Hawaiian Ham Quesadillas

$9.36 recipe / $1.04 each
by Beth Moncel
4.29 from 7 votes
Pin RecipeJump to recipe โ†’

All recipes are rigorously tested in our Nashville test kitchen to ensure they are easy, affordable, and delicious.

Quesadillas might be one of my favorite foods. That and pizza. Why? Because you can put just about anything inside and the outer crispy tortilla shell somehow makes everything a million times better.

For this quesadilla I took the classic flavors of a Hawaiian pizza and stuffed into a tortilla for a quick weeknight fix. I added some red pepper flakes because I like things a little spicy, but you could easily leave those out. Other ingredients that would taste yum in this are: red onions (instead of the green), fresh jalapenos (instead of the red pepper flakes), or green peppers.

These little gems are pretty rich and creamy, so I suggest pairing them with something light and full of fiber. This simple black bean salad would be AWESOME with the quesadillas and is pretty fast to whip up.

Enjoy!

Hawaiian Ham Quesadillas

Hawaiian Ham Quesadilla slices into four pieces on white plate

Share this recipe

Hawaiian Ham Quesadillas

4.29 from 7 votes
Hawaiian ham quesadillas with a creamy cheesy filling, ham, pineapple, and green onions.
Author: Beth Moncel
Servings 9
Prep 10 minutes
Cook 15 minutes
Total 25 minutes

Ingredients

  • 8 oz. cream cheese ($1.87)
  • 1 cup shredded mozzarella ($0.92)
  • 3 sliced green onions ($0.35)
  • 1/8 tsp red pepper flakes, optional ($0.02)
  • 15 oz. can pineapple chunks in juice ($1.14)
  • 1/2 lb. smoked ham ($3.27)
  • 8 8-inch four tortillas ($1.79)
Email Me This Recipe
Get this sent to your inbox, plus get new recipes from us every week!
Please enable JavaScript in your browser to complete this form.

Instructions 

  • Allow the cream cheese to come to room temperature before you begin. Combine the cream cheese, shredded mozzarella, sliced green onions, and red pepper flakes in a bowl. Stir until well combined.
  • Drain the pineapple chunks as much as possible. Roughly chop them into smaller pieces. Roughly chop the sliced ham into small pieces. Add both to the cheese mixture and stir to combine.
  • Place 1/4 to 1/3 cup of the filling in each tortilla and spread to cover half of the surface. Fold the tortilla in half to close. Cook each quesadilla in a skillet over medium heat until brown and crispy on both sides.

See how we calculate recipe costs here.


Nutrition

Serving: 1ServingCalories: 309.7kcalCarbohydrates: 31.04gProtein: 12.48gFat: 15.34gSodium: 683.4mgFiber: 1.92g
Read our full nutrition disclaimer here.
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!

Top view of Hawaiian Ham Quesadillas sliced into four slices on plate, whole green onion on the side

Step By Step Photos

cheese mixture in mixing bowl
Make sure the cream cheese is room temperature before you begin so that it’s soft enough to stir. Combine the cream cheese with the mozzarella, sliced green onions, and red pepper flakes. Stir to combine. I actually used about 1/4 tsp of red pepper, but listed 1/8 tsp because I know I like things quite a bit hotter than most!

ham sliced into small pieces with knife
Roughly chop up the ham. It doesn’t have to be any particular size or shape, just make it into bite-sized pieces.

can of pineapple chunks
Drain the pineapple as much as possible so that your quesadillas don’t get soggy. I also cut the pineapple chunks into slightly smaller pieces because they were kind of large.

pineapple and ham added to cheese mixture in mixing bowl
Add the chopped ham and drained pineapple to the cheese mixture.

quesadilla filling mixed together
And mix it all together. The residual moisture from the pineapple will make the mixture softer and much easier to spread. I call this the “yum-yum mix” because it’s SO GOOD.

tortilla being filled with mixture
I used “fajita style” tortillas, which are about 8 inches across. Add about 1/4 to 1/3 cup of filling to each tortilla and spread it over one half of the surface. The filling is pretty rich from all of the cream cheese, so you don’t want to over fill them.

two quesadillas cooking in skillet
Cook the quesadillas in a skillet over medium heat until they are golden brown and crispy on each side.

brown and crispy quesadillas in skillet
Don’t forget to flip ’em.

Hawaiian Ham Quesadilla sliced into four pieces on plate
Be warned. These are VERY ADDICTIVE.

If you want a less “creamy” quesadilla, you can change the ratio of cream cheese to mozzarella. Use 4 oz. of cream cheese and 2 cups of mozzarella. This will give you more of a classic melty cheese filling.

Got some marinara laying around? I bet it would be good for dipping these in!

Share this recipe

Posted in: , , , , ,

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recipe Rating





This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Comments

Leave a Comment
  1. Fantastic Recipe! I’m the only one in my family that likes Hawaiian, so this is a prefect compomise, I don’t need to take up a whole pizza! Just make my own quesadilla.

    I made this this week and it was amazing!

    1. Hmmm, I’ve never tried to freeze anything with cream cheese, so I’m not quite sure about this one.

      1. I have frozen these before and they turned out well. :) We ate them relatively quickly though…maybe within a week or 2, so not sure beyond that!

  2. These are wonderful! I used a shredded cheese mix I had lying around and served it with BBQ sauce. I’ve tried them with and without jalepenos, either way, it is easy and delicious! Thank you so much will be making all the time.

  3. Add some marchino cherries and ditch the red pepper flakes if you want a real sweet treat that the kids will go crazy for. I’ve also added toasted almond slices with the cherries.

  4. Just got done making this…. yummmmm. Will make again!! Thanks! You always have great ideas.

  5. I skipped the red pepper flake and added cinnamon to mine. SO GOOD! These will become a regular.

  6. made this for dinner tonight and it was a MAJOR hit!! will definitely be making it again!

  7. Just made this for lunch and it was super tasty! I bet grilled pineapple would be fantastic in here but as is is great for a quick tasty treat! I am a beleiver! Thanks for the post

  8. Just made this for lunch and it was super tasty! I bet grilled pineapple would be fantastic in here but as is is great for a quick tasty treat! I am a beleiver! Thanks for the post

  9. Erica – I froze one over night and then cooked it the next day (because I was worried about the cream cheese separating too) and it worked well! I’m not sure if the amount of time that it is frozen would make a difference, though.