Delicious and with a big protein punch, this vegetarian quinoa bake is a favorite for meatless dinners.
Do you do Meatless Monday? I don’t, really. But I do try to eat at least one vegetarian dinner per week.
At my house, we’re really used to a lot of protein so when I do make a meatless dinner, I try to make sure it’s really hearty and satisfying in the protein department. I love this recipe because it’s gluten-free and high in that needed protein because of the quinoa.
Video: Italian Cauliflower and Quinoa Bake:
Double Protein
One of the tricks that works for us for making satisfying vegetarian meals is to use at least two protein sources per meal. Today’s recipe for Italian Cauliflower and Quinoa Bake uses both high-protein quinoa and also cheese. Combined with the meaty texture of roasted cauliflower, it’s satisfying from the first mouthful.
Quinoa Tip
If you ever find quinoa bitter, it might be a good idea to try rinsing it more thoroughly. This is true even if it says that it’s pre-rinsed. I actually did some tests recently to figure out how best to prepare quinoa. I taste-tested cooked quinoa that had not been rinsed prior to cooking with quinoa that had been rinsed. The difference was definitely there. Furthermore, I then tested if the amount of time spent rinsing it mattered and it really does. Quinoa that has been rinsed for 5 minutes has less bitterness once cooked than quinoa rinsed for 30 seconds or 2 minutes.
To rinse the quinoa, measure it into a fine mesh sieve. Use the sprayer from your kitchen faucet to hit the quinoa with strong jets of water. Rub the quinoa between your fingers as you rinse it for 5 minutes under the water. I know it sounds like a long time, but it’s worth trying if you’ve ever disliked quinoa but want to use it in more recipes.
Note that the recipe below has you cook the quinoa in step #3. You can instead use leftover cooked quinoa. If you make quinoa for this recipe, I recommend making a double batch so that you can use the leftovers in this Quinoa Salad Bowl with Lemon-Hummus Dressing or in this delicious Quinoa and Feta Side Dish Recipe.
And if you love quinoa, I think you’d really like farro as well. You can learn how to cook farro here, and then try this recipe for Beef and Farro Soup and this one for Special Fried Farro.
Cauliflower Type and Quantities
The recipe below calls for 30 ounces of cauliflower florets. That sounds like a lot, but it shrinks down as it cooks. Also, it ends up with a soft but meaty texture, and I find that it them is kind of acting as the meat of our meal. So you end up wanting lots of it for sure!
Bags of Florets: If you’re buying your cauliflower fresh in the produce department in the bags of florets, those bags are usually 10 ounces, so you’ll need three of them.
Heads of Cauliflower: Not all heads of cauliflower are the same size so this can be tricky. The eaiest thing to do is to weight the heads at the store. What you want is about 40 ounces, or 2.5 pounds of cauliflower to start. Once you’ve trimmed it of stems and leaves, that will be about right. If you aren’t able to weight it, I have found that 2 small-to-medium-sized heads trimmed of leaves and stems and then broken into florets ends up being about the right amount.
Frozen Cauliflower: Frozen isn’t my preference for this recipe mostly because it’s hard to get it to caramelize. But I have used it. Use 30 ounces of frozen cauliflower florets and thaw them before beginning the recipe. The texture in the end will be softer, but it will still be tasty.
Seasonings To Use
The recipe below calls for dried oregano and basil. However, if you have some store-bought Italian seasoning, that will work perfectly. Even better, try using some Italian Sausage Seasoning. And don’t worry, even though it says sausage in the title, it’s still vegetarian – it’s simply the seasonings typically used when making Italian sausage, no sausage included. I hope you love this recipe!
More Italian Recipes
Here are links to some of my favorite all-time Italian recipes:
- One-Dish Italian Chicken and Cauliflower Dinner
- Sun-Dried Tomato Chicken Pasta Dinner
- Asiago Tortelloni Alfredo With Grilled Chicken
- Chicken Pasta Bake With Creamy Alfredo
- The Amazing No-Boil Pasta Bake
- Italian Chicken Breasts
- Italian Roasted Cauliflower
- The Best Fresh Basil Pesto Recipe
I also think you’d enjoy some other vegetarian dishes, like this farro recipe that has a lovely creamy sauce and spinach and this Lemon Broccoli. Enjoy!
Podcast Episode About Making Cauliflower Quinoa Bake
Listen to me explain briefly about how to make this quinoa cauliflower bake, along with some other great tips, by clicking the play button below:
Listen to more Recipe of the Day episodes here.
Print
Italian Cauliflower and Quinoa Bake Recipe
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 35 minutes
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Entrée
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Italian
DESCRIPTION
Delicious and with a big protein punch, this vegetarian quinoa bake is a favorite for meatless dinners.
Ingredients
- 30 oz. cauliflower florets
- 2 Tbsp. olive oil
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1/2 tsp. dry oregano
- 1/2 tsp. dry basil
- 1/4 tsp. black pepper
- 1 cup uncooked quinoa, well-rinsed
- 30 oz. tomato sauce (no sodium, add salt to taste)
- 8 oz. shredded mozzarella, divided
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400°F.
- In a 13 x 9-inch pan combine cauliflower, olive oil, salt, oregano, basil, and black pepper. Toss and roast until cauliflower is lightly browned in spots, about 20 minutes.
- Meanwhile, cook quinoa according to package directions (will yield about 3 cups cooked). Drain if needed and fluff with a fork. Transfer it to a medium bowl and add the tomato sauce, 4 ounces of the cheese and salt to taste (if desired).
- Remove the cauliflower from the oven and add the quinoa mixture to it. Stir. Top with remaining cheese.
- Bake until cheese is melted and tomato sauce is bubbly, 15-20 minutes.
Love this recipe? I’d appreciate it if you could scroll down and add a *5 star rating* to help others know they’ll love it as well!
Really good wholesome meal.
I was looking for something to do with quinoa, cauliflower and my leftover rotisserie chicken.
The recipe fit the bill. I did everything it said to do except adding the chicken and 15 oz of jar marinara sauce because I didn’t have another 15 oz can. I also had red and white quinoa so I did a mix for extra color.
It takes so good and filling. My kids loved it. This recipe is a real keeper!
Thank you so much
You’re welcome, Meredith! Thanks for taking the time to share with us.
I know there’s no pasta in this dish but it TOTALLY satisfies my saucy-cheesy- lasagna cravings! And I love that it’s meatless. The simply, tasty dishes are the best!
Yes! So happy it satisfied those cravings for you, KC!
I made this recipe a long time ago with quinoa and it was delicious. I decided to make it again tonight and used brown rice because I couldn’t find quinoa at the store. It was just as delicious and helped quell the craving for pizza and instead eat a healthier alternative.
Yum! So happy you enjoyed, Angela!
Love roasted cauliflower. Cannot wait to try this recipe! Don’t have tomato sauce, have some fresh tomatoes and also passata. How can I make tomato sauce out of it?
so delicious! I threw in a few frozen peas for a little color and roasted the cauliflower until very light brown. Also I made a tomato sauce by simmering some crushed canned tomatoes with garlic and oregano for twenty minutes and then using a hand blender to mix it :). Great recipe, I definitely will make again! Lol I got impatient at the end so I just baked the casserole (?) for ten minutes at 450 and then broiled for three min to get the mozzarella/provolone mixture nice and golden!
Any idea what the nutritional value is for this dish? It is delish and would love to make/eat more often but I need to track my calorie intake (weight loss goals) and especially the carbs intake (diabetic and need to manage my intake). Any input would be greatly appreciated.
Added some frozen spinach and a splash of wing sauce when combining tomato sauce with Quinoa! a hit!
Carol, Fantastic! Love your adaptations!
What an awesome dish..and fast.Okay as with all things, I changed it up a bit. Didn’t have mozzarella cheese, so substituted, parmesan, feta and cheddar in equal amounts. I like spicy stuff, so when I cooked the quinoa,I added about 1 tablespoon of a spicy italian herb mix I have. When I put the quinoa and the cauliflower together , I added in about 4 cups of fresh spinach, then added the cheese topping. Cooked it an extra 5 minutes. This is an absolute keeper.. THANK YOU. you made my night, I love to experiment, and this dish was easy and fast for a weeknight dish.
Gail, So happy you liked it. Your changes sound fantastic!
This looks amazing! Do you know if this will freeze well?
Thanks!
Kicki, I think it should freeze well. You might want to use less sauce if freezing so it doesn’t end up liquidy.
I made this for dinner and it was delicious! It tasted just like parmagian. We are thinking of adding other veggies to the mix next time. Thanks for a delicious way to eat cauliflower!!!
Susan, So happy you liked it! I bet all kinds of veggies would work in there. Broccoli and carrots for sure.
Just had this for supper. We all loved it, including my 8 month old and 3 year old! I didn’t cook the cauliflower as long as stated so as to keep some crunch to the dish. YUMMY!
Fantastic! Thanks for letting me know.
Yum! I used mama jess bean good organic pasta sauce and Kerry Gold Dubliner cheese as that is what was on hand, otherwise followed directions. It is delicious! Next time I may add broccoli and maybe carrots. Thanks for the great idea.
Susie, That sounds delicious. So happy you liked it!
I love baked cauliflower! <3
This may be a dumb question, but do you use frozen or fresh cauliflower?
Carrie, not dumb at all. I used fresh, which is why you need to roast it on its own to soften it a bit before adding the other ingredients. I’m not positive, but I’m betting that if you used frozen you could skip that first roasting step since frozen cauliflower, once defrosted, is softer than fresh. If you try it with frozen, please let me know how it turns out. I’d love to be able to add the info to the recipe. Have a great weekend!
This is delicious. The entire family loved it!
Michaela, Thanks for letting me know. I’m so glad you guys liked it!
Just came out of the oven! Looks great! Can’t wait to share it with the fam!
Made this for my lunches this week. So yummy and filling!
I am so so happy that you like it, Carly! Thanks for letting me know.
This looks incredible Christine! My family would devour this.
My hubby was resistant to giving up meat back in the day as well. He was for sure a meat and potatoes guy…and he was a super picky eater as a child (so I hear). But now? OMG! He’s vegan! He actually went vegan before me and inspired me to make the leap from vegetarian. I’m not saying your hubby will do the same, but it is interesting how your taste buds can change over time. And this Italian Cauliflower Bake? Looks amazing!! Can’t wait to give it a try!
I love everything about this girl!!