Craving a quick cherry dessert that’s as easy as it is delicious? These Cherry Quesadillas come together fast and don’t even require an oven. Turn Fresh Cherries Into a Fast Dessert With These Easy Quesadillas Made With Mascarpone Cheese, Vanilla Bean Paste, and Powdered Sugar. Great for dessert or even for breakfast.
My Most Popular Peach Recipe Gets a Cherry Makeover
Years ago, I did a series of blog posts using peach shipments I was getting from Pearson Farm in Georgia. With each shipment, I came up with a recipe that used just a single peach. Over the years, the most popular recipe from that series has been my Peach Quesadilla.
As I love to do with anything that's a hit, I like to revisit it. Recently, I picked up some "Wild" Sweet Cherries from a Safeway store in Oregon. These cherries are both sweet and tart, packed with flavor, and they inspired me to create a cherry version of my dessert quesadilla. You can’t beat a summer dessert idea that doesn’t require turning on the oven.
Let me show you what you need and how to make it. Maybe you’ll be inspired to try other fruits—just like I am.
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Ingredients
Let me give you a run down of what you will need to make this recipe.
- Fresh Cherries - What kind of cherries you use is up to you. I used "Wild" Sweet Cherries from Chelan Fresh. They’re a newer variety that’s super flavorful—both sweet and tart. The tartness helps balance the sweetness in the dessert. Fresh tart cherries can be hard to find, especially if you don’t live in a state that grows them. Even then, you rarely see fresh ones in stores. So these "Wild" Sweet cherries are a great alternative.
- Mascarpone cheese - My favorite brand is BelGioiOso from Wisconsin. They come in a tub usually near where you would find things like Brie or other BelGioiOso products. That is where I found it when I was shopping at Winco Foods in Oregon.
- Powdered sugar - You will need some for the filling as well as for dusting the quesadillas when they are done.
- Vanilla bean paste - I add a small amount to give some vanilla flavor. I like the paste as it has flecks of vanilla bean in it. You can use vanilla extract as well.
- Soft taco sized tortillas - These are the perfect sized tortillas for this. For my family for breakfast we cut them into quarters when they are done and each person gets 2 triangles.
- Butter - For coating your pan.
Tips
The most time-consuming part of this recipe is pitting the cherries. You can use a cherry pitter, but if you don’t have one, a sturdy reusable straw works surprisingly well. Just push it through the center of the cherry to pop the pit out.
You can mix together the Mascarpone cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla bean paste in a bowl with a fork. You don't need to get out out a mixer or anything else. It takes a minute but it's easy to just do by hand.
You want to spread the Mascarpone layer evenly across 3 tortillas. Then add the chopped cherries. When you put the top tortilla on to make the quesadilla gently push down all around to "seal" the best that you can so your filling remains inside. You could also use an egg wash (an egg yolk, mixed with a little water) to seal it but I didn't feel like I had to do that.
Don't have your heat too hot when you are cooking the tortillas. I had mine at medium,, and lowered it a bit to make sure I was browning the tortillas not burning them. I cooked mine in a cast iron pan.
Cherry Mascarpone Cheese Dessert Quesadillas
Ingredients
- ½ lb fresh cherries, pit removed and chopped
- 6 tbsp mascarpone cheese
- 3 tbsp powdered sugar for filling and extra for dusting
- ¼ tsp vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract
- 6 soft taco sized tortillas
- 3 tbsp butter for coating your pan
- pinch of salt
For topping the quesadillas
- powdered sugar to taste
Instructions
- Prepare your cherries by removing the pits and chopping them up.
- Combine the mascarpone cheese, powdered sugar, a pinch of salt, and vanilla bean paste in a bowl using a fork.
- Evenly spread the mascarpone filling across three tortillas, leaving a bit of space around the edges.
- Evenly distribute the cherries over the mascarpone-covered tortillas.
- Place a plain tortilla on top of each filled one. Press around the edges to help seal them.
- Heat a cast iron pan over medium heat.
- Add butter to the pan. Place one quesadilla in the center and cook until browned on one side. Carefully flip it over with a wide spatula and cook until the second side is browned. Remove to a plate and repeat with the remaining quesadillas.
- When all the quesadillas are cooked, dust them with powdered sugar.
- Allow them to cool for a few minutes, then slice into quarters with a pizza cutter and serve warm.
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