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Pistachio Quinoa Dukkah Crusted Chicken Fingers with Sun-dried Tomato Pesto.
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When spring veggies hit the market, this is the one-pan bake I crave—Tuscan herbs, tomatoes, and greens tucked into fluffy quinoa. It’s colorful, hands-off, and perfect for busy weeknights or Sunday meal prep. The quinoa cooks up tender and soaks in all that herby, garlicky goodness.
Ingredient Notes
- Quinoa: Rinse in cool water to remove bitterness. For extra flavor, briefly toast in the pan until nutty before adding liquid.
- Low-sodium broth keeps flavors bright; adjust salt at the end, especially if add-ins are salty.
- Tomatoes + spring veg: Cherry tomatoes, zucchini/asparagus/spinach—cut uniformly so they cook evenly.
- Tuscan flavor makers: Garlic, oregano/thyme/basil, sun-dried tomatoes, olives, maybe a spoon of pesto.
- Creamy/savory finish (if in recipe): A little cheese (Parmesan/mozz) or a swirl of pesto at the end to gloss.
- Citrus: Lemon zest wakes everything up; add juice at the end to keep flavors fresh
Recipe inspiration
Aside from this being insanely easy to make on any given night of the week, this recipe is also insanely delicious. I basically took the idea of my dad’s Friday night pasta and swapped the pasta for quinoa and added some sun-dried tomato pesto + roasted artichokes. The Colorado weather is calling for cheesy, comfort food. BUT this dish is full of all things healthy, so it really is healthy comfort food. It’s such a good combo of ingredients and definitely one of my favorite dishes.
Why You’ll love this recipe
- Such an easy recipe. You literally dirty just one dish and one spoon/fork or whatever you decide to use. You may have to dirty two if you don’t have any leftover quinoa in the fridge, but lately I have been cooking up big batches of quinoa on Sunday so I have easy sides for dinners, or as a way to hearty up salads and such for the week.
- So colorful. I just love, love, love the pretty vibrant colors (and flavors) going on here.
- A foolproof recipe, a ten minute prep time and 40 minutes in the oven…which clearly means that the 40 minutes in the oven gives you 40 minutes for a beer (wine, margarita, whatever you drink), talk time with a friend or significant other, or just time to read a trashy magazine and relax…. OK, fine that only happens in a perfect word, but maybe you can drink the wine while vacuuming? Life.
- You can adapt this recipe and make it vegan. Just leave out the cheeses all together or swap in some vegan cheese. I can’t say it will be just as good because I love cheese, but it will still be completely awesome. You could even make it into a quinoa salad and just skip baking this all together, toss everything in a bowl and eat warm or cold. Perfect for on the go lunches!!
Variations & Add-Ins
- Protein: White beans or chickpeas for vegetarian heft; shredded rotisserie chicken or chicken sausage if you eat meat.
- Veg swap: Artichokes, roasted red peppers, or peas fit the Tuscan vibe; keep total veg volume similar.
- Dairy-free: Skip cheese; finish with extra-virgin olive oil, lemon, and fresh herbs for richness.
- Heat lovers: Chili flakes or Calabrian chili paste for a gentle kick.
Step by Step
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees
2. Add olive oil, sun-dried tomato pesto, dried basil, dried parsley, dried oregano, dried dill, crushed red pepper, garlic, and salt and pepper to a 9×13 inch baking dish
3. Next, add the cooked quinoa, olives, artichokes, and pepperoncinis. Toss well until all of the ingredients are well distributed
4. Dollop ricotta over the mixtures
5. Sprinkle on mozzarella cheese and scatter sliced red peppers on top. Place the pepperonis on top, sprinkle pecorino cheese on top and bake!
6. Bake in the preheated oven for 45 minutes
7. Garnish with fresh basil, tomatoes, and more pecorino or parmesan
Have any of you started your summer gardens yet? If so, I ENVY you. I want so badly to have a garden full of veggies and fruits, but where I live, there are only 30 nights a year where the temps do not go below freezing. I know people have gardens up here, but it’s just a lot harder to manage. I am currently trying to convince my dad that we should build a greenhouse…unfortunately I think little Asher has him heavily distracted with this whole “daddy will you please buy me a horse thing”. The girl has the poor guy pretty well wrapped around her sweet little finger. Poor Dad!
Make-Ahead, Storage & Reheat
- Make-ahead: Assemble up to the bake stage and refrigerate (covered). Bring to room temp before baking.
- Fridge: Keeps 3–4 days; the flavor deepens.
- Reheat: Add a splash of water or broth, cover, and warm gently until steamy; brighten with lemon and herbs.
One-Pan Spring Tuscan Quinoa Bake.
Servings: 6 Servings
Calories Per Serving: 705 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 1/4 cup sun-dried tomato pesto
- 1 tablespoon dried basil
- 2 teaspoons dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon dried parsley
- 1 teaspoon dried dill
- 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper or to your liking
- 1-2 cloves garlic minced or grated
- salt + pepper to taste
- 1/3 cup kalamata olives halved
- 1/3 cup roasted marinated artichokes, drained + roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons pickled pepperoncinis roughly chopped (optional)
- 3 cups cooked quinoa*
- 4-8 ounces ricotta cheese omit for vegan version
- 8 ounces mozzarella cheese shredded (omit or use vegan cheese for vegan version)
- 2-3 red bell peppers sliced
- 8-12 pepperonis optional
- 2-4 ounces pecorino cheese freshly grated (omit for vegan version)
- cherry tomatoes + freshly torn basil for topping
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
- Add the olive oil (make sure the oil covers the entire bottom of the baking dish, if not add more oil), now add the sun-dried tomato pesto, dried basil, dried parsley, dried oregano, dried dill, crushed red pepper, garlic and salt and pepper to a 9 x 13 inch or slightly smaller baking dish (I like using one of those oval dishes that is just a little smaller than a 9×13). To the baking dish add the cooked quinoa, the olives, artichokes and pepperoncinis. Toss well until all the ingredients are evenly distributed. Dollop the ricotta over the mixture and gently mix to combine.
- Overtop, sprinkle on the mozzarella cheese and then scatter the sliced red peppers over top. At this point it will seem like there are too many peppers, but this is fine. They will cook down. Place the pepperonis on top. Sprinkle on top 2-4 ounces of pecorino and another drizzle of olive oil. Bake in the preheated oven for 40 to 45 minutes or until the top is browned and the peppers have softened. Remove from the oven and garnish with fresh basil, tomatoes and more pecorino or parmesan. Cut and eat!
Notes
*******Cook your quinoa according to package directions. For 3 cups cooked quinoa, you should need 1 1/2 cups dry quinoa + 3 cups water. Bring the water to a boil and add the dry quinoa. Reduce the heat to a simmer and simmer 20-30 minutes or until the quinoa is fluffy. This should yield around 3 cups cooked quinoa.
K. Cool. Let’s do this!
This post was originally published on April 15, 2015
Just made this. So easy. So delicious. I love quinoa but haven’t been finding recipes I like. This one is a keeper.
Thank you Bubz! xTieghan
This was delicious! I would maybe use a little bit more of the pesto than the recipe called for, but I think I’ve found my new veg-friendly pot-luck go-to!
More pesto is never a bad thing! So happy you like it Natalie! Thank you.
Amazing and delish! Quite innovative!
Thank you!
Hi Tieghan, I plan to make this and have some extra baby bella mushrooms floating around in the fridge. I was thinking of adding them in–think I should cook them down first or just toss them in with everything else?
Thanks–your recipes are always wonderful!
Hmm, I think either would be fine, but I would just toss them in. Let me know if you have questions. Hope you love this! 🙂
Thanks! I just threw in the mushrooms as suggested and it worked out great!
Thank you!
We made this on a Lenten Friday, so omitting the pepperoni. Mixed in some shredded mozzarella, as well as a topping under the peppers. Love the red peppers, adding great color and flavor to this dish.
Delicious comfort food on a cold snow day in New Jersey. Thank you for this recipe and all of great items on your blog
Thank you so much Joey! I am so glad you loved this & I hope you enjoy some other recipes as well!!
I am obsessed with this recipe (and your blog in general)! I have made it multiple times and fall more in love with it every time. Thanks for creating such amazing food and keep it coming! 🙂
AWH!! Thank you Jenna! So nice to hear this and I definitely intend to!! (:
I have made this over and over and want to bring it to a Seder (quinoa is Passover friendly). I can’t find sundried tomato pesto so just use sundried tomatoes. What if I use regular basil pesto instead? What other adjustments should I make? Thanks.
Hi Lori! Basil pesto will be great!! Just add some sun-dried tomatoes in along with the basil pesto and no other adjust will be needed. Let me know if you have questions. Thank you so much!! ?
I used parmesan instead of pecorino cheese and without olives, but it tasted amazing! I would definitely make this again!
Glad it was yummy!!!! Thanks!!
Never tried quinoa but this looks amazing!
Made this for dinner last night. Another score! There were some funny looks when I put it down on the table, but not a speck left in the dish at the end of the meal. Delicious. Please hurry up with your cookbook!
Wow. I have made 2 of your recipes so far, and both are 5 stars. LOVE this!! You are so talented!! Keep it up !! PLEASE!
Made this tonight for dinner! A big hit with everyone and it will now be added to our weekly rotation. Thanks for another great vegetarian meal!
Hi,
I noticed there is garlic in the photograph, but it is not mentioned in your recipe. It also appears that you used fresh, not dried basil in the pesto & herb mixture.
I also used 3 cups water to 1/2 cup quinoa and it was too much water for the red quinoa. Otherwise all was excellent.
Hey Tressa,
I did use garlic and will be adding that to my recipe (thanks for keeping an eye out!), but the fresh basil was only used for topping. As for the quinoa, you actually need 1 1/2 cups dry quinoa for 3 cups water. I think you may have missed the 1 in my instructions. Sorry if it was hard to see!
Glad you enjoyed this!
OMG I did it last night and it was a total success!!! Sooo pretty and delicious.
Thank you for the recipe, you rock girl!!!
Wow. I made this last night and it is amazing! My boyfriend doesn’t usually like quinoa, but he ate this up! Thank you so much for such a great recipe.
Thanks!! So excited you both loved it, THANKS!