Spinach artichoke quinoa bites with three kinds of cheese turn your favorite hot spinach artichoke dip into a healthy, whole grain finger food for an appetizer or snack. Heat up some tomato sauce for dipping these Cheesy Spinach Artichoke Quinoa Bites.
Cheesy Spinach Artichoke Quinoa Bites -> CLICK HERE TO PIN THIS RECIPE
I’m trying to come to terms with the fact that we are homebodies. And not just homebodies. We are happy homebodies. I see people running around to seventeen different sports and activities every week, day trips and outings and overnights away every weekend, squeezing in movies and dinners at restaurants after school, and I feel like I am doing something wrong. Especially because I’m the daughter of a mom who was pretty much all about perpetual motion. If she wasn’t bringing me to dance or Girl Scouts or keyboard lessons (shout out to my fellow 80s kids), then she was doing her cheerleading coach or student council advisor activities at the school where she taught, and more often than not I was with her. And she loves to shop, so weekends were often spent at malls, craft shows, or nice outdoor shopping places, even if we didn’t spend a dime.
Do you know what we did the past few Saturdays? Absolutely nothing.
Well, to be fair, a few Saturdays ago was New Year’s Eve and three-quarters of us were sick and eating Butternut Squash Soup and sipping on a Cold Toddy Whiskey Mule (well the second one was just me – no whiskey for the kiddos!). And the other Saturdays it’s not like we were not doing anything at all. I was putting away Christmas decorations, purging closets, filming videos, and such. My kids were playing. Just playing. Good as gold, happy as clams.
And I’m trying to be ok with that instead of feeling bad that we weren’t hosting playdates or dinners for friends, going to the Smithsonian, or whatever. We were all just home. Doing our thing. And nobody seemed to mind or care or want to be anywhere else.
And you know what? That’s totally fine. Or I’m at least going to keep convincing myself it’s fine.
You know what else is totally fine? The fact that I can only get my kids to eat spinach or artichokes or quinoa when I turn it into cheesy finger food…
Cheesy Spinach Artichoke Quinoa Bites are a great game day appetizer, after school snack, or even a dinner side dish.
You’ve got the usual suspects in classic spinach artichoke dip – spinach, artichoke hearts, and three kinds of cheese – mixed up with cooked quinoa and an egg to stick it all together. The one key, though, is making sure you’ve squeezed as much of the excess moisture out of both the thawed spinach and canned artichoke hearts as possible before you stir everything together. Then just pack the mixture into a mini muffin tin and bake till you have golden, crispy little bites perfect for dipping in tomato sauce and popping right in your mouth. Even the pickiest of eaters won’t be able to resist all the cheesy finger food fun.
If you like these Cheesy Spinach Artichoke Quinoa Bites, here’s some more recipes you’ll enjoy…
 |  |  |
- Spinach Artichoke Cheesy Cauliflower Bread Sticks
- Cheesy Veggie Quinoa Bites
- Lightened-Up Creamed Spinach au Gratin
And some from my friends…
- Jalapeno Popper Quinoa Bites from Alida’s Kitchen
- Spinach Artichoke Dip Stuffed Mushrooms from Snixy Kitchen
- Spinach Artichoke Hummus from Shugary Sweets
Want to chat with fellow foodies? Join my No-Fuss Food and Fun group on Facebook. Everyday we have fun topics, share recipes and ideas, ask and answer questions, and see all of my new Cupcakes & Kale Chips creations! If you’d like to check it out, you can request to join HERE.
For more yumminess from me and my foodie friends, keep up with me on…
Facebook | Twitter | Pinterest | Instagram
Or sign up to have Cupcakes & Kale Chips delivered straight to your Inbox!
Some things you might need…
  |   |   |   |
Here’s the Cheesy Spinach Artichoke Quinoa Bites recipe…
Cheesy Spinach Artichoke Quinoa Bites
An easy, healthy appetizer or snack recipe with three kinds of cheese.
Ingredients
- 1 cup cooked and cooled quinoa
- 1/2 cup (about 2 oz.) shredded Monterey Jack cheese
- 1/2 cup (about 2 oz.) shredded mozzarella cheese
- 2 Tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
- on 14 oz. can artichoke hearts, chopped and squeezed in a paper towel or kitchen towel until throughly dry
- 4 oz frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed in a paper towel or kitchen towel until throughly dry
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 egg
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350°F. Spray a mini muffin tin with cooking spray or oil.
- Add all of the ingredients to a bowl and mix until thoroughly combined.
- Divide the mixture evenly between the cups of the mini muffin tin, and press down to pack it in firmly.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy. Let cool for a couple minutes before loosening from the pan with the tip of a butter knife.
Enjoy!
Want to see lots more yummy food from me and my friends, and cute pictures of my kids?
Facebook | Twitter | Google+ | Pinterest | Bloglovin | Instagram | StumbleUpon
Or subscribe via email to get Cupcakes & Kale Chips in your Inbox.
This post may be linked to any of these parties.
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. I earn a small percentage from any purchases you may make if you click on them. These companies have not contacted me. I use the stuff because I love it.
The ads are obnoxious & cover content. They move as the screen does. I just wanted to see the recipe to see what ingredients and I had to go through a crud load of pictures (same one again & again of the recipe Cooked) and ads, ads, & more ads! Ugh! Won’t come back to your site. You annoying.
I am sorry you feel that way. My ad program aligns with many others in the industry. And if you don’t like photos, then you probably shouldn’t look for recips on food blogs because many of us do like to take and display photos.
Any recipe with spinach has my vote. This looks amazing. Going to pin it under Appetizers.
We make quinoa quite often, but I’ve never made them into bites. These sound yummy! Thanks for linking up with Merry Monday last week.
I love all the quinoa recipes I’ve been seeing lately! It’s one of my favorites and so versatile! (P.S. Sorry you got hit with negativity – your blog is beautiful, and I love what I’ve seen!) Thanks so much for linking up with us at Funtastic Friday!
Thanks so much for your sweet comment, Liz!
Hello! Can I use fresh spinach for this recipe, or is it important to use thawed frozen? I already have fresh spinach on hand, but I’m wondering if there is something unique about the texture of frozen that makes it better for this. Thanks!!
Hi Andrea! I used frozen spinach because I wanted to be able to remove the excess moisture so they would hold together, and to ensure no uncooked bits of spinach (which my kids don’t like). If you wilt fresh spinach and squeeze out the moisture it might work, but I haven’t tried it.
Not near as good as they look 😢
Sorry you didn’t like them. Do you have any specific feedback?
What dipping sauce did u make to go with it?
Gabby, I served the quinoa bites with a simple spaghetti/marinara sauce.