Italian-Style Roasted Vegetables with Mozzarella and Pesto Recipe
A colorful tray of roasted vegetables with melted mozzarella and a spoonful of pesto is a dish that can be both a light lunch and a warm dinner. In Italy, such vegetables are often served as a side, but just add cheese and a piece of bread and you have a complete meal.
These roasted vegetables with cheese and pesto are reminiscent of oven dishes served in Ligurian and Tuscan osterias, often as a side to meat or as a standalone dish with bread. It’s a homestyle way to get those rustic oven-baked flavours without making a complicated gratin.
Italian-style roasted vegetables with mozzarella and pesto are the essence of Mediterranean cooking on a single tray – colorful, aromatic and full of umami flavor. The combination of eggplant, zucchini, pepper and tomatoes with stretchy cheese and herb pesto makes it feel as if the dish came straight from the oven of a small osteria. It’s a great way to turn simple vegetables into a complete, satisfying meal with very little effort.
Why this version works
- Cutting the vegetables into similar-sized pieces helps them soften evenly without turning into mush.
- Roasting in one loose layer lets them brown instead of stewing in their own juices.
- Adding the mozzarella at the end keeps it soft and pleasantly stretchy.
- Spooning on the pesto after baking keeps its flavour fresh and herbaceous.
Chef's tips
Cut the vegetables into similar-sized pieces so they roast evenly, and don’t arrange them in too thick a layer – otherwise they’ll start to steam instead of brown. You can lightly salt the eggplant and leave it for 10–15 minutes, then pat it dry to remove bitterness and excess moisture. Add the mozzarella only towards the end of baking, for the last few minutes, so it melts nicely but doesn’t dry out into a rubbery crust.
How to serve
Serve the vegetables straight from the oven, with an extra spoonful of pesto on top and a piece of crusty baguette or focaccia to mop up all the juices from the tray. To drink, choose a light red wine or chilled water with ice and lime slices if you’re having it as a warm weeknight dinner. This dish is perfect for watching a game or an evening with friends – everyone can help themselves straight from the tray.
Watch out for
- Don’t overdo the olive oil – if the vegetables are swimming in fat, they’ll fry instead of roasting.
- If the vegetables are packed too tightly, they’ll release lots of liquid and start to stew, losing colour and structure.
- Don’t bake the mozzarella for too long – after a few minutes it starts to dry out and turn rubbery.
Substitutions
- You can replace mozzarella with provolone or another mild, good-melting cheese.
- Instead of basil pesto, use rocket (arugula) pesto, parsley pesto or sun-dried tomato pesto.
- Swap the eggplant for more zucchini or add mushrooms for a meatier texture.
- You can replace the red pepper with yellow or orange pepper, depending on what you have on hand.
Ingredients
- zucchini sliced into half-moons - 1 piece
- bell pepper sliced into strips - 1 piece
- eggplant diced - 1 piece
- cherry tomatoes whole or halved - 200 g
- onion sliced into thin wedges - 1 piece
- ball mozzarella drained, torn into pieces - 200 g
- basil pesto homemade or store-bought - 3 tablespoons
- olive oil for roasting the vegetables - 3 tablespoons
- dried oregano - 1 teaspoon
- salt to taste
- freshly ground black pepper to taste
Preparation
- Preheat the oven to 200°C (top and bottom heat). Line a baking tray with baking paper, letting it come up the sides so it’s easier to collect the juices and clean the tray.
- Dice the eggplant into roughly 2 cm cubes, slice the zucchini into half-moons, cut the pepper into strips and the onion into thin wedges. Leave the cherry tomatoes whole or cut them in half if they’re larger than a walnut.
- If you’re worried about eggplant bitterness, salt the cubes and leave them for 10–15 minutes until droplets of moisture appear, then pat them very dry with paper towels.
- In a large bowl, toss all the vegetables with the olive oil, oregano, salt and pepper. Every piece should look lightly glossy, but there shouldn’t be a pool of oil or juice at the bottom of the bowl.
- Spread the vegetables on the tray in a single, loose layer without piling them up. Roast for 20–25 minutes, until they soften and brown spots appear around the edges.
- Halfway through the roasting time, gently stir the vegetables with a spatula, scraping up any browned bits from the paper – these add flavour. The edges should be deep golden, not black.
- Pat the mozzarella very dry and tear it into irregular pieces. Take the tray out, scatter the cheese over the hot vegetables and press it down lightly so it sinks partly into the juices.
- Return to the oven for 5–7 minutes, until the mozzarella melts and takes on a light golden colour in spots. When you lift a piece, you should see stretchy strands of cheese.
- Remove the vegetables and spoon small teaspoons of pesto over the top in several spots. The pesto should loosen slightly from the heat but stay bright green and freshly aromatic.
- Serve straight away, while the cheese is still stretchy and the vegetable edges are lightly browned, ideally with bread to mop up the juices or as a colourful side to your protein.
Storage
Store leftover roasted vegetables in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 3 days. Reheat in the oven or microwave, then add fresh mozzarella and pesto just before serving. Portions without cheese and pesto can be frozen for up to 2–3 months; thaw in the fridge and reheat thoroughly before adding the toppings.
I most often roast a tray of these vegetables on Wednesdays, when the fridge starts to empty out and it’s time to use up leftovers – then I pack a portion in a container for work and reheat it in the microwave. I always leave some vegetables without cheese so the next day I can toss them with pasta for a quick lunch.
