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Vegan Caprese-inspired stacks are like warm, cozy version of a vegan tofu Caprese. Instead of serving it cold, you bake these tofu tomato towers in the oven with a cheesy garlic basil breadcrumb topping. They are absolutely delicious!
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This comforting dish features seasoned tofu topped with juicy fresh tomatoes and a garlic-cheese-breadcrumb topping. It’s the best way to use really good tomatoes, like heirloom or beefsteak tomatoes, which are super juicy and delicious. This is a great summer dish, and it works really well for the holidays, too!
Just slice up your tomatoes, then use a cookie cutter to cut the tofu into similar-sized rounds, as well, for a good presentation.
If you don’t want to cut the tofu into rounds, you can just slice it up and arrange the tomatoes on top of the tofu rectangles in the baking pan. Do as you like, and then make this delicious herb-garlic-breadcrumb-cheese mixture that you put on top along with a little bit of olive oil to help crisp everything up.
Then bake it. It’s as simple as that!
This vegan Caprese salad-inspired casserole bakes into this very delicious dish that you will remember for a long long time. It is a great side dish, or you can make it a meal by serving it with some creamy pasta or some sourdough or bakery bread.
Why You’ll Love Vegan Caprese Casserole
- easy, 1-pan meal with amazing flavors and textures
- great way to use good, juicy tomatoes
- crunchy garlic breadcrumb topping is just so addictive!
- gluten-free, soy-free, and nut-free options
More Cheesy Vegan Recipes
- vegan liquid mozzarella
- Vegan Pizza Bowl
- Spinach and Mozzarella Cheese Melts
- Jalapeno Skillet Mac and Cheese
- Melty Cashew Mozzarella Sticks
Baked Vegan Caprese Stacks
Equipment
Ingredients
- 3 or 4 juicy heirloom tomatoes, sliced into 1/2” thick slices
For the Garlic Breadcrumb Topping
- 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped or minced
- 1/4 cup breadcrumbs, panko or other dried breadcrumbs
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
- 1/2 cup vegan cheese, I use a mix of mozzarella and vegan Parmesan
- 2 tablespoons fresh Italian herbs, like basil, or parsley or you can use green onion instead
- 1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning, or use a mix of basil and Italian seasoning
- 2 to 3 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
For the Tofu Layer
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 14 ounce firm or extra from tofu, no need to press it, drained and sliced into 1/2” thick slices
- 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400° F (205° C). Slice the tomato, if you haven’t already. Also slice your tofu, and use a cookie cutter to cut through the tofu slices to match your tomato slice sizes, or you can just use the square or rectangular tofu slices.
Make the Garlic Breadcrumb Topping
- Add all of the ingredients and 1 teaspoon olive oil listed under Garlic Breadcrumb Topping into a bowl, and toss to mix really well. Set aside.
Assemble and bake.
- Brush olive oil all over the bottom of a 9×8” or a similar-sized baking dish (or any baking dish which will fit all of your tomatoes). Then, place your tofu in the baking dish.
- In a small bowl mix the nutritional yeast, salt, and pepper, and sprinkle it all over the tofu in the pan. Then, place your tomato slices on top of the tofu.
- Distribute the garlic-breadcrumb mixture over all the tomato slices. I usually put about 2 tablespoons or more on each tomato slice. Drizzle another teaspoon or so of olive oil gently all over the breadcrumbs.
- Bake for 25 minutes, checking at the 20-minute mark to see if it is golden brown on top, in which case it’s done. Depending on your preference, you can crisp up the top really well by baking it a bit longer.
- Remove the baking dish from the oven, let it sit for a minute or two, then scoop up the tofu Caprese towers using a spatula and serve. Or, you can just slice from the baking dish itself if you used rectangular tofu slices. Serve as side or appetizer, with creamy pasta or herbed pasta and or toasted sourdough.
- Store refrigerated for upto 3 days. Reheat in microwave or oven.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Ingredients and Substitutions
- tomatoes – Choose good, juicy tomatoes, like heirloom tomatoes, for the best results.
- garlic – To season the garlic breadcrumb topping
- breadcrumbs – Use panko or other dried breadcrumbs. Gluten-free is find, if needed.
- dried spices – Salt, red pepper flakes, and dried Italian herbs season the garlic breadcrumbs. For the tofu layer, you’ll need nutritional yeast, salt, and black pepper.
- vegan cheese – A mix of vegan mozzarella and vegan parmesan will work really well!
- fresh herbs – Choose Italian herbs, like fresh basil to season the garlic breadcrumbs even more!
- tofu – Use firm or extra firm tofu for this recipe. For soy-free, use alternative tofu, like chickpea tofu, fava bean tofu, or pumpkin seed tofu.
Tips
- I can’t stress enough how important it is to choose good, quality tomatoes for this recipe!
- You can cut the tofu into rounds or not. If you do rounds, this is more like baked tofu caprese stacks. If you leave it as rectangles, you’ll have a more casserole-like result.
- Make sure to bake this until the topping is nice and golden brown. That crunchy topping is next level!
How to Make Baked Vegan Caprese Stacks
Preheat the oven to 400° F (205° C). Slice the tomato, if you haven’t already. Also slice your tofu, and use a cookie cutter to cut through the tofu slices to match your tomato slice sizes, or you can just use the square or rectangular tofu slices.
Make the garlic breadcrumb topping by adding all of the ingredients and 1 teaspoon olive oil , listed under garlic breadcrumb topping into a bowl, and toss to mix really well. Set aside.
Now, it’s time to assemble and bake!
Brush olive oil all over the bottom of a 9×7” or a similar-sized baking dish (or any baking dish which will fit all of your tomatoes). Then, place your tofu in the baking dish.
In a small bowl mix the nutritional yeast, salt, and pepper, and sprinkle it all over the tofu in the pan. Then, place your tomato slices on top of the tofu.
Distribute the garlic-breadcrumb mixture over all the tomato slices. I usually put about 2 tablespoons or more on each tomato slice. Drizzle another teaspoon or so of olive oil gently all over the breadcrumbs.
Bake for 25 minutes, checking at the 20-minute mark to see if it is golden brown on top, in which case it’s done. Depending on your preference, you can crisp up the top really well by baking it a bit longer.
Remove the baking dish from the oven, let it sit for a minute or two, then scoop up the tofu Caprese towers using a spatula and serve. Or, you can just slice from the baking dish itself
Frequently Asked Questions
To make this gluten-free, use gluten-free breadcrumbs.
This recipe is nut-free if you use nut-free vegan cheese.
To make this without soy, use non-soy tofu, like chickpea tofu, fava bean tofu, or pumpkin seed tofu.
This was outstanding!! Such a great way to feature heirloom tomatoes from the garden. The only changes I made was to add a piece of basil on top of the tomatoes (under the breadcrumb mixture) and reduce the garlic to 1 clove. The tofu absorbed the wonderful flavors from above and we ate every last crumb!! Can’t wait to make this again.
Sounds delicious! Thanks for taking the time to comment.
Nothing about a tomato in this recipe-but of course it is shown in the photos.
Please add amount of tomato used to the recipe?
Tomatoes are the first ingredient. In case you missed it: 3 or 4 juicy heirloom tomatoes, sliced into 1/2” thick slices
Just made a smaller version for lunch, it was a big hit with my husband, I’ll be making it again. I love the idea of serving it as a side with pasta and a salad. Thanks Richa for another delicious recipe.
Awesome
This was amazing! My kids didn’t realize they were eating so much tofu! Served it with your 1 pan veggie pasta!
Awesome
This was a 10 out of 10 according to my family. Another great recipe! I served it with linguine with basil-herb pesto and a lemon Parmesan salad – delish!
Yay!!