater, believe me when I say that that vegan sour cream recipe (available in the book) is absolutely delicious. I often prefer it to the usual dairy options because it’s lighter and plant-based, and it has inspired me to find more non-dairy solutions. I wondered later, “Could I make quesadillas with hummus, too?” Yep!
Quesadillas have been my default quick meal since college. Now that my fridge is no longer overflowing with cookbook leftovers, I’ve been whipping them up again. The key is to make each quesadilla with one tortilla, folded down the middle, rather than trying to sandwich everything between two tortillas. The two-tortilla sandwich situation is difficult to flip and liable to lose all of its fillings when sliced. Trust me. You can make two folded tortillas in one skillet, if necessary (see photo, above).
Hummus is made with chickpeas and tahini, so it’s a protein-rich, vegan/dairy-free option. For minimally processed hummus quesadillas, make your own hummus or buy a store-bought option that is free of preservatives. ALDI and Trader Joe’s offer some tasty organic options. Tortillas often contain excess ingredients, too. My favorite brand is Stacey’s Organic. I store them in the freezer when I know I won’t be able to use them up within a week or less.
Feel free to go wild with your flavor of hummus and fillings. For the photos here, I used roasted garlic hummus and picked some Mediterranean flavors to go with it—sun-dried tomatoes, olives and sautéed spinach. Let me know how you stuff yours!
Hummus Quesadillas!
These quesadillas are made with hummus instead of cheese, and they are absolutely delicious! Hummus quesadillas are a healthy dairy-free and vegan meal. Recipe below makes one folded/half-moon quesadilla; multiply as necessary.
Ingredients
Per quesadilla
- One 8-inch whole grain tortilla (or gluten-free tortilla for gluten-free quesadillas)
- ¼ to ⅓ cup hummus of choice (green goddess hummus is my favorite)
- Fillings of your choice (I used a handful of sautéed spinach in olive oil, rinsed oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes, and some thinly sliced Kalamata olives)
- Extra-virgin olive oil, for brushing
- Optional, for serving: additional hummus, hot sauce, pesto, etc.
Instructions
- Spread hummus generously over your tortilla. Lightly cover one-half of the tortilla with fillings of your choice. Fold the blank half over to create a half-moon shape. Repeat if you’d like to make more than one quesadilla; you can cook up to two at a time in the same skillet.
- Warm a medium skillet over medium heat. Place the folded quesadilla(s) in the pan. Let the bottom sides warm up for a minute or two, then carefully flip. Brush the warm sides lightly with olive oil and let them cook in the pan for another minute or two. Carefully flip once again, brush the new top side lightly with olive oil, and cook until the bottom is lightly golden and crisp. Carefully flip and cook until that side is lightly golden and crisp.
- Transfer the quesadilla(s) to a cutting board and let them rest for a couple of minutes. Then, use a sharp chef’s knife or pizza cutter to slice each quesadilla into three wedges. Serve immediately. I enjoyed mine as-is, but you might like some additional hummus on the side, or perhaps some hot sauce or a dab of pesto.
Notes
Serving suggestions: This quesadilla would go great with a simple green side salad or almost any of my other salad recipes.
Storage suggestions: These quesadillas are at their crisp best right after making, but they will keep well for about three days in the refrigerator, covered. Gently reheat before serving, if desired.
If you love this recipe: Check out more quesadilla recipes and my favorite hummus sandwich recipe.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
Oh no!! Sorry to hear about your car! I once put a huge scrape down the side of my car in a parking garage with very sharp turns, so you are not alone!!
Thanks, Karen! Sorry about your car, too. It’s rough out there!
This sounds delicious. I’ll go out now and buy some gluten free tortillas. Regarding the unfortunate incident with the pole that jumped out at your car…I’ve had more than a few of these types of things occur. It happened, too bad, don’t let it ruin your day. Next year you will tell this funny story at parties.
Thanks, Darcelle! Your comment made me smile. Next time I’ll blame the pole a little more. :)
I love hummus and have not tried it in anything like a quesadilla, these look delicious! Sorry to hear about your car, unfortunately we all make mistakes at some point. I hope your week gets better!
Thanks, Alison! It’s a great substitute for the cheese, I think you’ll like it!
I backed my car into my friend’s car…in the driveway…it had been there all afternoon. Also an expensive mistake.
The quesadilla’s look great btw.
Oof! That’s the worst. Looks like both of our wallets are hurting.
Well these are brilliant! I’ve always thought hummus was pretty much its own food group- but yet to have used it with quesadillas. Thanks for sharing this quick and healthy meal!
Thanks, friend! I love this variation, I think you’ll like it, too! Let me know if you try it.
Thanks, Kate! I thought I wasn’t going to have anything to read while I eat my lunch today but your post showed up just in time! :) Sorry about your car. These quesadillas sound great. I’m not sure while I haven’t thought of using hummus in a quesadilla. I use it in everything else! I will try this!
I know, right? I put it on so much, why didn’t it come to mind sooner? Better late than never!
We’ve all done something like that. I was parallel parking one day and scraped the side of the car ahead of the parking spot I was aiming for. So embarrassing and yes, expensive.
Parallel parking is awful– I avoid it as much as I can! I hope your driving future is incident-free.
Ah yes, I have made a dumb mistake like that. I was leasing the car and the under body of my car (rocker panel) went over a curb during a drive-thru trip to my bank. $500 deductible later and higher rates on my insurance after that. But these look delicious and I would have never of thought to use hummus in place of cheese!
Yes! The car repairs hurt, but hummus always makes me feel better. I hope you try it!
Add me to the driving blunder list: I scraped $800 worth of damage into the side of my car, backing out of my garage. I still couldn’t tell you exactly how I managed that. I had been backing out of that same garage for more than 20 years. What can you say, but “Oh, well, girl. . . .”
On a happier note, your quesadillas look awesome! : ) They’ll be on my grocery list for next week.
I’m hearing A LOT of these stories! At least we’re not alone, right? I hope you like the quesadillas! (And have an easier time getting out of that garage!)
Love love love this idea !!! I love hummus and while I eat dairy, Too much of It isn’t good for me. On hitting the pole with your car I’ve been there done that . I bounced right off a guard rail one day. I don’t know what I was thinking . It was as if I just fell asleep or something but I was awake the entire time . One of those really weird things that costs a lot to fix . Boo. But what a gorgeous quesadilla ! I’ve pre-ordered your book and I can’t wait to cook from it !
Oh, no, Krysten, I hope you were okay! And thanks for pre-ordering the book–I can’t wait for you to see it!
Oh, Kate. I’m sorry about the car/pole mishap. That is such a bummer, not a fun way to spend money!
I’ve made my share of expensive mistakes, and not just with a car. You just have to take care of it and move on!
Thanks, Danica! I know I’m not alone in this, so that gives me some comfort–and I have hummus, so there’s that, too!
I totally never thought that I could freeze hummus! This is a game-changer for me!
Also – can’t wait to try this recipe!
Yes! It’s a game-changer for sure. I hope you love it!
Hello from Athens,Greece!
I love hummous, but never occurred me to fillin a quesadilla! This will be our family’s breakfast tomorrow!!haha
You are gorgeous, keep up the good job!!
By the way, you look like greek women, give cookie many kisses!
Hi Maria! I hope your family enjoyed the quesadillas. I’m not Greek to my knowledge, but that’s quite a compliment. Thank you. Cookie says hello!
Wow these look amazing, so creative to use hummus in quesadillas!
Thanks, Rhian!
I backed into my company’s car in my work parking lot – stationary parked behind me last Friday (with plenty of room to get out).
I think I was on mental autopilot – expensive and embarrassing mistake. Not to mention my car is only a month old!
Oh, no! I hope that wasn’t too expensive, Lora. :-/
I’ve made so many stupid car mistakes. I feel like my best was putting the car in drive instead of reverse, and proceeding to smash it into a wall I was parked in front of. At least no one (and no other cars) were hurt!
I’ve been craving hummus so much, and this is a great idea!
Oh no, Barb! That’s the worst. It seems like a lot of us are having a rough time navigating inanimate objects. I hope you try the quesadillas!
Just made crispy tofu yesterday. Again! The hummus quesadilla is right up my veggie-alley! Here’s a story. This happened in the days before we had rear-view cameras in cars. I have a carport with nice solid wood posts. At the time, my cat would inevitably follow me out to the car, then walk down the driveway, behind the car, as I was pulling out. One day, I thought, “I’ll just keep the car door open on my side so I can still see where she is as I’m pulling out.” I had my body slightly twisted, eyes trained on kitty who was ambling down the driveway behind the car as usual. Then I heard the metal ripping. The driver door had caught on the rear left post of the carport and was halfway to being ripped off the car! I hope you feel smarter by now! (Smile!)
Mission accomplished, Koriander! This made me laugh. I’m such an animal lover, I can see myself making that mistake just to be sure that kitty was safe!
I’ve been eating a ton of hummus and homemade bean dips lately, thanks for posting this!
You’re welcome! Thanks, Sara.
Hi Kate. I’m new to your blog and I love it! I can’t wait to try these quesadillas! I love hummus so this will be a special treat.
Sorry about the car. Hey, my husband backed my car into his car. It was an expensive mistake on his part that affected both of us.
Oof! I’m lucky I didn’t hit someone else, and made a doubly expensive mistake. Thanks, Cheri!
Quesadillas were on my menu today and I was literally trying to decide what I was going to eat as an alternative to my husband & son’s chicken quesadillas, when I got your email. I made mine with a whole wheat tortilla, organic hummus from Aldi, olive tapenade and pickled red onions (as that’s what I had on hand)- Incredible!! And your tips on prepping and cooking them seems so obvious now, but I was doing the 2 tortilla flip & making a huge mess. My husband said “thanks hummus tortilla lady” when I explained you were to thank for the new technique that resulted in perfect quesadillas for us both! Always get something great from your blog!
Ha! Thanks, Angela. Tell your husband I’m thinking of rebranding the blog as “Cookie & Hummus Tortilla Lady” but I’m not sure my followers would be too thrilled. ;) I’m so glad you both liked it!
Never sit in your car to have lunch, because by the time you back out you will have forgotten the pole is there… Yep, a lot of us have done that.
By the way, you have a follower down under (Australia). I have lived in the US though so I know that tomato sauce is really tomato puree and biscuits are really scones. And our biscuits are your cookies, so down here your website would be biscuitandcake.
The quesadillas look good. I will try them.
Thanks, Ruth! Yes, I suppose Cookie’s name wouldn’t be Cookie, would it? Biscuit is pretty cute, too, though. :) Thanks so much for commenting!
Correct that to biscuitandkate please
I will have to try this, I have a cheese-phobic toddler. Leads me to wonder if hummus might be a good cheese substitute for pizza as well?
I’m not sure, Rosa! I’m thinking the hotter, longer cooking time might melt it into the crust, but it could be possible. Maybe some experimentation is in order?
I’ve made pizza using hummus as the base sauce (instead of red sauce) and it works AH-MAZING!!
P.S. Kate, I backed my car into my mum’s car in the driveway on my 18th birthday. I waited until the next day to tell her so it wouldn’t ruin my birthday. Also, this quesadilla idea is baller. My husband will go nuts for it.
So sorry about the car mishap! Totally reminds me of when I accidentally hit a parked car last summer. :( Same situation, I had to make a tight turn around the car while avoiding a car in front of me, and I scraped against the front corner. I was completely horrified and I had to ask my kids’ swim school to announce the license plate so I could tell the owner. So… I feel for you! Hummus quesadillas are a fabulous idea though, and I pinned them to try soon! :)
Hummus has been helping, and so have kind words like yours! Thanks, Emily. I hope that wasn’t too expensive for the two of you!
I’ve done it–same as you, mine was in a parking garage where I parked every day for years! Then just the other day I hit the same concrete divider that I hit before ( 10 years ago!) what’s up with that?!? Love your blog and recipes!
Oh, no! History repeats itself, I guess. I hope you recovered all right!
Ahh, I’m sorry about your car- that is the worst feeling!!
Also, serious confession: when I scrolled through my blog feed and saw this post, I thought it was “human quesadillas.” It took me a minute of reading to realize that no, your bad day didn’t involve human quesadillas. So hey, you’ve got that going for you!
Anyhoo, I never knew you could make quesadillas with hummus. My mind is slightly blown;-)
Haha! That made me laugh, Elissa. “Human quesadillas” sound horrific, far worse than the car issues.
My embarrassing secret is that I have only ever been in car accidents with inanimate objects (eek!).
I’ve never thought to make hummus quesadillas- I’ll have to try it! My go to dairy-free option has always been to use refried beans as the “glue” in my quesadillas.
That’s a great alternative, too, Angela! I hope you try the hummus.
I discovered hummus quesadillas in college when I was trying out being vegan. I had totally forgotten about them, thanks for the reminder and great recipe idea :)
Also in college, I ran into the side of our townhouses garage while backing out one evening. We couldn’t even close the garage that night. Talk about expensive mistakes… it happens to all of us!
Oof! That sounds expensive. And I’m so glad I could re-acquaint you with these quesadillas! I hope it brings back good memories.
Thank you for this recipes. I plan on making this for lunch, while working from home. I’m always looking for healthy,quick and easy meals.
Perfect. Thanks, Donna!
Looks delicious. These would probably work well in a sandwich-maker, too, which might be faster than a skillet.
Maybe! Let me know if you try it.
dear Kate, I have tried to print your recipes but doesn’t see, to
connect. Is it something I should e doing? IT used to be fine before
now. Many thanks and a hug for Cookie, Jen.
Hi, Jen! You should use the “Print” button that’s included in the recipe itself, to the right of the recipe title. This will take you to a page that is simpler to print from.
Girl. I did the EXACT same thing to my car last week. But even worse, it was in my building’s garage, in the parking spot I’ve parked in every single day for the last two years. A lesson to be more mindful, I guess, but a pain nonetheless! :)
Quesadillas will definitely help though.
Quesadillas make most situations better!
Hi Kate! These look great. Love the Mediterranean spin! And– just to make you feel better– I once started driving away from a gas station with the nozzle still in my car, and it disconnected from the pump! Luckily, the owners were really nice about it. Apparently, it happens more often than you would think. Still, a definite face-palm moment! The important thing is, only my pride was hurt :)
I’m so glad you were okay, Arianna! I’m glad no one was hurt (and I hope your pride recovered). Thanks for commenting!
Right as you were describing your driving mishap, I had an extremely similar experience come to mind. My house is on an open lot, without a fence. So, I usually drive in to my lot, then drive around the back of my house so that I can pull up my car along the side of my house (it is a shaded area). Behind my house, there is a small patio with poles spread out to hold decorative lights. The poles have been there forever. I drove past them a number of times. About a year ago, I did my driving routine but got distracted by seeing my mom in my backyard. I wanted to wave at her so I did not pay attention to how close I drove to the corner patio pole. I made a turn right alongside it which scratched off a wicked amount of paint from the car and left it with a bit of a ding. :( I should also mention I was driving my mom’s car so that was even worse.
On the plus side, you got tortillas out of your outing so thank you for sharing this recipe. I’ve got hummus in my fridge right now so I’m definitely going to try this!
Oof, that’s the worst! Though I found it sweet that you hit the pole waving at your mom! I hope it wasn’t too expensive of a mishap.
This sounds delicious! I have some extra whole wheat tortillas sitting in the fridge that will become quesadillas for tomorrow’s lunch!!
Perfect!
That sucks about your car! I’ve totally done that before. It was in a parking garage. I swear the concrete pole moved positions as I was backing out. I could have killed myself for being so stupid. But after a few months the huge dent wasn’t as painful to look at. :)
I can’t believe I never thought to replace the cheese with hummus in quesadillas before. Such a brilliant idea. I gave up dairy almost a year ago so I’m always looking for new ways to recreate favorite foods without it. I will definitely have to give these a try!
I’ve had a lot of readers with similar stories, inanimate objects just flying right into their cars! :) I hope this quesadilla is a good addition to your non-dairy adventure!
When expensive mistakes happen, I make an effort to feel thankful that the damage was material and that no one got hurt. I have to spin it that way so I don’t beat myself up. Glad you were OK. Loving the idea of adding hummus in quesadillas. Brilliant!
Yes, that’s been a huge consolation. It’s just things! It’s all fixable.
These are amazing – I just made them for luncha dnthink that I’ll be making them again for dinner! the fold in halfe tip is brilliant – I love quesadillas, but they always ended up in a blob when I tried to flip the, but not anymore!
Yes! Such a simple fix, but it makes a huge difference. Thanks, Diana!
I made this for breakfast and it was so delicious! Thank you for the recipe.
Ooh, these sound great for breakfast. Thanks, Megan!
Oh, don’t worry!
I made something worse. I hit my car against a wall in a garage. Did I mention that I was not driving when it happened? I just turned on the engine to check lights and the car moved. I hit the water pipe that distributes water to over 100 flats. The pressure of the water was so high that I couldn’t isolate it and we had a flood in the garage. What’s worse, it was the middle of the night, I live in Germany and don’t speak German and had no idea what to do.
so…my advice? Laugh about that. And a piece of advice that my mum always gives me? Just thank God that you didn’t hurt yourself or someone else. The rest is always fixable ;)
Oh. My. Goodness. This story just keeps getting worse!!! I’m so sorry that happened, but so glad you can laugh about it now!
Poor girl! I once hit a trash can in college after a bad day, so I can relate. Tortillas are a favorite of mine too, I make a batch 1-2 times each week. It’s hard for me to go sans cheese though, but hummus sounds like a great replacement. :-)
I think you’ll like it, Lauren!
This has been my go to lunch option since you posted this on your blog! Very satisfying, today I added in black beans. Yum! Thank you!!
Yum is right! Black beans sound delicious with this.
this was great! i made my own hummus, lebanese style. For each wheat flour tortilla, i spread hummus, sautéed spinach and broccoli florets, 3 kalamata olives pitted, and sprinkled goat cheese.
I also paired this with lima bean, arugula and tomato salad which can be found here.
http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/lima-bean-arugula-and-tomato-salad
Damn, what a good meal!
Yum! Sounds delicious, Sara, thanks.
Really loved the recipe! Made my night, thanks :D
Hope your car heals soon.
Thanks, Shreyas! It’s well on its way to being back in tip-top shape.
I made these for dinner tonight. They were so easy and excellent, and they are totally becoming part of my recurring summer menu rotation. I used whole foods hummus and it got a little runny when heated, but even though it was not a problem at all, I might try other brands or make my own in the future. PS: I did a significant amount of damage to my car by scraping up against the concrete abutment in my own driveway. I beat myself up way more than the insurance company did :-). Thanks for the awesome recipe. Hugs to Cookie.
Thanks, Kevin! I’m so glad these are going on regular rotation. And sorry about your car! I hope it got fixed up fast. Such a pain!
I made this tonight and loved it! I dipped it in fire roasted salsa and it was amazing!
Perfect!
Yes I made this quesadilla recipe with little twist due to what I had on hand.
I use the hummus with the spinach and added roasted sweet potato.
Cooked as prescribed and had the leftover for breakfast the next morning.
Will keep this on my rotation.
Many thanks R
I absolutely LOVE this recipe!!! I used broccoli as a substitute of spinach, as we didn’t have spinach at home, and they still came out to be a great hit!! So easy, delicious AND nutritious, a perfect meal!!! Thank you Kate!!
Perfect! Sounds extra-nutritious, Bruna.
This was so so good! Didn’t take too long to put together and so delicious. I used a spicy hummus from Cava for a little kick. I’ll definitely make this again!
Spicy hummus sounds like a great pairing! I do like a little bit of spice. Thanks for sharing, Lindsey!
I made these last night with the green goddess hummus recipe and they were delicious. I added olives and shredded cheese to the hummus.
That’s a fun combination! Thanks for sharing, Melanie.