Cheesy Veggie Quinoa Bites - Easy Vegetarian Snack Recipe for Kids! (2024)

Ingredients in Quinoa Bites

It doesn’t take much more than stirring together a few ingredients and packing it into a mini muffin tin before popping them into the oven. Here’s a quick overview, but the full amounts and details are in the recipe card at the bottom of the post.

• Quinoa. Cooked and cooled. You can definitely use leftovers.
• Cheddar cheese. I prefer a good, sharp cheddar, but you can use your favorite.
• Vegetables. Cooked and chopped. Use any leftovers or thawed frozen veggies.
• Egg. Just one for binding. You can also try one of these egg substitutes.
• Salt.

How to Make Quinoa Bites

Make sure your oven is preheated to 350°F, and your veggies and quinoa are cooked and cooled. Then spray a mini muffin tin with cooking spray. Make sure your quinoa is cooked and cooled, and that your veggies are cooked as well. Now let’s get started.

Make the mixture. Combine all of the ingredients together in a bowl and stir until everything is evenly distributed.

Fill the pan. Divide the mixture between the wells in the mini muffin pan and pack it in firmly. I like to use a small cookie scoop.

Bake the bites. Bake at 350°F for 15-20 minutes, or until golden brown and crispy.

Cool and serve. Let the cheesy quinoa bites cool for at least a few minutes. Then run the tip of a butter knife or a small offset spatula around the edge and pop them out of the pan. Serve hot or at room temperature.

What vegetables can you use in these veggie bites?

In the photos, I used a mixture of steamed broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower. I have also used leftover roasted cauliflower and roasted broccoli. For the video, it was thawed frozen peas and carrots, but any thawed mixed veggies will work. Oftentimes I will add a thawed veggie blend of peas, carrots, corn, and green beans.

You can even get a little fancier 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!

How much dry quinoa do you need to make 1 cup of cooked quinoa?

Quinoa typically triples in volume when you cook it. So if you want to make exactly 1 cup of cooked quinoa, you will want to cook 1/3 cup dry quinoa in 2/3 cups of water or other liquid.

However, I recommend making a bigger batch because you can keep it in the fridge for up to a week and use it in a number of other recipes. I have an entire article about cooking quinoa, including five different methods to prepare it on the stove, or in the crockpot, Instant Pot, microwave, and rice cooker.

What else can I do with quinoa?

• Quinoa Oatmeal Apple Breakfast Bars
• Sweet Potato Buddha Bowls
• Butternut Squash Quinoa Salad
• Healthy Banana Breakfast Bars
• Mixed Berry Quinoa Yogurt Parfaits
• Barbecue Ranch Quinoa Chicken Salad

Serving Suggestions

While these certainly do make great snacks or appetizers, they are great to serve as a side dish with kid-friendly meals like these:

• Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets
• Crispy Dogs
• Baked Chicken Tenders
• Pan-Seared Cube Steaks

Dipping Sauces

My kids, like most, love to dip their finger foods. Try serving quinoa bites with one of these dips or sauces:

• Homemade Ketchup
• Greek Yogurt Ranch Dip
• Healthy Honey Mustard Dip
• Cucumber Dill Yogurt Dip
• Honey BBQ Sauce
• Big Mac Sauce

Things You’ll Need

PADDLE GRATER: These are convenient to shred the cheese right into the bowl without any extra dirty dishes.

MINI MUFFIN TIN: The perfect size for these little finger food bites. I do recommend a nonstick one.

SMALL COOKIE SCOOP: Makes portioning the quinoa mixture into the pan super easy.

SMALL OFFSET SPATULA: To pop the quinoa bites out of the pan.