RecipeTin Eats

Fast Prep, Big Flavours

Home Quick and Easy

Caprese Baked Eggs

By:Nagi
75 Comments
Recipe v Dozer v

If you love Caprese salad as much as I do, get your fix at breakfast with these Caprese-style Baked Eggs! Though I bake this, you can just as easily make it on the stove too – and it’s faster. I’ve provided directions for both methods in the instructions.

Caprese Baked Eggs with runny yolk eggs

Caprese salad is a brilliant example of Italian genius-ness: combining a few simple ingredients that go together so well it makes you want to do the happy dance with every bite. Just tomato, buffalo mozzarella/bocconcini, basil and balsamic vinegar. I’m in the syrupy balsamic camp, but plain is fine too!

I make Caprese salad on platters to serve as a shared appetizer. I thread it onto skewers for finger food. I make toasted sandwiches, toss it through pasta. I even stuff it into chicken breast – have you tried that before? Mmmm….it is SO GOOD!

How is it that it was only a few weeks ago that I thought to have it for breakfast in baked egg form??

Made this for Mother's Day. everyone scoffed it down!!!

Caprese Baked Eggs with toast

Beans in a fragrant tomato sauce with fresh bursts of basil. Eggs gently baked in the sauce, topped with beautifully blistered cherry tomatoes. Bocconcini cheese – some melted, some fresh. A scattering of fresh basil, a drizzle of syrupy balsamic and…..woah…..

Breakfast Caprese. With the added bonus of runny yolk to dip your crusty bread in. 😉

(And let’s just get the obvious out of the way – that’s not my Baby Hands. It’s my mother’s. Pity she didn’t pass her hand-genes down to me. 😆)

Caprese Baked Eggs with toast and balsamic

I had a very fleeting moment when I fretted that these Caprese Baked Eggs looked “too messy” to share. But you know what? I have never and will never choose my recipes based on how pretty they are.

It might look a mess, but this is a beautiful mess.

What a way to start a Sunday morning!

Stay in your PJ’s. Bottomless coffee. Who needs to go to out to a posh bistro for brunch? – Nagi x

MY FAVOURITE BREKKI/BRUNCHY EGG RECIPES

Closeup of Caprese Baked Eggs

Caprese Baked Eggs with toast and balsamic

Hungry for more? Subscribe to my newsletter and follow along on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram for all of the latest updates.

Caprese Baked Eggs drizzled with balsamic vinegar, with toast

Caprese Baked Eggs

Author: Nagi | RecipeTin Eats
Prep: 10 mins
Cook: 30 mins
Total: 40 mins
Breakfast
Italian, Western
4.91 from 11 votes
Servings4
Tap or hover to scale
Print
Caprese - for breakfast! Though I'd happily have this for lunch or dinner. 🙂 I like to melt most of the bocconcini and reserve a few slices to top it just before serving. But it's entirely up to you!

Ingredients

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves , minced
  • ½ small onion , diced (brown, white or yellow)
  • 14 oz / 400g can cannellini beans (or other beans of choice)
  • 14 oz / 400g can crushed tomato
  • ¼ cup chicken broth/stock (or water)
  • 1 tbsp mixed Italian herbs , dried (Note 1 for substitution)
  • ½ tsp sugar (optional) (Note 2)
  • Salt and pepper
  • 7 oz / 200g cherry tomatoes (1/2 punnet)
  • ½ cup (packed) basil leaves roughly torn
  • 6 oz / 180g bocconcini , sliced OR buffalo mozzarella, torn (Note 3)
  • 4 eggs

Balsamic Syrup

  • 2/3 cup balsamic vinegar
  • 2 tbsp brown sugar
  • Salt

To Serve

  • Toasted crusty bread slices

Instructions

  • Heat oven to 180C/350F. Heat olive oil in a medium skillet over medium high heat.
  • Add garlic and onion and sauté for 3 minutes or until translucent.
  • Add cannellini beans, tomato, chicken broth, herbs, sugar, salt and pepper. Bring to simmer, turn down heat to medium and cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Adjust salt, pepper and sugar to taste. Stir through HALF the basil.
  • Make dents in the mixture using the back of a wooden spoon. Crack eggs into the dent. Top with cherry tomatoes and most of the bocconcini around the eggs.
  • Transfer to the oven. Bake for 15 minutes or until whites are just set but yolks are still runny (or to taste).
  • Sprinkle over remaining basil and bocconcini cheese. Either drizzle the Balsamic Syrup over in the skillet or serve on the side for people to help themselves. Serve with crusty bread!

Balsamic Syrup

  • Place balsamic vinegar, sugar and salt in a small frypan or saucepan over medium high heat. Bring to simmer then turn down to medium. Simmer for 4-5 minutes, stirring occasionally, until syrupy. It's ready when your spatula leaves a path when you run it across the bottom of the frypan. Set aside until required. Use hot or at room temperature - it thickens as it cools.

Recipe Notes:

1. If you don’t have mixed Italian herbs on hand, make up your own quick one using a mix of dried thyme, parsley, basil, pinch of red pepper flakes plus a dash of garlic and/or onion powder if you have it.
2. You might need a touch of sweet if your canned tomatoes are a bit sour.
3. I used baby bocconcini called “cherry bocconcini”, about the same size as the cherry tomatoes. So cute!
4. You can actually make this on the stove – and it’s faster too. Plus you can control how much the eggs are cooked more easily. Just place the lid on and leave it on medium heat for 5 minutes or so, or until the eggs are cooked. You can peek to check! Using this method is easier but the cherry tomatoes don’t get as blistered and the eggs will form more of a translucent white skin over the yolk. No difference in flavor, just a personal preference to bake this in the oven!
5. Nutrition per serving, assuming 4 servings, excluding toast.
Caprese Baked Eggs Nutrition

Nutrition Information:

Serving: 409gCalories: 404cal (20%)Carbohydrates: 31.9g (11%)Protein: 25g (50%)Fat: 18.7g (29%)Saturated Fat: 9.5g (59%)Cholesterol: 202mg (67%)Sodium: 600mg (26%)Potassium: 245mg (7%)Fiber: 7.5g (31%)Sugar: 10.5g (12%)Vitamin A: 1350IU (27%)Vitamin C: 21.5mg (26%)Calcium: 440mg (44%)Iron: 1.4mg (8%)
Did you make this recipe?I love hearing how you went with my recipes! Tag me on Instagram at @RecipeTinEats.

LIFE OF DOZER

Mode 1 of 4: sleeping. (The other 3 modes are: playing, eating, hoping to eat)

Dozer the golden retriever dog sleeping

SaveSave

SaveSave

Hi, I'm Nagi!

I believe you can make great food with everyday ingredients even if you’re short on time and cost conscious. You just need to cook clever and get creative!

Read More

Related Posts

Beer Battered Fish and Chips in a basket with tartare sauce

Crispy Beer Battered Fish

Close up of corn chip being dipped into Guacamole

Guacamole

Cauliflower Salad in a bowl, ready to be served

Yotam Ottolenghi’s Cauliflower Salad

More Quick and Easy

Reader Interactions

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Cooked this? Rate this recipe!




75 Comments

  4. Muna Kenny says

    Nagi! If we ever met and you made this Caprese Baked Eggs for me, you and I will be friends forever and ever and ever and ever 🙂 …. Beautiful clicks Nagi, and the lighting is perfect!

    Reply

    • Nagi | RecipeTin says

      Thank you so much!!! I know, I get stuck on breakfast quite often actually, which is why I tend to only do one or two a month!

      Reply

  10. Kathleen | Hapa Nom Nom says

    Omg, it’s like eggs in purgatory meets caprese and have a love child! And so not a mess! Comfort food such as this shouldn’t be styled too much anyway, keeps it inviting 🙂 This is so genius, Nagi! As always you’re making me incredibly hungry!

    Reply

  14. Thea says

    Looks amazing! Can’t wait to try, but one question – when do I add the cheese? I couldn;t find it in the recipe. I assume with the eggs and tomatoes?

    Reply

    • Nagi | RecipeTin says

      Gah. Sorry Thea! Fixed 🙂 Most of it gets added on top before baking, then I use the rest after it comes out of the oven 🙂

      Reply

  16. Immaculate says

    5 stars
    Messy ? You are Nuts! You have got me fired up this morning with this breakfast – Love just about everything you have going on in here. What an Elegant breakfast!!!

    Reply

  17. Sally says

    I would use Fat Free Chicken Broth, and just plain Balsamic on the side. I am a Diabetic who had a heart attack last year so I am trying to watch my fat AND Carb intake.

    Reply

    • Nagi | RecipeTin says

      That will be just fine Sally!! If you wanted to drop the fat more you could even substitute the cheese with an even lower fat cheese. Even dollops of ricotta would be delicious!!

      Reply

  18. Dorothy Dunton says

    Hi Nagi! I’d eat this beautiful “mess” any time! I prefer real food and this has it all! And those eggs… 🙂 Another winner!

    Reply

    • Nagi | RecipeTin says

      Thanks Dorothy!! Glad you approve 🙂 Hope you and Gary are having a wonderful Valentine’s Day weekend! Who’s cooking?? 😉 N x

      Reply

      • Dorothy Dunton says

        Hi Nagi! Happy Valentines Day! I made brunch, a take on your honey glazed pork tenderloin. Thin slices of pork drizzled with honey and sauteed in a skillet served on hot biscuits! 🙂 I also made a my chocolate cake with fulffy peanut butter frosting. Dinner is on Gary…pan roasted duck breast with an orange, honey and balsamic glaze, asparagus and new potatoes poached in milk with herbs. I’m happy (except for the fact that we have gotten 4″ of snow in the last hour)! I really don’t care because we don’t have to go anywhere until this stuff melts! 🙂

        Reply

        • Nagi | RecipeTin says

          Awww…..you two…..you are both amazing! One day you have to send me a photo. ❤️Pretty please?? PS that duck…..sounds incredible! I was actually about to start a red duck curry recipe! What are the chances?? ?

          Reply
As Featured On