Portobello & Caramelized Onion Quesadillas

I dislike disliking foods.  And by that, I mean real foods, of course.  I'm not talking about my goal of never having a Twinkie pass my lips because Twinkies are simply not "real" food in my book.  I'm talking about my dislike for mushrooms and fresh tomatoes (although perhaps that's just a rule for grocery store tomatoes because farm or garden fresh tomatoes are so much better!).  But I'm trying to break out of that rut -- I've been able to sneak mushrooms into dishes and I recently made grilled portobello mushroom paninis (with mozzarella, basil pesto and roasted red peppers.  Highly recommended!). This week, we continued to break my dislike by having portobello and caramelized onion quesadillas.

These quesadillas originally called for brie cheese, and while that would have been delicious, I didn't have any on hand (I have a fridge that needs to be eaten down before our move).  So I opted to make these quesadillas more Mexican-infused by substituting cheddar cheese and serving it with refried black beans, homemade salsa, homemade guacamole and nonfat yogurt.  This was a great, easy meatless meal for us.  I cooked the caramelized onions the night before so I loved being able to throw everything in a skillet and have a quick dinner at the end of a long week.

Portobello & Caramelized Onion Quesadillas
Taken from: A Hint of Honey
Serves 3-4

• 1 large onion, thinly sliced
• 2 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil, divided
• salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 2 large cloves of garlic, minced
• 6 oz. portobello mushrooms (about 2 large), stems and gills removed and sliced
• 1 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar (I substituted 1 Tbsp. lime juice to keep with Mexican flavors for this dish)
• handful or two fresh spinach, chopped
• 2 large whole wheat tortillas
• brie, thinly sliced (I substituted shredded cheddar cheese)

1. Can be done up to 2 days before: To caramelize onions, heat 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until soft and caramelized, 25-35 minutes. (Reduce heat as necessary to prevent onions from browning too quickly.)
2. Meanwhile, heat 1 Tbsp. olive oil in a second large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and cook 1 minute. Add mushrooms and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the balsamic vinegar or lime juice. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until mushrooms are tender. Stir in the spinach and cook until wilted. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
3. Wipe out skillet with a wad of paper towels and then heat again over medium heat. Place the tortillas on the skillet and top half of each of the tortillas with thinly sliced brie or shredded cheddar, half of the caramelized onions, and half of the mushroom-spinach mixture. Fold over the second half of the tortillas. Cook, flipping halfway through, until the cheese is melted and the tortillas are golden brown. Slice and serve.