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Cheesy Veggie Quinoa Bites

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Veggies, protein and whole grains packed into fun, cheesy tots perfect for little fingers to grab and munch on!
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Cheesy Veggie Quinoa Bites

Cheesy veggie quinoa bites make delicious, healthy after school snacks or simple gluten free appetizers. Easy to make and the recipe can be customized to whatever you have on hand in the fridge! It’s hard to find quinoa recipes for kids, at least my kids, but these quinoa bites are the perfect healthy snack or side dish recipe with plenty of vegetables, whole grains, and protein. My kids couldn’t keep their fingers off of this easy muffin tin recipe.

Cheesy Veggie Quinoa Bites recipe

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How to Make Cheesy Quinoa Bites with Vegetables

Cheesy Veggie Quinoa Bites were born from two hungry little boys and me staring into the fridge at containers of leftovers. Now, my boys aren’t fans of just eating quinoa straight up. I have to be a quinoa ninja, so in this case, I went with two surefire bets – adding cheese and making it into finger food. Of course, I also had to add the leftover vegetables I had in the fridge too. And it was a total success! I had to stop them from polishing off the whole batch just so I could grab some photos. Heck, I had to stop myself too!

 

 

This post was written several years ago, but it all still holds true, except my big guys is now in second grade and the little one will be off to Kindergarten in the fall. I thank everyone close to me – my friends and family – and those whom I have never met before that read my blog, make my recipes, and allow me to keep doing a job a love, building a business of my own, while being able to have the flexibility to be there for my family. Thank you all!

2015 is a year of change here at Cupcakes & Kale Chips. Honestly, I keep wondering if my readers notice and care, but, you know, I’ve gotta do what I’ve gotta do. I started this blog as a hobby, but I discovered a passion and a world of opportunities. To keep it going, it costs money. So I started taking some paying gigs to offset the costs. Then I realized that this could actually become a real job, and while I am blessed that I don’t have to work, I’ve gotten to the point where I need something else to give me a true feeling of personal satisfaction, and I want to help ensure the security of my family should, God forbid, something awful happen.

People like what I do – readers make my recipes! I get asked to contribute to sites, and speak at conferences, giving me a sense of fulfillment. As a former straight A student (no lie, I think the only B’s I ever got were in gym and handwriting) who then went on to a successful career with a big pharma company, after several years away from having these types of tangible measures of success, this is important to me, and makes me a better person, a happier person. And, therefore, a better, happier mom.

Plus, The Bug is off to Kindergarten in the fall. The little dude wakes up every morning asking to go to school, but I’m still working from home. So, I don’t have to drop them off at 7am and then not see them again until 6pm, which is what would have happened if I had never left my former career to be a stay-at-home mom. For me, this is the best of all possible worlds.

They go to school between 8:30 and 9, then I pick them up after nap and snack, around 3pm to 4pm. Sometimes we come home, sometimes we are off to karate, or meeting Daddy for dinner, or getting haircuts, or whatever. They’re happy, I’m happy, and we enjoy our mornings and evenings together. Tonight we had a crazy newspaper snowball fight – it was awesome!

And as I always say, all moms and parents have to make the choices that are the best for themselves and their families.

So yes, you are seeing some more sponsored posts. You are seeing affiliate links and you’ll probably start seeing shopping lists. If you click on those to head over to Amazon and then, while you’re there, you happen to buy anything, not just the product I linked to, I’ll make a little commission. It doesn’t cost you anything, don’t worry! As I make these changes, I hope you’ll continue to support me and follow along.

Cheesy Veggie Quinoa Bites are the ultimate reflection of what I do here on Cupcakes & Kale Chips.

Whether I am making a recipe for a client, finally writing down something I’ve made over and over again like Worcestershire Sauce Cast Iron Cube Steaks, putting a creative twist on a classic like the Shepherd’s Pie Loaded Baked Potatoes everyone loves, or, like this recipe, randomly throwing something together and realizing that I NEED to share the recipe with all of you, my recipes reflect how I cook for my family.

And as I said, this was literally invented because I had leftovers in the fridge, along with my usual giant stash of Cabot cheese. So I make it with a mixture of broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower for the photos. In the video you’ll see peas and carrots. You can even get a little more fancy and make Cheesy Spinach Artichoke Quinoa Bites. It’s totally your choice, so use whatever you have on hand, or whatever you are trying to sneak past your kids. I won’t tell. It’ll be our little secret!

If your kids are like mine, they’ll want to dip those Cheesy Veggie Quinoa Bites…

Another cheesy way to get the kids to eat their veggies is this Slow-Cooker Broccoli Cheddar Soup from Wine and Glue. Or how about some Cauliflower Pizza Crust from Princess Pinky Girl? And another sneaky quinoa finger food are these Quinoa Buffalo Bites from Wonky Wonderful.

Here’s the recipe for the cheesy veggie quinoa bites.

A couple of things you may need to make this recipe:

 

Cheesy Veggie Quinoa Bites
Print Recipe
4.6 from 5 votes

Cheesy Veggie Quinoa Bites

Veggies, protein and whole grains packed into fun, cheesy tots perfect for little fingers to grab and munch on!
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time20 mins
Total Time30 mins
Course: Appetizer, Side Dish, Snack
Cuisine: American
Servings: 6
Calories: 143kcal
Author: Brianne Izzo, Cupcakes & Kale Chips

Ingredients

  • 1 cup cooked quinoa , cooled
  • 4 ounces cheddar cheese , shredded (about 1 cup)
  • 1 cup vegetables , chopped and cooked {steamed, roasted, etc}
  • 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 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy.
  • If you do not finish them, store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Nutrition

Calories: 143kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 7g | Fat: 7g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 47mg | Sodium: 337mg | Potassium: 145mg | Fiber: 2g | Vitamin A: 35.4% | Vitamin C: 3.8% | Calcium: 15.3% | Iron: 5.6%

Enjoy!

Cheesy Veggie Quinoa Bites - healthy little tots packed with vegetables and cheese that make a perfect healthy snack or side dish. Use any leftovers you have in your fridge! | cupcakesandkalechips.com | gluten free, vegetarianCheesy Veggie Quinoa Bites recipe from Cupcakes and Kale Chips
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Comments

  1. These are super tasty! I used vegan cheese (about 1/2 cup) and nutritional yeast to make these dairy free, and it seemed to work great. But man, even in a non-stick muffin pan sprayed with non-stick spray, these were stubborn to get out of the pan. I think I’ll try a tiny cookie scoop on a baking sheet next time.

    Reply

    • Thanks for your feedback, Nora. I’m sorry you had trouble with them sticking to the pan, though. Hopefully they’ll come out well for you baking them on a cookie sheet instead. If you do make them that way, a sheet of parchment paper should help prevent them from sticking.

      Reply

  3. These are delicious! Do you need to refrigerate them? And if putting in a lunch, would they get soggy if I reheated them and put in a Thermos?

    Reply

    • I’m happy to hear that you like the quinoa bites recipe, Annie. Yes, they should be refrigerated. I can’t answer your question about how they would hold up in a thermos, as I’ve never tried it. I can tell you that they’ll reheat better in an oven than they will in a microwave. Hope that helps!

      Reply

  5. Thanks for the delicious recipe, Brianne. You are right these cheesy veggie quinoa bites make delicious, healthy afternoon snacks and breakfast.

    Reply

    • Flora, I would fill the muffin tins 3/4 full and try adding 3-4 minutes of bake time. After that, poke one of the muffins with a toothpick to see if the batter is cooked or not. Please let me know how they turn out!

      Reply

  8. I am gluten, sugar, corn and soy free so this recipe really called my name! I made a batch on Saturday, today is Monday and they are half gone. I will change up the next time I make them though. I think the artichoke made them bitter. I will put another veggie instead, maybe red pepper and I will add another egg too as I feel they didn’t stay together quite enough for me. All in all a great idea to add the quinoa. Thanks so much for the idea! And I will be checking out many of your other recipes as well.

    Reply

    • Thank you for your comment, Dee. I’m sorry that the muffins weren’t as wonderful as you would have liked them to be, but it sounds like you’ve got great ideas for switching things up the next time you make them!

      Reply

  9. Love this recipe..have used it many times now. They pack for work lunches and reheat in the microwave. I usually make a batch for the week of grab and go breakfast, lunch or snacks and even make as an appetizer( i try to make them more bite size.)

    Reply

  10. We love these! I added some crumbled bacon to one batch for my husband. I love them in their healthier bacon free form!
    Thank you!!!

    Reply

    • I’m glad you enjoyed the quinoa bites, Marcy, but your addition of bacon to them sounds delicious!

      Reply

    • Michelle, if you cool the quinoa bites completely before freezing them and make sure to wrap them very well with plastic wrap and an outer layer of aluminum foil or inside of a freezer bag, I think they would reheat well.

      Reply

  13. First of all, these were amazing, thank you! Three questions: 1) how would these do if you froze them? 2) any advice to stop them from sticking to muffin tin? 3) have you ever tried this not in muffin tins? Just in maybe a 9×13 foil tray?

    Reply

    • Oh great, so glad you enjoyed them! I haven’t frozen them, but I think they would freeze well. Plenty of cooking spray. I have one muffin pan that never sticks, and one that, no matter what I make, always sticks. I haven’t tried in a tray. You wouldn’t get the crispy edges, but one idea is to use a little scoop and put little “tots” on a cookie sheet. I’ll have to try that!

      Reply

    • There are a number of egg substitute products (I think one is called Ener-G), and some people use ground flax seed mixed with water. Not sure how it would work with this recipe. I think trying that or even omitting it might be fine. It’ll taste good, they may just be a little softer and more fragile.

      Reply

  18. Haha, I feel like some of the best dishes ever come from throwing a bunch of leftovers together! For some reason I never think to combine quinoa and cheese together but I’m loving these cheesy quinoa bites!! This is such a great idea!

    Reply

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