An easy cheesy casserole with fresh juicy tomatoes, soft melted mozzarella cheese, fluffy protein-packed quinoa, and delicious basil pieces. Thrown in the oven to melt the flavors together and then drizzled with a simple balsamic reduction to make a caprese casserole masterpiece that anyone can make for an easy gluten-free weeknight meal.
With summer winding down (starts to whimper), someone forgot to tell the garden tomatoes to start to close down shop (and this girl is not complaining!). So I have been making every dinner in the past week with tomatoes as a key player in my recipes. I'd hate to have all of my delicious juicy homegrown tomatoes go to waste!
I started the week off with my Slower Cooker Chicken Cacciatore recipe that uses my garden tomatoes and am winding the week down with this recipe, one of my all-time favorites.
On top of the delicious amounts of tomatoes, this recipe calls for fluffy quinoa that it topped with a layer of tomatoes, followed by slices of fresh mozzarella and then baked until warm and the cheesy is melty and warm.
After taking it out of the oven, it is sprinkled in a healthy amount of fresh basil and drizzled with balsamic vinegar. It wouldn't be a caprese casserole without the basil and balsamic no would it?!?
We have a crazy amount of fresh tomatoes in our kitchen even after making this cheesy melty weeknight dish. So I guess the recipes with tomatoes will continue until they are all gobbles up. I'm determined!
Table of Contents
What ingredients do I need to make Caprese Quinoa Casserole?
- 2 cups cooked quinoa
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ red onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 slices medium tomatoes, sliced into ¼"
- 8 ounces fresh part-skim mozzarella cheese, sliced into ¼–inch rounds
- ¼ cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- cracked pepper to taste
How to make Caprese Quinoa Casserole:
- Preheat your oven to 400*F. Cook the quinoa according to package directions, fluff, and set aside.
- Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute until fragrant and tender Approx. 2-3 minutes).
- Add the onion/garlic mix, red pepper flakes, and the basil to the quinoa. Place this entire mixture into a casserole dish that has been sprayed with cooking spray.
- Place tomato slices and mozzarella circles on top of the quinoa, alternating between the two.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and turning a golden brown.
- Prepare the balsamic reduction drizzle while the casserole is baking: In a small sauce pan, heat the balsamic vinegar until it simmers and let simmer for 4-5 minutes, until the liquid reduces and becomes thicker, like syrup consistency.
- Drizzle the reduction on top of the cooked casserole and garnish with fresh cracked pepper. Serve by itself or with your favorite protein. Enjoy!
Any delicious additions to add to this recipe?
We usually throw a few chicken breasts in the oven alongside this caprese quinoa casserole. A juicy chicken breast with this madness on top of it.... a good freakin' idea.
What about the Caprese Quinoa Casserole toppings?
- Putting a simple and yummy balsamic reduction drizzle on top of the toasted cheesy top, really makes this dish caprese-legit.
- I'm a HUGE fan of basil so I load up my casserole with bunches of basil leaves. I also add some chopped basil on the very top to make this dish look pretty darn fancy.
- Adding a dash of cracked pepper will help the fancy look if that's what you're going for!
Want more caprese recipes?
Well here you go!
Quinoa Casserole
An easy cheesy quinoa casserole with fresh juicy tomatoes, soft melted mozzarella cheese, fluffy protein-packed quinoa, and delicious basil pieces. Thrown in the oven to melt the flavors together and then drizzled with a simple balsamic reduction to make a caprese casserole masterpiece that anyone can make for an easy gluten-free weeknight meal.
Ingredients
- 2 cups cooked quinoa
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- ½ red onion, diced
- 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 2 slices medium tomatoes, sliced into ¼"
- 8 ounces fresh part-skim mozzarella cheese, sliced into ¼–inch rounds
- ¼ cup fresh basil leaves, chopped
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- cracked pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400*F. Cook the quinoa according to package directions, fluff, and set aside.
- Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute until fragrant and tender Approx. 2-3 minutes).
- Add the onion/garlic mix, red pepper flakes, and the basil to the quinoa. Place this entire mixture into a casserole dish that has been sprayed with cooking spray.
- Place tomato slices and mozzarella circles on top of the quinoa, alternating between the two.
- Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and turning a golden brown.
- Prepare the balsamic reduction drizzle while the casserole is baking: In a small sauce pan, heat the balsamic vinegar until it simmers and let simmer for 4-5 minutes, until the liquid reduces and becomes thicker, like syrup consistency.
- Drizzle the reduction on top of the cooked casserole and garnish with fresh cracked pepper. Serve by itself or with your favorite protein. Enjoy!
I'm planning on making this soon, but want to make sure I have the instructions correct first. When reading the ingredient list it says 2 cups cooked quinoa, which I originally took to mean that I have already cooked my quinoa and ended up with 2 cups after cooking. However the instructions include cooking the quinoa, which made me wonder if I"m supposed to start with 2 cups of raw quinoa and then cook that. Can you clear this up for me, please? I want to make sure I use the correct amount. Thanks! 🙂
Hi Jessica! First off, love your name 😉 Thank you so much for asking this question, and I apologize for the confusion. So the instructions (which I will restate and hopefully make less confusing!) should ask to have the quinoa already cooked (so I didn't really need to say the part about cooking the quinoa...I see how that is confusing) and to mix the onion-garlic mix into the already cooked quinoa. I hope that clarifies it. I will reorganize my wording so that others are not confused as well. If you have any other questions, please feel free to email me at [email protected] or we can also Skype/Facetime if that would help. Cheers dear!
Thank you so much for getting back to me quickly! I made this for dinner last night and it was delicious! I will definitely be making it again. 🙂
So glad that you liked it Jessica! It is on our family's menu to make this week 🙂
This looks so yummy! Caprese salad is one of my faves. Love this take on it!
I love quinoa bakes, and this one looks so incredible! That browned cheese on top is calling my name - what a perfect dinner!!
Oh that golden brown mozzarella screams my name every time too! I cant ever quit mozzarella! Ever.
You are simply the best! I love that you took my favorite parts of pizza and made it gluten-free! Love the balsamic reduction. I never would've thought of that. Count me in! Also, can I borrow some tomatoes?
Girl! You can have as many tomatoes as your pretty little hands can carry! We are swamped over here! 🙂
The perfect meal for Meatless Monday - love how it's packed with in season tomatoes!
Yes! I didn't even think of that! It would be a good option for Meatless Monday! Great idea!
I am drooling over here jut looking at these pics - that cheese + tomatoes are killing me! I'm so jealous of you with your tomato plant!
I don't know why our tomato plant is such a beast! We don't use anything besides tap water and dirt and the thing just wont quit! 🙂
Looks legit. I am loving all the summer tomatoes right now!
Oh! Me too girl! I can't get enough of all these fresh juicy tomatoes!
Oh my goodness J! This quinoa casserole is GORGEOUS!! And it sounds amazing! Such a creative recipe..great job! 🙂
Thanks dear! It really tastes just as good and cheesy as it looks!
Oh my goodness, I am SO jealous of your tomato plant going strong! Mine died due to the crazy heat we've been experiencing here (though it's significantly less hot than it was... the tomato plant just couldn't cut it.) This casserole is gorgeous, and I bet it tastes divine, too! Can't wait to get my hands on some heirloom tomatoes so I can whip this up, too!
Great idea and awesome pic!