Soups, Salads,
and Sandwiches
It is the middle of the day that always gets me. I find myself hungry and I rarely have a plan for this liminal time period between the beginning and end of the day. I enthusiastically anticipate and plan breakfasts, brunches, and dinners and their accompaniments, but always seem to neglect the middle-of-the-day meal called lunch.
The good thing about that is that these three items— soups, sandwiches, and salads— lend themselves very well to improvisation and relentless creativity. So if you find yourself like me and it is high-noon without a thought or a plan in the world for what you might make to eat, you are in luck. With some basic staple pantry items and whatever you have on hand, you can conjure up an infinite variety of lunch options. I strive to always have on hand chicken stock, fine quality bread, and some kind of leafy green. This way no matter what form of bread or green or stock I have, I know that I can, without much difficulty, either when company arrives or just to curb my own temporary starvation, whip up a soup, sandwich, or salad in some form or another. Invariably, I always come up with a new idea, or three, just from sheer necessity— you know what they say about her as a mother. And I love the idea of the three of these foods as siblings or best friends who all love to play together, but somehow one of them always gets left out and a duo forms— soup and sandwich, or soup and salad, or salad and sandwich— you get the idea.
Soups have been a source of comfort for me since well before I can remember. I have the triumvirate of influences when it comes to soups: my grandmother, my mother, and, of course, Campbell’s.
My grandmother, in all her love and goodness, made soups for me. Oftentimes they were delivered on a tray down to the dock from which we dove and swam around and under until our water-soaked, ravenous fingers were as crinkled as the Ruffles chips that might accompany the soup and sandwich. Those are the best memories, and they fortified my love of soup— even in the heat of summer— for the rest of my life. My idea of a perfect multi-course meal always includes a soup. My idea of a perfect comfort meal is just a great big bowl of steaming soup all by itself. My mother, while not really a cook herself, did make soups. She too plays a part in my adoration of soups. Since she would pepper her chicken soup so heavily, I also credit her with my tolerance of spicy food. Even though the fiery heat of it was almost too much for my young American palate, it didn’t outweigh my desire to enjoy the entire bowl. I would finish it with a good dose of the sniffles (which is what always happens when I eat spicy food) and completely happy.
I suppose the incessant coupling of the soup and the sandwich in my young life linked to my school days. The breakup never occurred, and a thermos was sent in my lunchbox so my soup could be with me.
However, I do want to challenge you to think outside of the lunchbox and use all of these recipes not only as meals unto themselves but as starters, first courses, and playful hors d’oeuvres for any time of the day.
There is nothing better than tomato soup— especially when it is accompanied by a grilled cheese! This soup is also amazingly easy to whip up. Some yummy toppings to use as garnish are goat cheese crumbles or, my other favorite, a little pesto swirled on top.
Serve with Three-Cheese Grilled Cheese sandwiches (see recipe on page 45).
Serves 4
2½ tablespoons butter
1 small onion, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
1½ teaspoons dried oregano
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 (15-ounce) cans diced tomatoes, puréed
Pinch baking soda
2½ cups chicken stock, vegetable stock, or water
¾ cup half-and-half
Kosher salt and pepper
Melt the butter in a soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, celery, and oregano; cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is soft, about 5 minutes. Stir in the flour, then add the tomatoes and stock. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, partially covered, for 20 minutes. Let cool briefly, then purée with an emulsion blender if you have one; if not, transfer to a blender, and purée until smooth.
Return the soup to the pot if using a blender, add the half-and-half, and season with salt and pepper.
Chef John Folse’s Seafood Gumbo
Gumbo is the combination of the words “Cajun” and “delicious.” Okay, maybe it is only in my own personal dictionary. The real definition is that gumbo originated in Louisiana in the eighteenth century, combining ingredients and culinary practices of several cultures, including French, Spanish, German, West African, and Choctaw.
The secret to a great gumbo is in the base of the soup— the roux (a French technique of combining fat and flour to make a paste to which liquid is added for the soup). You have to be patient with the roux in a gumbo because it needs time to darken and develop. Your efforts will be rewarded.
This recipe is from my friend John Folse. Chef Folse is like a gumbo— a definitive Cajun presence. His accent is drawn by the outline of hot sauce and filé. So deep and wide is his knowledge of Cajun and Creole cooking that when he gifted me with his encyclopedia, I poured through it as a boy might pour through his favorite comic books, soaking up every word. He and his knowledge are treasures.
Serves 8
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 cups onions, diced
1 cup celery, diced
1 cup bell pepper, diced
¼ cup garlic, minced
½ pound andouille sausage, sliced
1 pound claw crabmeat
1 pound (35 count) shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 cup okra, chopped
2 cups green onions, sliced
½ cup parsley, chopped
Salt and cayenne pepper, to taste
Louisiana hot sauce, to taste
1 pound jumbo lump crabmeat
2 dozen shucked oysters, reserve liquid
3 quarts shellfish stock
Cooked white rice
In a 7-quart cast-iron Dutch oven, heat oil over medium-high heat. Whisk in flour, stirring constantly until brown roux is achieved. Add onions, celery, bell pepper, and garlic. Sauté 3–5 minutes or until vegetables are wilted. Blend in andouille and sauté an additional 3–5 minutes. Stir in claw crabmeat, ½ cup shrimp, and okra. Slowly add stock, one ladle at a time, stirring constantly. Bring to a low boil, reduce to simmer, and cook 30 minutes. If necessary, additional stock may be used to retain volume. Add green onions and parsley. Season to taste using salt, cayenne and hot sauce. Fold in remaining shrimp, lump crabmeat, and oysters and their reserved liquid. Return to a low boil and cook approximately 5 minutes. Adjust seasonings to taste. Serve over cooked rice.
This is the simplest of recipes and one of the most rewarding. I find that some days I cannot have anything else other than a good bowl of chicken noodle soup. My mother made it for me when I was growing up and ever since soups have been my most treasured comfort food. My Greek stepmother taught me the added dimension that the touch of lemon gives.
Serves 8
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium carrots, cut diagonally into ½-inch-thick slices
2 celery ribs, halved lengthwise and cut into ½-inch-thick slices
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1 bay leaf
2 quarts chicken stock, recipe follows
8 ounces dried wide egg noodles
1½ cups cooked chicken, shredded
Kosher salt and pepper
Squeeze of lemon
Place a soup pot over medium heat and coat bottom with oil. Add the onion, garlic, carrots, celery, oregano, and bay leaf. Cook and stir for about 6 minutes until the vegetables are softened but not browned. Pour in the chicken stock, and bring the liquid to a boil. Add the noodles and simmer for 5 minutes until tender. Fold in the chicken, and continue to simmer for another couple of minutes to heat through; season with salt and pepper. Squeeze a few drops of lemon juice just before serving.
This is a simple and beautiful summer soup. Serve this soup hot or chilled. You can make this soup even more delicious by adding chopped cilantro, diced avocado, or tomato. You can take it one step further and really make it fancy by topping it with crabmeat or grilled shrimp.
Serves 6
10 ears sweet corn
2 medium onions, chopped
1 tablespoons vegetable oil, olive oil, or butter
1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
1 medium potato, chopped
4 cups water, or chicken or vegetable broth
Cilantro, chopped (optional)
Avocado and tomato, diced (optional)
Using a large hole grater over a very large bowl, grate off the corn kernels. Use the blunt side of a knife blade to scrape remaining liquid and corny bits into the bowl. Set aside this luscious raw corn purée.
Chop onions. In a large pot heat oil or butter over medium heat. Add onions and ½ teaspoon salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion wilts, about 3 minutes.
Meanwhile, peel and chop potato. Add potato and water or broth to pot. Bring to a boil. Cook until onions and potatoes are very soft, about 10 minutes. Add corn. Cook until heated through, about 2 minutes.
Purée with an immersion blender, blender, or food processor. (Do this in small batches to avoid splashes and burns.)
Add salt to taste. Garnish with cilantro, avocado, or tomato, if you like.
Serves 6
8 slices bacon
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
2 celery ribs, thinly sliced
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 leek, white and tender green parts only, thinly sliced
5 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth
Salt and white pepper
2 (10-ounce) boxes frozen baby peas
¼ cup flat-leaf parsley leaves
2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
In a medium-sized soup pot, cook the bacon over moderate heat until browned and crisp, about 6 minutes. Transfer the bacon to a plate. Pour off the fat in the pot.
In the same pot, heat the olive oil. Add the celery, onion, and leek, and cook over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened but not browned, about 7 minutes. Add the chicken stock, 4 slices of the cooked bacon, and a pinch each of salt and pepper. Simmer until the vegetables are very tender, about 10 minutes. Discard the bacon. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the vegetables to a blender. Reserve broth.
Meanwhile, bring a medium-sized saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the frozen baby peas and parsley, and cook until just heated through, about 1 minute; drain. Add the baby peas and parsley to the blender, and purée until smooth, adding a few tablespoons of the broth to loosen the mixture. Transfer the purée and remaining broth to a large bowl set in a larger bowl of ice water to cool.
Ladle the chilled pea soup into bowls, and top with the crumbled goat cheese. Crumble the remaining 4 slices of bacon into each bowl and serve.
Serves 6
4 ounces goat cheese, room temperature
2 teaspoons lemon juice
½ teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Pinch superfine sugar
2 tablespoons low-fat (1½ percent) buttermilk
Salt and white pepper
1 scallion, chopped
In a small bowl, stir the goat cheese, vinegar, mustard, and sugar until smooth. Stir in the buttermilk and 2 tablespoons of water until smooth; if necessary, stir in more water. Season with salt and white pepper. Stir in the scallion just before serving.
The dressing can be refrigerated, covered, for up to 3 days.
As a good Southern girl, it took me a while to really appreciate a good salad. For the longest time I had an impression of people who ate salads as people who didn’t really like food but were looking to order something healthy from the menu, as they were on a strict regime towards eventual disappearance. Of course, I had this opinion because I was always the one ordering the extra-cream-laden bisque with a full entrée to accompany it. I never stopped to think that my choices might have seemed excessive.
One day in the not-too-distant past I wrote to a friend who always raved about salads that a change had occurred in me. I liked salads! I realized I was the one who wasn’t being creative.
Now I always keep some sort of greens in my fridge— kale, spinach, green leaf, even iceberg— so I can whip up a fantastic meal of a salad based on whatever other ingredients I have on hand. Not only has my opinion of people who eat salad changed, but my opinion of salads has changed.
I was limiting myself from amazing options, and I am so glad that salads and I are not boring anymore!
Natalie Chanin, a renowned fashion designer from Florence, Alabama, and a dear friend of mine, came up with this delicious recipe as a simple and inspired creation for a main course salad. Her talents, as you will be able to taste, go far beyond the art of textile.
Serves 4
4 handfuls fresh salad mix
1 cup cherry tomatoes
2 leftover grilled chicken breasts
Belle Chèvre Tuscan Chèvre (goat cheese marinated in oil with herbs)
½ lemon, juiced
Pepper, to taste
Place jar of Tuscan Chèvre in bowl of hot tap water to warm. Slice cherry tomatoes in half, lightly salt, and set aside. Slice chicken breasts into one-eighth-inch strips, and set aside. Wash and dry greens. Fill one-half of a plate with greens and add salted cherry tomatoes.
Fan chicken slices on other half of plate. Spoon warmed goat cheese on top of each slice of chicken, centering the cheese on each slice. Remove remainder of goat cheese from jar and place in bowl to be eaten at the table.
Spoon oil and “goodies” from the jar (sun-dried tomatoes) over chicken strips topped with cheese. Place additional crackers on the table to enjoy with the remainder of your Tuscan Chèvre.
For the dressing, add juice from one-half lemon and pepper to taste to the remainder of oil in jar. Close lid and shake. Pour dressing over salad and eat.
Frisée Salad with Lardons and Baked Chèvre de Provence
Serves 4
Goat Cheese Rounds
4 discs marinated goat cheese from 2 jars of Belle
Chèvre de Provence (goat cheese in oil with herbs)
2 cups breadcrumbs, toasted
Salad
6 ounces slab bacon, rind discarded if necessary
and bacon cut into 1/8-inch-thick slices, then cut into
1-inch-wide pieces (to form lardons)
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons shallot, finely chopped
2½ tablespoons sherry vinegar
½ teaspoon sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
1½ pounds dandelion greens, stems and center ribs discarded and leaves cut into 2-inch pieces (10 cups)
Spread breadcrumbs on flat surface. Roll goat cheese rounds in breadcrumbs, then bake on oven rack in middle position at 375 degrees until warmed.
Prepare salad while goat cheese rounds bake. Cook bacon in a 12-inch heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until browned and crisp, about 12 minutes. If necessary pour off all but 1 tablespoon fat. Add oil and shallots to skillet and cook, stirring, until softened, about 2 minutes. Add vinegar, quickly stirring and scraping up brown bits; then stir in sugar and salt. Immediately pour hot dressing and bacon over dandelion greens in a large bowl and toss well.
Divide salad among plates and put a warm goat cheese round alongside each salad. Serve immediately.
Watermelon, Red Onion, and Goat Cheese Salad
Serves 4
2–3 cups watermelon in bite-sized chunks, seeds removed
2–3 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
¼ large red onion, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons balsamic vinaigrette dressing, recipe below
2–3 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped
Balsamic Vinaigrette
3 tablespoons balsamic
vinegar
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
½ cup olive oil
In large salad or mixing bowl, gently toss all salad ingredients except the basil. When ready to serve, top with basil.
Whisk first 3 vinaigrette ingredients in medium bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in oil. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper.
The dressing can easily be made ahead of time. Rewhisk before serving.
Salad of Gratinéed Goat Cheese with Sesame-Honey Dressing
This salad was inspired by one I had on vacation in Europe. The flavors are incredible, with the sweet-tangy dressing and sun-dried tomatoes playing off the warm, creamy goat cheese. I could eat this at every meal.
Serves 4
Salad
4 cups mixed greens (I like raddichio, mixed baby
greens, and arugula)
¼ cup pine nuts
1 cup sun-dried tomatoes
1½ cups water
½ cup apple cider vinegar
8 ounces goat cheese
1/3 cup sesame-honey dressing (see below)
Sesame-Honey Dressing
6 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 tablespoon honey
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted
Clove garlic, minced
Sea salt and pepper
Heat the water and vinegar to nearly boiling, and add the sun-dried tomatoes. Rehydrate for at least 15 minutes. Then remove from water, pat dry, and drizzle with olive oil (optional).
Preheat oven broiler. Break up goat cheese into a glass baking pan and place under broiler until cheese browns in spots.
Meanwhile, toss greens with a sprinkling of salt, pepper, and the dressing to taste. Divide greens, nuts, and tomatoes between four plates, then top with hot goat cheese.
Combine all ingredients but sesame seeds in blender. Blend until smooth. Then add sesame seeds, and blend until incorporated. Pour into small jar and refrigerate any leftover dressing.
Greek Kiss with Tomato Salad (for the Grill)
Serves 6
6 Greek Kisses (Belle Chèvre goat cheese wrapped in grape leaves; see receipe on page 54 to make your own)
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
6 large tomatoes, thinly sliced
1/3 cup (about 30) pitted oil-cured black olives, coarsely chopped
6 ½-inch-thick slices crusty country-style white bread
Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Whisk ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil, vinegar, and mustard in small bowl to blend. Season dressing with salt and pepper. Slightly overlap tomato slices on large platter. Drizzle with dressing; sprinkle with half of olives.
Place Greek Kisses on grill, seam-side down. Grill until cheese softens and leaves begin to char, about 2 minutes per side. Arrange cheeses atop tomatoes. Sprinkle with remaining olives.
Brush bread slices with remaining thyme oil. Grill bread until beginning to brown, turning occasionally, about 5 minutes. Cut toasts diagonally in half. Serve cheese, passing toasts separately.
Nothing goes together better than the two earthy flavors of beets and goat cheese.
Serves 4
4 medium beets, scrubbed and trimmed, leaving about 1 inch of stems attached
Vinaigrette
1¼ teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons white-wine vinegar
¼ teaspoon dried tarragon, crumbled
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Herbed Goat Cheese
¾ cup fresh breadcrumbs
½ teaspoon dried tarragon, crumbled
¾ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper, freshly ground
8 ounces Montrachet or other soft goat cheese, cut into 8 ½-inch rounds and chilled, covered
2 bunches watercress, coarse stems discarded, rinsed and spun dry (about 8 cups)
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Wrap beets tightly in foil and roast in middle of oven 1–1½ hours, or until tender. Unwrap beets carefully and cool until they can be handled. Discard stems and peel beets. Cut each beet into 8 wedges.
Beets may be prepared up to this point 1 day ahead and chilled, covered.
Make vinaigrette. In a blender, blend together mustard, vinegar, tarragon, salt, and pepper. With motor running add oil in a stream, and blend until emulsified. Vinaigrette may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered.
Make herbed goat cheese. In a bowl stir together breadcrumbs, tarragon, salt, and pepper. Cut each cheese round in half, crosswise. Coat each piece of cheese evenly with crumb mixture, pressing gently, and transfer to a baking sheet. Goat cheese may be prepared up to this point 1 day ahead and chilled, covered loosely. Let cheese come to room temperature before proceeding.
Toss watercress, onion, and half of vinaigrette into a bowl. Arrange watercress mixture, beets, and goat cheese on 8 salad plates and drizzle remaining vinaigrette over beets.
Belle Chèvre’s Croque-Monsieurs
Serves 4
3½ ounces (½ cup) mild goat cheese, room temperature
4 tablespoons olive oil
8 ⅓-inch-thick slices French bread, cut on the diagonal so that each slice is about 3 inches long
In a small bowl, cream together the goat cheese and 1 tablespoon of oil. Spread 4 slices of bread with the mixture and top them with the remaining slices, pressing the sandwiches lightly. In a small nonstick skillet, heat 1½ tablespoons of the remaining oil over moderately high heat until it is hot but not smoking. Sauté 2 of the sandwiches for 1½ minutes on each side, or until they are golden, and transfer them to a plate. Sauté the remaining 2 sandwiches in the remaining 1½ tablespoons oil in the same manner.
Three-Cheese Grilled Cheese— with a Little Soul
Serves 4
8 slices French bread, cut on diagonal (about 3 inches long and 1/3-inch-thick)
1 cup (packed) whole-milk mozzarella, grated
4 teaspoons fresh thyme, minced
8 tablespoons Parmesan, freshly grated
4 tablespoons goat cheese, crumbled
4 thin slices smoked ham
4 tablespoons (½ stick) butter
Arrange 4 bread slices on work surface. Layer each with ¼ cup mozzarella cheese, 1 teaspoon thyme, 2 tablespoons Parmesan, 1 tablespoon goat cheese, and 1 ham slice. Top each with bread slice.
Melt 1 tablespoon butter in heavy large skillet over medium-low heat. Add 2 sandwiches to skillet. Cover and cook until bottoms of bread are golden and cheeses are melted, about 2 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon butter to skillet. Turn sandwiches over; cook until bottoms are golden, about 2 minutes longer. Transfer sandwiches to plates. Repeat with remaining butter and sandwiches.
I always have tons of basil in my garden. If I haven’t eaten it all by the time it goes to flower I gather it all up and make a bunch of pesto, freezing the reserves for the winter.
A good Southerner, I substitute pecans for the traditional pine nuts. It is even more delicious that way.
Serves 4
1 cup basil leaves
¼ cup pecan pieces, toasted
1/3 cup Parmesan, freshly grated
Clove garlic, crushed
½ cup olive oil
Sea salt
To make the pesto, process the basil, pecans, Parmesan, garlic, oil and salt in a small food processor until combined.
Many years ago on the day after Thanksgiving, I was doing what I normally do, which is not participating in Black Friday but participating in the art of enjoying leftovers with my sisters. I have always enjoyed turkey sandwiches with extra helpings and slathers of mayonnaise but substituting, as I am sometimes prone to do, goat cheese for the mayonnaise. The result of that substitution makes me so happy that I have never gone back to mayonnaise on my sandwiches. The goat cheese is not only lighter and healthier, but it creates a wonderful creamy and tangy flavor that I can now no longer live without.
Try goat cheese on all of your sandwiches— ham and turkey, BLT, egg salad. We have even stirred PB&J into the goat cheese for a much better than Nutella sensation!
Mushroom, Pesto, and Goat Cheese Sandwiches
Serves 2
1½ ounces butter
8 ounces button mushrooms
Sea salt and cracked black pepper
2 sourdough rolls, halved
3 ounces goat cheese
My Southern Basil Pesto (see recipe on page 46)
½ cup Swiss cheese, grated
Heat the butter in a large nonstick frying pan over medium heat. Add the mushrooms, salt, and pepper, and cook for 5–8 minutes or until brown. Set aside.
Spread rolls with pesto and goat cheese, top with the cheese and grill (broil) under a preheated hot grill for 1–2 minutes or until the cheese is melted and golden. Top with the mushrooms to serve.
Goat Cheese with Eggplant and Roasted Peppers on Olive Bread
Serves 1
1–2 ounces goat cheese (herbed or plain)
2 slices olive bread or any rustic country bread
1 medium eggplant cut into 3 ¼-inch-thick slices
½ large red pepper (or jarred roasted red pepper)
1 teaspoon lightly salted butter
Thinly slice eggplant, brush with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste, and grill or broil for 4–5 minutes.
Hold peppers over a flame until blackened. When cooled, peel, discard skins, and place peppers in a paper bag.
Spread goat cheese on one side of bread. Place eggplant and pepper on the other piece of bread. Close sandwich. Evenly spread ½ teaspoon of butter onto each slice of bread. Grill over moderate heat for 3–4 minutes.
Black Olive Tapenade and Goat Cheese Wraps
Serves 4
Goat Cheese Spread
1 pound goat cheese
¼ cup heavy cream
2 tablespoons thyme leaves, chopped
Place all the ingredients in a bowl and stir to combine. Set aside.
Tapenade
1 cup pitted Kalamata olives
2 anchovy fillets
2 teaspoons capers packed in brine, rinsed and drained
½ teaspoon garlic, smashed (use the edge of a large, wide-bladed knife)
Place all of the ingredients in a food processor fitted with the metal blade, and process until finely chopped. Transfer to a bowl. Set aside.
Wraps
8 flour tortillas, 10 inches in diameter
2 roasted red bell peppers, halved
2 cups frisée, coarse ends trimmed, curly tips torn into pieces
Lay the tortillas on work surface. Spread ¼ cup of goat cheese over the center portion of each tortilla. Spread 1 generous tablespoon of the tapenade over the goat cheese.
Cut each pepper half into 6 strips, and lay 3 strips along the center of each tortilla. Top the pepper with some frisée.
Fold two sides of the tortilla over the frisée, then roll up the tortilla. Cut each wrap crosswise into 4 pieces and serve from a platter.
Potato, Greens, and Goat Cheese Quesadillas
Serves 4
1 1/3 cups potatoes (about 2 of medium size), Yukon Gold, peeled and ½-inch cubed
2 teaspoons chili powder
1 1/3 cups (packed, 5–6 ounces) hot pepper Monterey Jack, coarsely grated
1 1/3 cups salsa verde (tomatillo salsa), prepared
4 2/3 cups stemmed mustard or collard greens (from 1 bunch), coarsely chopped and divided
4 flour tortillas, 8 inches in diameter
3 ounces goat cheese, coarsely crumbled and chilled
Olive oil
Place baking sheet in oven and preheat to 275 degrees. Steam potatoes until tender, about 8 minutes. Place in large bowl. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and chili powder. Toss to coat. Cool potatoes 15 minutes. Mix in Jack cheese. Meanwhile, blend salsa and 2/3 cup (packed) greens in mini processor until greens are finely chopped.
Arrange tortillas on work surface. Divide remaining greens between the bottom half of each tortillas. Top greens with potato mixture, goat cheese, and 2 tablespoons salsa mixture, each. Fold plain tortilla halves over filling, pressing to compact. Brush with oil.
Heat large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Place 2 quesadillas, oiled side down, in skillet. Brush tops with oil. Cook until quesadillas are brown, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer to sheet in oven to keep warm. Repeat with remaining 2 quesadillas.
Cut each quesadilla into 3 or 4 wedges. Serve with remaining salsa.