Note from Julie: The photographs for this 15-minute spinach pesto quinoa bowl have been refreshed. The original recipe from 2014 is the same; just the photos have been given a facelift!
One of my favorite things about summer is the abundant amount of basil that is just flourishing in the garden.
I do also enjoy that basil is relatively easy to find year-round so I can have pesto when the craving hits.
I’m also pretty sure we all know by now my affinity for all things pesto, considering I’m raving about pesto above.
You can really never have enough pesto recipes so why not just another one at you.
This time, it only takes 15 minutes to make!
Yes, super super easy and so filling!
Don’t you love quick dinner ideas?
This 15-minute spinach pesto quinoa bowl brought to you by…me! ‘
This came together because I literally did not feel like cooking one night but we needed something to eat and I’m not a fan of going out to eat when we already have food at home.
Let’s break this down; why is this such a great recipe?
Quinoa cooks incredibly fast;
Spinach wilts down and cooks incredibly fast;
And well, if you already have pesto on hand, you just gotta throw it in, mix everything around, shave some beautiful parm on top and seriously – quick dinner in 15 minutes.
I got you ;)
Can you add a protein to this?
Yes! We’ve added in shredded chicken before or cubed chicken.
Shrimp would be great in this too.
Can you make your own pesto?
Yes!
In fact, I have a few recipes for homemade pesto if you are interested.
They all would work in this recipe:
If you wanted to make traditional basil pesto, use the arugula pesto recipe and sub out the arugula and sub in basil!
What type of quinoa should I use?
You can use a mix of regular white quinoa and red quinoa or whatever quinoa you want.
Can I make this with rice if I don’t like quinoa?
Sure!
Farro and other grains would be a good option to sub in here too.
Other quinoa recipes you may enjoy:
- Garlic butter shrimp and quinoa
- Easy chicken shawarma quinoa bowls
- Roasted vegetable and chicken quinoa bowls
- Stovetop turkey quinoa chili
Spinach Pesto Quinoa Bowl
Ingredients
- 2 cups multi-colored quinoa, uncooked
- 6 cups baby spinach
- 4 tablespoons basil pesto
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese plus more for topping
Instructions
- Cook quinoa according to the instructions on the box or bag. (Instead of water, I used chicken stock for more flavor but if you want to keep this a vegetarian dish, go with water or vegetable stock.)
- Once quinoa is done cooking, turn heat to medium then add spinach, pesto, salt, and Parmesan cheese. Stir to combine and heat until spinach has wilted, pesto is evenly distributed, and Parmesan cheese has melted.
- Serve immediately with extra Parmesan cheese, if desired.
Notes
Photographs by Erin Alvarez
So, 2 cups of uncooked quinoa will turn into 4 cups of cooked quinoa. Therefore, the recipe would serve 8 1/2 cup servings, not 4. I used 2 cups of cooked quinoa with the rest of the ingredients and it was good. Also added cooked asparagus and some lemon juice..
It’s a main dish, not a ½ cup side.
Hi this looks awesome! What recipe do you recommend for the pesto recipe (to make the actual pesto for this recipe)
You can use this one: https://www.tablefortwoblog.com/arugula-walnut-pesto-and-sundried-tomato-pasta/ – just sub out the arugula for basil and instead of 2/3 cup of walnuts, use 2 tbsp. of pine nuts :)
quinoa, spinach, pesto – all my favorites together in the same dish, of course. Thanks for tonight’dinner!.
Excellent recipe! Very easy to prepare. Made no changes, tasted amazing! Thanks for sharing!
Can you heat this up as left overs? Would it still be good? I was thinking of doing this like a night before and taking it for lunch a couple days.
Yes, we make this all the time and heat it up for leftovers! Enjoy!
This sounds yummy! Will have to try it. Thanks for sharing
Can’t wait to make this!!
Looks delicious, would you happen to have the nutritional info for the recipe?
This was great! I used yakina greens in place of the spinach, so I sauteed them in olive oil before tossing with the rest of the ingredients. Quick and easy side for roasted chicken.
Sounds perfect!
I make this and reheat the leftovers for breakfast with an egg or two on top. My new favorite breakfast!
Oh, I love that idea!!
mmm so perfect! I added chicken I cooked on a pan with a couple different seasonings. turned out great :)
Can u use frozen spinach?
Yes, just make sure you drain it well.
I just made it but added a little garlic and served with basil pesto chicken. It’s really good.
Yummy
This was today’s lunch. Yummmm!!
This dish is soooooooo satisfying. I halved the recipe as my husband does not like quinoa, and it came out amazing. Will definitely continue to make!
This sounds perfect for the mother/daughter weekend we have planned! I’ll let you know if it was as big a hit as I anticipate.
Just had this for dinner. I prepared it as you listed, using vegetable broth in place of water for the quinoa and used Tastefully Simple’s pesto. It was quick, easy and the family loved it!
Any recommendations for replacing the cheese? I have vegan pesto and would like to keep the dish dairy free.
I’m not familiar with vegan cooking or dairy-free substitutions for cheese. Vegan butter?
Can I give this 10 stars? No joke, this is my current go-to meal. So ridiculously easy to make and tastes just as good three days later. I make a big batch on Sunday and bring leftovers for lunch a couple of days that week. Thanks Julie!
Haha too funny! Thank you for the feedback!!
Thanks so much for the great recipe! It’s so easy and so delicious. I make it once a week. I like to sautée mushrooms while the quinoa is cooking and add them at the end.
Can you cook this in an instant pot on rice setting?
You probably could, but I haven’t tried it that way so I’m not positive how it’d work
Hi, I just made these and they are very good! I’ll defiantly be making them again!
We made it with freekeh instead of quinoa and loved it!
This is so tasty! I used vegetable broth and added some sauteed vegetables (an onion and a bunch of asparagus) with the cheese and pesto at the end. There wasn’t any parmesan available so I used what was either gouda or edam. Thank you for sharing this – I will make it again!
I’d like to make this for a breastfeeding mama and her hubby because these are flavours they’d enjoy (and not have an adverse effect on the taste of her milk) but wonder how well it would work if I were to make a batch and freeze half for them? I’ll be subbing some home-grown organic kale for the spinach and maybe also adding some other protein like chicken, garbanzos or edamame to bulk up the protein for them both. I don’t have much experience with quinoa since my family doesn’t care for the taste of it. Your recipe looks so simple and perfect!
i haven’t tried freezing quinoa myself but i honestly can’t see it doing poorly. i know pesto freezes extremely well so i would totally give it a shot! yes, those protein options you mentioned sound like great additions!