Call it Flashback Friday because we’re bringing back a recipe from 2012, people! That’s right, I originally made this deliciously simple, wonderful breakfast almost 10 years ago and knew it needed a little (okay, a big) makeover.
These peanut butter, strawberry banana quesadilla has the nostalgic flavor of PB&J folded into a warm, perfectly crisp tortilla. If you’ve never made sweet quesadillas before you are seriously in for a treat. The peanut butter gets a little melty and the sweetness of the strawberries and banana slices shines through. The PB gives this quesadilla a boost of protein, making this recipe an amazing breakfast or snack that kids will LOVE.
Here’s a secret: you can sneak in a few chocolate chips in there if you’d like — I won’t tell!
Whip up these sweet quesadillas for you and a friend, share them with your kiddos, and have yourself the best morning ever.
The sweet quesadilla you’ll crave
Let’s talk about quesadillas. I love them. Adore them. Quesadillas are a traditional Mexican dish that usually involves cheese and a savory mixture of vegetables and/or meat. They’re one of my favorite meals to put together last minute because it involves throwing delicious combinations in a tortilla and toasting or frying it until crispy and golden brown. Today we’ve got a sweet take on traditional quesadillas that is truly a gamechanger.
It’s as simple as this: I am obsessed with the peanut butter and banana combo. I usually put the duo on a piece of toast or English muffin, but instead of the usual, I thought I’d make it interesting by making peanut butter and banana quesadillas and adding in seasonal, ripe strawberries for a PB&J twist. My mind was BLOWN AWAY after one bite. In all seriousness, yours probably will be too.
4-ingredient strawberry banana quesadilla
If you’ve never experienced the peanut butter, strawberry, and banana combo, prepare to be amazed. The strawberries almost taste like they were roasted — exploding with flavor and juiciness from the heat. The crunch of the tortilla and the warm, creamy peanut butter makes me wish I could go back to grade school and demand ask nicely for this in my lunchbox. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Peanut butter: I like to use natural, creamy peanut butter, but crunchy would also be delicious. Use the code ‘AMBITIOUS15’ to get 15% off my favorite brand, Wild Friends!
- Tortillas: you’ll need 2 tortillas for this quesadilla. Feel free to use whole grain, gluten free, grain free or regular ones.
- Banana: gotta love delicious banana in every bite.
- Strawberries: and lastly, you’ll need juicy, ripe strawberries!
- Optional: I love to add a sprinkle of cinnamon for cozy flavor and some chocolate chips if I’m feeling a little something sweeter.
Customize your quesadilla
Because the ingredients in this strawberry banana quesadilla are so simple, it’s the perfect breakfast or snack for customizing with what you have in your fridge or pantry!
- Swap the nut butter: I love the peanut butter banana combo, but feel free to use any nut or seed butter that you’d like.
- Try new fruits: raspberries or blueberries would be delicious paired with the banana during the summer months, and I think a simple apple and peanut butter combo would be great for fall!
- Go for dessert: add some chocolate chips and mini marshmallows for the ultimate dessert combo that tastes like s’mores! A spread of nutella or even a drizzle of chocolate sauce would be amazing.
- Serve with sides: enjoy this strawberry quesadilla with honey, maple syrup, or vanilla greek yogurt. YUM.
How to make this strawberry banana quesadilla
- Prep your pan. Heat up a large skillet and remember to spray it with nonstick cooking spray or drizzle it with a neutral flavored oil.
- Arrange the tortillas. Spread peanut butter onto each tortilla, then arrange the sliced strawberries and banana on one of them. Sprinkle with cinnamon and chocolate chips if you’d like, and then top with the second tortilla peanut butter side down.
- Cook & enjoy! Place the quesadilla on your hot skillet and let it cook for about 2 minutes. Flip and let it cook for 2 minutes more, then cut it into 6 triangles and serve it up!
Tips for making perfect quesadillas every time
- Enjoy your quesadillas right away. You’ll want to eat this peanut butter banana quesadilla as soon as you cook it so that the tortillas don’t get soggy.
- Use a neutral oil to cook it. I recommend regular nonstick cooking spray, neutral olive oil or coconut oil to make sure the quesadilla gets nice and crispy but doesn’t give the tortillas a savory flavor.
- Cook over medium heat. High heat will likely cause them to burn easily, so keep the heat at medium and watch your quesadilla carefully.
- Avoid overstuffing your quesadilla. If you are nervous about flipping your quesadilla you can use two spatulas, or simply use 1 tortilla at a time and fold it in half to create a half moon shape instead of one large circle.
- Use a square griddle. I love square griddles for pancakes and quesadillas because you can flip them both without running into any edges.
- Use the right spatula for flipping. I recommend a fish spatula or a large flexible spatula so that you can easily flip the quesadilla.
More sweet breakfast recipes
- Salted Brown Butter Banana Zucchini Baked Oatmeal
- Almond Butter Peach Blueberry Oatmeal Cups
- Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie
- Whole Wheat Banana Bread Pancakes
- Strawberry Kissed Almond Butter Muffins
Get all of our delicious breakfast recipes here!
I hope you love this wonderful peanut butter, strawberry banana quesadilla! If you make it be sure to leave a comment and a rating so I know how you liked it. Enjoy, xo!
Peanut Butter Strawberry Banana Quesadilla
Delicious strawberry banana quesadilla with creamy peanut butter in every bite. This sweet take on traditional quesadillas is a fun way to get fruits in that tastes like your fav PB&J! Enjoy the perfect breakfast, snack, or even dessert that's great for kids.
Ingredients
- Nonstick cooking spray or olive oil
- 2 tablespoons natural creamy peanut butter
- 2 whole grain tortillas (or gluten free, grain free, regular)
- 1 banana, sliced
- 4-5 strawberries, sliced
- 1/8 teaspoon cinnamon, if desired
- Optional: 1 tablespoon chocolate chips, dairy free if desired
Instructions
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Heat a large skillet over medium heat and spray the pan with nonstick cooking spray or drizzle with olive oil or coconut oil.
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Spread 1 tablespoon of the peanut butter evenly over each tortilla. Arrange both the banana and strawberry slices over one tortilla, sprinkle with a pinch of cinnamon and add chocolate chips if using. Top with the remaining tortilla, peanut butter side down. Press gently to help them stick together.
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When the skillet is hot, add the quesadilla, flipping once, until golden brown, about 2 minutes per side. Cut into the quesadilla 3 times to make 6 triangles total. Serves 2, 3 slices each.
Recipe Notes
Serve with honey, maple syrup, vanilla greek yogurt, or chocolate sauce.
Try with different nut or seed butters, or nutella for a sweeter version.
The nutritional information below is based on using a flour tortilla. Using a low carb, whole grain tortilla would lower the calories and carb count. It would also increase the fiber. You can also use a gluten free tortilla to make these quesadillas gluten free.
Nutrition
Recipe by: Monique Volz // Ambitious Kitchen | Photography by: Eat Love Eats
This post was originally published on June 12, 2012, and republished on August 27, 2021.
56 comments
I’ve done this with apples… but never bananas and berries. My kids will love this!
My godkids LOVE these quesadillas! 🙂
I used to make these in college but I’d use a high-protein wrap (about 10g) and add 2 tablespoons of Naturally More peanut butter to boost it to 20g of total protein. Back then, Hood had the Calorie Countdown low-carb, high protein milk which offered 13g of protein which I drank with the sandwich. Unfortunately, they reduced it twice and it now only has 5g per serving. Oh well, the wrap idea was definitely tasty.
It’s good stuff!
I am a fanatic for banana and peanut butter. This looks dynamite.
Cream CHEESE would make it a real QUESAdilla. It would also make it devastatingly delicious.
Yes, it would, Rachel. And it would be incredible. I think adding raspberries and cream cheese would be perfect in a quesadilla.
Wow! I’m always on the lookout for exciting new breakfasts, this definitely warrants a try!
I”m a HUGE pb and banana fan – with a a bit of honey and some wheatgerm…. yum! Loving the strawberry twist, I need to try this next time! Same with the quesadilla idea, I never thought to try it like that, it sounds so good toasted in a skillet. And I just happen to have a bunch of tortillas in my fridge right now.. 🙂
Wow! I am a huge peanutbutter & banana combo lover, too. My roommate makes strawberry-banana-peanutbutter sandwiches all the time, I think I’ll have to make this for her on her birthday morning!
Hi monique.. came to your site thru foodgawker… lovely recipes… i am an indian and i have never tried qesedillas but after reading your post i am tempted to try one… will let you know if i do ..!!!:)
awesome blog.. having a good time going thru it!!!
Thanks for your comment, and for reading! Ps. Quesadillas are the best! 🙂
I made it for a breakfast today and it was amazing! I love this recipe. Posted it on my glog and obviously I gave credits to you 🙂 Thanks again! Marta
I do this with my s'mores now. Add a slice of strawberry is like a piece of heaven!
I'm going to make this for Mason and the boys for breakfast tomorrow morning. It looks yummy, plus I have the supplies to do it.
Made one for my son Mason. He LOVED it! Ate the whole thing with a glass of Chocolate milk and a yummy greek/coconut yogurt with fresh blueberries and sliced bananas. Yummy breakfast and very healthy for you.
Simple and delicious recipes
For a delicious dessert…nutella and bananas or nutella and mini marshmellows…like a crepe but without the hassle. It's our daughter's favorite dessert!
Hello, I am trying to find breakfast ideas that I can cook and eat for about 3 days. I rarely have enough time to cook in the morning before leaving for work so I need something quick and easy. How would these taste if I put them in the refrigerator or freezer and warmed it up the next day?
I do a pepperoni & Mozzarella cheese & Cream Cheese version call them Pizza Quicks
I made this for breakfast today using wheat multi-grain flat bread. Outstanding!
I am gonna make the Avacado spaghetti this week..gonna try it with rice noodles….lot less carbs
Ya I made it with ronzoni thin spaghetti..its a wheat pasta that has 2.5x the fiber of regular pasta ,)
a must try
You're becoming quite the little Rachel Ray.
Thanks so much for the nutritional information. Both of my children are diabetic and it is SO helpful to have the info on food, I don't usually see it on sites!
This looks so delicious! I can’t wait to try it!
stylethroughhereyes.com
I have many frozen strawberries in my freezer. Do you think they would work?
It's "salivate."
I'm gonna try this for a sweet dinner, thanks!
Just to mention that when I used ‘caloriecount.com’ for this, it said they were 350 cals but I suppose it depends on the brand of tortilla you use because I would buy Sainsbury’s whole grain 10″ wraps which are 170 cals… (I’m from the UK so I appreciate that American’s won’t be buying these). Just thought I should point out the nutritional info is not exact, its only a rough guide….
Yes, I typically use a low carb tortilla that’s around 80-100 calories.
we just made these for lunch and they are delicious! While I’ve made wraps with the same ingredients in the past, heating it up brought it to a whole nother level!
Can you use corn tortillas? Would that not taste good together?
I was wondering the same thing!
Why does this recipe call for whole grain tortilla but your nutritional info have flour tortillas? Doesn’t make good sense.
That’s why there is a note.
Hello, I’d like to know if i can make these and freeze them and then in the morning just place them in the skillet and eat them. Is it possible? Or I have to make them innthe moment?
I made this and ate it so fast I didn’t have time to take a picture. Just wanted to say thanks for the as always, delicious recipe! I loved it!
It looks good, even if a quesadilla (literally translated “cheese tortilla”) it is not.
What size of quesadilla do u recommend? I see so many recipes but they never state size.
I did not have strawberries so I used jam and it was DELISH.
“Stoners Delight”
I was wondering if you could make them in a sandwich press instead of a skillet? I’m not sure if I will have enough time in the morning to heat the skillet and then cook them. They look heavenly though! Sophie
Hi Sophie! I think that should work just fine 🙂 Enjoy!
This was a great inspiration for me. I got some whole wheat, high fiber, high protein tortillas (only 90 calories). This was just for me (I got my husband regular flour tortillas and made him something HE would like…he doesn’t do “healthy”) so I used one tortilla. I put half down on the skillet, used 1-1/2 tablespoons of peanut butter, a few thin apple slices, a sprinkle of cinnamon, and 1 teaspoon of cinnamon. I folded it and cooked both sides until just lightly browned. Talk about delicious at around 250 calories! As you noted, you could easily customize so this was perfect for me. I hate banana but I sure do love apples with peanut butter. This is my new favorite lunch! Thank you!
Perfect! Sounds delicious 🙂
Followed the recipe exactly as written. They were easy to assemble and cooked up nicely. But they don’t taste all that great…not sweet at all.
The dry cooked tortilla and peanut butter dominate completely. Can’t taste the fruit and cinnamon at all. They just taste dry and peanut-y, kind of like those peanut butter cracker sandwich packs I’d get in my lunch as a kid.
I really like the concept, but I’m gonna have to tinker with the recipe’s flavor profile before I make these for anyone but myself. Maybe some preserves spread inside too? Or maybe Nutella? Or maybe regular tortillas that aren’t so “heavy” the way whole wheat stuff is? I’m not sure, but It needs something different because as it is, it’s not good.
Hi! If you’re looking to sweeten these feel free to add a drizzle of honey as well. This one’s great for customizing, too, so any of the above swaps would work and might be more to your taste preference!
This was a fun idea! I made one for my toddler and I for breakfast. I didn’t follow the recipe verbatim – just the idea. Even sprinkled some chia seeds in it 🙂
Nice! So glad that you guys loved it. Great idea to add chia seeds!
So yummy and different! Healthier comfort food
Enjoyed these. Fun to make for teenagers to eat.
So simple, yet so delicious. Perfect with siete cassava tortillas
Ambitious Kitchen strikes again! It was a delicious treat in the middle of the day. . I used raspberries instead of strawberries and gobbled it right up.
Oooh love that idea! Happy you enjoyed them!