Cinco De Mayo: Chicken Quesadilla Recipe

Servings: 4
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cooking Time: 30-35 minutes

Ingredients:
 4 large flour tortillas (2.5 oz each)
 10.5 oz chicken, raw, diced (shrinks down to 8 oz (25%)
when cooked)
 4 oz cheese blend
 1 cup onion, chopped
 1 cup bell peppers, chopped
 1 cup salsa
 1 TB cilantro, chopped
 2 TB McCormick Culinary Taco Seasoning
 2 TB olive oil
 Cooking spray

Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 375℉.
2. Dice raw chicken into half-inch cubes
3. Toss diced chicken with olive oil. Add taco seasoning
and toss again until chicken is equally coated.
4. Place chicken on sheet pans in a single layer.
5. Bake chicken for 15-20 minutes, until chicken is starting to brown, and internal
temperature is 145℉ or higher for 15 seconds.
6. Remove sheet pans from oven and hold in steam cabinet.
7. While chicken is cooking, spray a pan with cooking spray and sauté the peppers and
onions until soft and translucent.
8. Place the mixture into a perforated pan to cool and drain excess liquid.
9. Combine the cooked vegetables, warm chicken, and cheese blend. Toss until ingredients
are evenly dispersed.
10. Lay the tortillas on a clean surface and spoon 1/4 of mixture onto each tortilla and
spread to distribute.
11. Prepare sheet pans with parchment paper. Fold tortillas in half and place on sheet pans.
Lightly spray the top of each tortilla with cooking spray.
12. Bake for 8 minutes, until golden brown.
13. Allow to sit for 5 minutes, then cut into three wedges.
14. Garnish with fresh cilantro and serve each wedge with 1/4 cup salsa.

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Servings: 100

Ingredients:
 100 large flour tortillas (2.5 oz each)
 66 lb. chicken, raw
 6.25 lb cheese blend
 25 cup onion, chopped
 25 cup bell peppers, chopped
 100 cup salsa
 6 1/4 cup cilantro, chopped
 12 1/2 cup McCormick Culinary Taco Seasoning
 12 1/2 cup olive oil
 Cooking spray

Preparation:
1. Preheat ovens to 375℉.
2. Dice raw chicken into half-inch cubes.
3. Toss diced chicken with olive oil. Add taco seasoning and toss again until chicken is
equally coated.
4. Place chicken on sheet pans in a single layer.
5. Bake chicken for 15-20 minutes, until chicken is starting to brown, and internal
temperature is 145℉ or higher for 15 seconds.
6. With oven mitts, remove sheet pans from oven and hold in steam cabinet.
7. While chicken is cooking, spray a large skillet cooking spray and sauté the peppers and
onions until soft and translucent.
8. Place the mixture into a perforated pan to cool and drain excess liquid.
9. In a large bowl, combine the cooked vegetables, warm chicken, and cheese blend. Toss
until ingredients are evenly dispersed.
10. Lay the tortillas on a clean surface and spoon 1/4 cup of mixture onto each tortilla and
spread to distribute.
11. Prepare sheet pans with parchment paper. Fold tortillas with mixture in half, and place
on sheet pans. Lightly spray the top of each tortilla with cooking spray.
12. Bake for 8 minutes, until golden brown.
13. After removing tortillas from the oven with oven mitts, allow them to sit for 5 minutes.
14. Cut into three wedges, garnish with 1 TB fresh cilantro, and serve each wedge with 1/4
cup salsa.

The title of this recipe is Chicken Quesadilla. Cinco de Mayo is a Mexican holiday that is also
celebrated in the US. I chose to feature a chicken quesadilla because it’s a traditional Mexican dish that

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is commonly liked, easy to make, and nutritious. People of all ages eat quesadillas, so this dish can be
served from kindergarten through high school. One recipe serves 4 students. One serving is one tortilla
filled with the cheese, veggie, and chicken mixture, cut in 3 wedges, served with salsa and garnished
with fresh cilantro. The recipe meets the needs of all ages. Per serving, it contains 2.5 ounces of grains,
1.25 cups of vegetables, 2 ounces of meat, and will be served with a piece of fruit and a milk.

Cost:
Ingre die nts Amount Amount conve rte d Cost of food ite m Total cos t of food ite m in re cipe
Tortilla 10 oz 10 oz $0.12/ oz $1.20
Cheese Blend 4 oz 0.25 lb $2.55/ lb $0.64
Chicken 10.5 oz 10.5 oz $0.29/ oz $3.05
Onion 1 cup, chopped 3.4 oz $0.05/ oz $0.17
B ell peppers 1 cup, chopped 3.17 oz $0.04/ oz $0.13
Olive oil 2 TB 0.95 oz $0.22/ oz $0.21
Taco S easoning 2 TB 0.6 oz $0.40/ oz $0.24
S als a 1/ 4 cup 2.54 oz $0.11/ oz $0.28
Cilantro 2 TB 0.04 oz $0.05/ oz $0.01

Total cos t ( 4 servings ):

$5.93
Cost pe r se rving:
$1.48

The cost per serving of this recipe is about $1.48 per serving. The cafeteria would charge $5.99 per meal.
20% of the proceeds will be put into the farm to school program.
The quesadillas will be prepared according to the recipe in the back of the kitchen. When they
are done baking, a pan of them will be brought to the front to be neatly displayed and hot-held at a
special “quesadilla station.” At the station, the student will walk up if they choose to order a quesadilla.
The employee who is serving them will pick up a quesadilla, cut it into three sections in front of the
student, plate the quesadilla, add the side cup of salsa, and top with fresh-cut cilantro.
When the quesadillas are finished baking, one serving will be a tortilla folded in half with the
filling inside. Each will be cut into three, triangle-shaped sections, as shown below.

Each will be placed onto a white plate. The plate will also have small plastic cups filled with a 1/4 of salsa
for dipping. One tablespoon of cilantro will be sprinkled on top of the quesadilla.
The primary food safety concern for this recipe is raw chicken. Once the raw chicken is removed
from the refrigerator, it must be quickly mixed with the taco seasoning and olive oil, and placed into the
oven, to make sure it doesn’t reach the temperature danger zone of 40℉ to 140℉. Once they’re
finished cooking, the quesadillas will be hot held at above 140℉ before service. Any surface that the raw
poultry touched, including the bowl that the chicken was in to mix the oil and seasoning, and the cutting
board and knife that was used to dice the chicken, need to be properly washed and sanitized before
using again. The gloves of the food service employee handling the raw poultry should be disposed of

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when finished with the raw poultry. The packaging that the chicken came in needs to be disposed of
after opening. In step 5, after the chicken is cooked for 15-20 minutes, the food service employee must
take the internal temperature of the chicken. The internal temperature must be 145℉ or higher for at
least 15 seconds.
The recipe was created in hopes that we can use produce from the farm to school initiative that
was recently put into place. This will include onions, peppers, cilantro, possibly fresh tomatoes to add
into the salsa, or other vegetables depending on the harvest at the time. Chicken will be purchased from
local farm to also support sustainability of the recipe. This recipe will be served on white plates that can
be washed and will not contribute to paper trash. The quesadilla can also be eaten with hands to avoid
the use of single-use plastic utensils. A portion of the proceeds will be put into the farm to school
program.

This recipe was created with the National School Lunch Program guidelines in mind. One serving
contains 2.5 ounces of grains, 1.25 cups of vegetables, 2 ounces of meat, and will be served with one

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cup of fruit and a milk. Watermelon can be served with this recipe. Since the taco seasoning contains
some mild spice, the watermelon will be a good fruit to pair with it to cool down the mouth.

Hello everyone, my name is Olivia Alexander, and I want to thank you for coming to my cooking
demonstration! Today we’re going to be making chicken quesadillas, which are one of my favorite things
to make and to eat.

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 Before we start, we’re going to preheat the oven to 375℉ and wash our hands. *Preheat oven
and wash hands.* It’s important to do this before we start preparing the rest of the food since it takes a
while to heat up. All the ingredients we have today have been pre-portioned, but we’re going to provide
you all with a copy of the recipe so you’ll have all the information for when you make them at home.
First, I’m going to take my raw chicken, and dice it into small, half-inch cubes, about this big,
*show size of cubes.* So I’m going to place this chicken into a separate bowl. I’m going to put this
cutting board and knife directly into the sink. We have to prepare vegetables later, and it’s important to
either thoroughly clean this knife and cutting board or grab a new knife and cutting board for prepping
the vegetables. That is one of the most important rules in cooking – you cannot use anything that raw
meat has touched for other purposes! Raw chicken can have some bacteria that is harmful for us to eat.
When we cook food, we get rid of that bacteria, but it’s important to not use anything that has touched
the raw meat to avoid cross-contamination.
Next, we’re going to mix the diced raw chicken with olive oil and taco seasoning in a bowl, until
chicken is equally coated. *Mix with hands.* If you don’t have a taco seasoning at home, you can mix
cumin and coriander for an easy substitution. When everything is equally coated, we’re going to place
the chicken on sheet pans. We’ll bake chicken for 15-20 minutes, until it starts to brown. Just like with
the cutting board and knife, I’m going to make sure I wash my hands before I handle anything else since I
touched the raw chicken. *Wash hands.*
While the chicken is cooking, we’re going to cook the vegetables. The vegetables we’re adding
today are peppers and onions. Bell peppers are high in vitamin C, so they help support the immune
system, and they’re also high in vitamin E, vitamin A, and vitamin B6. Onions are really hard to cut
because while you’re cutting them, they sting your eyes and make tend to make you cry. Basically, what
happens is when you cut an onion, a chemical reaction occurs between sulfur and enzymes within the
onion, that releases a powerful chemical! Anyway, onions are also packed with vitamins and minerals.
So, we’re going to cook these by spraying a pan with cooking spray, and sautéing the peppers and
onions until they’re soft and translucent. You can also add more taco seasoning to these vegetables to
add some more flavor. So I’m going to put these veggies in a colander to drain any excess liquid.
So the chicken is done, and I’m going to combine it with the cooked vegetables, and cheese
blend! I’m going to mix this up until all the ingredients are evenly dispersed. Now I’m going to take my
tortilla and lay it on a clean surface, and evenly disperse the mixture. I’m going to fold it in half and place
it back on a sheet pan. I’m going to finish the tortilla off by spraying it with a little cooking spray to make
sure the tortilla gets nice and brown in the oven. So I’ll put this back in and bake it for about 8 minutes.
After the 8 minutes, is up, we’re going to remove the quesadilla to a cutting board. I’m going to
cut the quesadilla into wedges. *Cut quesadilla and top with cilantro.* So we’re going to top off this
quesadilla with fresh cilantro. Cilantro is not only a powerful tasting herb, but it has multiple health
benefits as well. Cilantro can help regulate blood calcium levels, which is really important for people of
all ages! It is also high in vitamin K and a good source of vitamin A.
The last thing we’re going to serve the quesadilla with is some salsa. Many people don’t
consider salsa a source of vegetables, but it is. *Read ingredient label.* Tomatoes are main ingredient in
salsa. They have lycopene, which is an antioxidant with many health benefits, which has been shown to
help heart health and reduce risk of certain types of cancers. Tomatoes also are a great source of
vitamin C, potassium, folate, and vitamin K.
So, here’s the final product. *Show plate with quesadilla on it.* Look how great this looks! I
hope you guys will try to make this super easy and nutritious recipe at home. Thank you for listening!
This recipe will be made for the high school students, grades 9 through 12. The following survey
will be administered in order to gain feedback and to give an opportunity for the students to rate the
recipe.

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Rate the following qualities of the quesadillas on a scale of 1-5 by circling your choice.

1. The quesadilla was fresh.

1 2 3 4 5

Highly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Highly agree

2. The quesadilla looked appetizing.

1 2 3 4 5

Highly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Highly agree

3. The quesadilla was the perfect temperature.

1 2 3 4 5

Highly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Highly agree

4. The quesadilla was a good portion size.

1 2 3 4 5

Highly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Highly agree

5. The quesadilla was nutritious.

1 2 3 4 5

Highly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Highly agree

6. I would eat this again!

1 2 3 4 5

Highly disagree Somewhat disagree Neutral Somewhat agree Highly agree

Additional comments:
_____________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
The cafeteria will be decorated with Cinco de Mayo decorations to match the theme of the
holiday and recipe. There will be a letter sent home in the mail to families to promote the featured food
item, highlighting its use of farm to school produce, nutritious value, and how 20% of the proceeds will
be put back into the farm to school program. The letter will also highlight the benefits of the farm to

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school initiative to raise awareness. Around the quesadilla station, there will be nutrition posters
highlighting the healthy components of the recipe. There will be pictures of the students working on the
farm to showcase the fresh produce used in the recipe. Below is the nutrition poster that will be hung
up by the quesadilla station.

References

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Arnarson, A. (2019, March 27). Bell Peppers 101: Nutrition Facts and Health Benefits. Retrieved

April 17, 2020, from https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/foods/bell-peppers

Bjarnadottir, A. (2019, March 25). Tomatoes 101: Nutrition Facts and Health Benefits. Retrieved

April 17, 2020, from https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/foods/tomatoes

Cismaru, J. (2020, February 28). Chicken Fajita Quesadillas. Retrieved April 13, 2020, from

https://www.jocooks.com/recipes/chicken-fajita-quesadillas/

"Danger Zone" (40 °F - 140 °F). (2017, June 28). Retrieved April 16, 2020, from

https://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/food-safety-education/get-answers/food-safety-

fact-sheets/safe-food-handling/danger-zone-40-f-140-f/CT_Index

Kubala, J. (2018, December 18). 9 Impressive Health Benefits of Onions. Retrieved April 17, 2020,

from https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/onion-benefits

Raman, R. (2018, February 22). Cilantro vs Coriander: What’s the Difference?. Retrieved April 17,

2020, from https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/cilantro-vs-coriander

Speros, N. (2017, June 8). Spinach and Chicken Quesadillas. Retrieved April 16, 2020, from

http://harvestillinois.org/may-spinach-spinach-and-chicken-quesadillas