Off topic: Quick gourmet quesadillas

I'm always looking for easy-to-make, relatively-healthy and inexpensive recipes that have a special touch for lazy summer nights in or a quick gourmet lunch. This one fits the bill. It's crispy, flaky, hearty and adapted from Pamela E.'s Recipe of the Day--6/4--Sausage Quesadillas to make only one quesadilla, perfect for two meals or to share.

Ingredients

2 T. cream cheese, softened (I used the lighter, whipped cream cheese)

Dash of cayenne pepper

2 (10-inch size) flour tortillas

Sausage, cooked, drained, crumbled (I used a one-inch slice from Safeway Select-brand Country Pork Sausage, which comes bulk in a hand-sized tube. The tube of sausage can be sliced easily when frozen, either to make pre-shaped sausage patties or browned and crumbled like ground beef)

Monterey Jack cheese, grated to taste

1 diced green chile (I used pepperoncinis -- the kind served with Papa John's pizza. Jars of pepperoncinis can usually be found at The Dollar Tree. Hint: The Dollar Tree also boasts plenty of other gourmet edibles, from pimento-stuffed olives to pickled asparagus, all for only $1. Perfect for stocking up for a martini or Bloody Mary.)

Handful of frozen corn

Handful of frozen sweet pepper strips (Trader Joe's stocks both frozen grilled red/yellow pepper wedges and frozen raw red, green and yellow bell pepper strips [brand name "Melange a trois"]. Both are less than $2 for 16 ounces, and are a great impromptu addition to pizza, salads and, of course, quesadillas.)

Dash of kosher or sea salt

Garlic powder and ground pepper to taste (I grind my pepper fresh with a pepper mill, using whole peppercorns. Large plastic spice containers of both the peppercorns and garlic power can be found for $1 at The Dollar Tree. Never get garlic salt. It's unnecessary, since salt is almost always close at hand.)

Cooking process

Preheat oven to 350F. Spray the center of a cookie sheet heavily with butter or olive oil-flavored cooking spray, and set aside.

In a small bowl beat together softened cream cheese and cayenne pepper. Spread mixture evenly on one side of both of the tortillas. I then lightly sautéed the corn and bell peppers along with the sausage already cooked in the pan. I added the salt, ground pepper and garlic near the end of the sautéing process.  

Sprinkle sausage mixture and chilies evenly over one of the cream cheese-topped tortillas. Grate the Monterey Jack cheese directly over top of the filling to taste. Top with remaining tortilla; press down. Spray the top of the tortilla stack heavily with cooking spray.

Bake 10 minutes flipping after 5 minutes. Cut the quesadilla into 8 wedges and serve immediately.

Thank you Pamela E.!