Cheesy Ham and Broccoli Quinoa Bites
If you have never tried quinoa before, now is the time to try! These cheesy ham and broccoli quinoa bites are tasty and completely addictive.
I’m in love with quinoa lately, making these lovely patties over and over again and revisiting some of our favorite quinoa salads.
But these ham, cheese and broccoli bites? Um, I kind of, sort of ate them for five days in a row and forgot any other quinoa recipe existed.
In fact, I hid them in the back of the refrigerator behind the blue cheese (which my husband abhors) so I could sneak them at my leisure. I didn’t even feel bad about it either. Every taste was divine.
They are tasty. And completely addictive. And I don’t know about you, but there’s worse things to be craving than quinoa (don’t worry, my dark chocolate addiction is severely intact still).
My kids’ grubby and adorable little fingers snatched these up as quick as can be and they all requested them in their school lunch the next day.
Most of the time that would be a major win…children requesting healthy lunch fare. But in this case, I was hard pressed not to convince them to go with the ol’ standby (PB&J) so I could, well, you know, eat them myself.
I know. Mothers are supposed to be selfless.
Work in progress when it comes to cheesy quinoa bites. Go ahead. Make them and you’ll see what I mean.
What to Serve With This
- Tender Grilled Salmon or Maple Pecan Crusted Salmon
- Vegetable Saute with Simple Cream Sauce or fresh, cut up veggies
- Cranberry-Jalapeno Cream Cheese Dip or Hot Chorizo and Cheese Dip with crackers or chips
One Year Ago: Cream Cheese Chocolate Chip Cookies {Egg-Free}
Two Years Ago: Hearty Beef Stew {Slow Cooker}
Three Years Ago: The Best Chicken Fajitas
Cheesy Ham and Broccoli Quinoa Bites
Ingredients
- 3 cups cooked quinoa, chilled or at room temperature (I prefer to cook quinoa in low-sodium chicken broth for added flavor)
- 2 large eggs, lightly beaten
- 8 ounces deli or leftover cooked ham, chopped fine (about 1 1/2 cups)
- 1-2 cups finely chopped steamed broccoli (see note)
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup finely shredded Parmesan cheese
- 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
- In a large bowl, stir together all the ingredients except the cheese until combined. Stir in the cheese until well-distributed. Lightly grease a mini muffin cup tin. Scoop the quinoa mixture into the tin, filling the cups all the way to the top and lightly pressing to pack the mixture a bit. I found it helpful to use my cookie scoop (about 2 tablespoon size) to scoop the mixture into the tin.
- Bake for 15-18 minutes, until golden on top. Remove from the tin and repeat with the remaining mixture (you can scoop it into the warm tin and bake again). Serve warm or at room temperature.
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: adapted from Iowa Girl Eats
Oh my word. Who would have guessed such a simple combo would be so amazingly delicious?? LOVE them! You could do this with any kind of leftover grain. Rice, wild rice, barley, wheat berries. All sound good.
Well we devoured these little golden gems tonight! I even made a double batch by accident because I had cooked to much Quinoa boy am I glad I did! There was plenty for dinner and the kids begged to pack these in there lunch. The only bummer is now I won’t have any for my lunch. LoL I used bacon instead of ham only because that is what we had on hand. Our family rated this 12 thumbs out of 12!
Mmmmm,, just made these for lunch to use up leftover ham, and they were delicious. Hubby, toddler, and preschooler gobbled them up.
These were delicious! My only problem is, I couldn’t get them from sticking to the pan. I tried spraying the pan with olive oil, wiping oil onto pan with paper towel and even tried muffin liners, which turned out the worst! How do you get them to look good popping them out of the muffin tins???
Hi Angie – I have a nonstick mini muffin tin and I spray it with nonstick cooking spray. Those are my only real tips! I find they are easier to get out cleanly if I don’t let them sit too long after they bake.
Yum! How far in advance can I make these? I need to serve them Thursday evening for a dinner/brunch. You say they can be served at room temp, but I’m thinking they’d need to be refrigerated after they had cooled? Can’t wait to try them!
Katie – you could probably make them a day ahead of time but I’ll be honest, they taste best fresh (we eat them as leftovers but nothing compares to right out of the oven).
Hi Mel, I made these a few weeks ago (in a regular size muffin tin) and really liked them. Thanks! I posted on my blog today with a link back here! Thanks for making me try quinoa again – this is the perfect use for it!
Thanks for bailing me out on Meatless Monday once again. These Quinoa Bites were just the ticket (however, my hus isn’t as awesome as yours because he didn’t eat all of his, but alas…). They are very adaptable as I used spinach and grated carrot and being MM, obviously no ham, but divine just the same – the girls and I devoured them!
These are a total hit! Easy to make, not too fussy, but full of flavor. Thank you for sharing this excellent recipe.
These are easy, tasty, and a perfect way to serve quinoa to my toddlers. Thanks for a great recipe!
Tasty, but deserves a tweak or two to really shine. At 20 minutes in the oven, they were starting to crisp but still weren’t golden on top. Lightly greasing the tins yielded bites that stuck to the pan a bit too much. Had to wait until they cooled almost to room temp to safely remove them intact. One cup of quinoa yielded three cups cooked. Used water to cook the quinoa, but didn’t need any additional salt in the recipe. The kids felt it was a pretty decent substitute for homemade Mac and cheese, which they often find too rich.
These were delicious!! I left the ham out completely (did not have any), and they were so yummy! I did have to bake them longer- maybe 22 minutes. Perfect! Thanks for sharing!!
Keep the quinoa recipes coming! There is a lack of good quinoa recipes out there for such a healthy staple food like this.
This was my first time using quinoa and I made these with cooked quinoa from flakes…I’m guessing that was my problem? They didn’t hold together but they still tasted good. I’m looking forward to trying them with the actual quinoa “pearls” (or whatever they’re called…:D) to get them to hold better and to see how that affects the texture.
These were amazing. Three of us ate the whole batch! I think I might add an additional egg white next time as a binder. It’s easier to get them out of the muffin tin if they sit for a few minutes. Already looking forward to making them again and mixing up the flavors a bit.
Greetings from sunny Charlotte, NC. I’ve never tried quinoa, but WOW! these were great. Very easy and addictive. Can’t wait to try it in other recipes. Thanks for your inspiring recipes!!
Awesome! Made these the day I saw your post and my two kids (4 and 7) have been taking them for lunch this week to school! They love them, as do I.
These were delicious! I was able to get 40 mini muffins out of it and I used an ice cream scoop to fill the tins so it was less messy. Mine also required about 22-25 mins of cooking to get them golden brown – they did need to cook all the way through so they didn’t fall apart when you unmolded them. Thanks for the great recipe!
This was sooooo delicious. I love all your quinoa recipes, I can’t believe how different each one tastes. Really Mel, I have never bought a cookbook, but if you put one out I would buy it full price!
While cooking what looks to be a wonderfully delicious recipe. I mistakenly used couscous instead of quinoa!!! I don’t know how I could have made such a huge mistake!! After wondering for a few minutes why my “muffins” were not browning i realize a made the mistake. Still delicious just not a defined shape. 🙂 better luck next time
I adore quinoa! I’m finally posting my simple but quite tasty quinoa pilaf later this week and next week plan to post some quinoa cakes with poached eggs that were absolutely delicious. The recipe for the quinoa cakes are quite similar to your ham and broccoli bites, so I know in advance how delicious these are going to be when I make them which will be soon! Hey, did you know that 2013 has been designated as “The Year of Quinoa” by the United Nations?
oooh… i made something similar last month. i made this creamy sauce to go with it, totally delish. I like the idea of using quinoa (i used brown rice) and making them in the smaller cups
I’m just gonna go ahead and say it – these are crack. HUGE hit with the family. Thank you, Mel!!
YES- cookbook please! It would replace all those other cookbooks I keep even though I only use 3-4 recipes out of them…. I would use all of yours!
I used chicken instead of ham, and cooked quinoa in chicken boullion. These are WONDERFUL! I will be making them again
These were fantastic! Even better, my 3 & 5 year old helped make them, and then actually ate them. Everyone eating the same thing here is close to miraculous. Thank you for all the great recipes.
I love quinoa and I will be trying these soon for sure. That picture of them in the spoons is really cool.
My kids loved your last quinoa recipe so I can’t wait to try this one!
These look yummy! I’ll definitely be trying them! I’m also going to try Quinoa Spinach Mac and Cheese from Maria’s blog Two Peas and their Pod (www.twopeasandtheirpod.com) . You both have awesome blogs!
These look heavenly! Can’t wait to try them!
These are great!
My husband is vegetarian so I swapped the ham for textured vegetable protein (and added some some chopped green onion). Will definitely make these again 🙂
I made these the day they were posted on IGE and loved them! You have great taste as always!
Andrea – good question – anywhere between 1 and 1 1/2 cups dry quinoa will equal 3 cups.
Mel – how much dry quinoa equals 3 cups cooked?
Pauline – yes, I think these would freeze excellently.
I concur on the cookbook! Also, these look amazing. And the above bacon idea makes me want to head to the store immediately! Thanks for another one, Mel!! Love your guts!!
I love quinoa but never make it that much, partly because I don’t have enough yummy recipes to try. So glad I found this one, it looks so good and something even my kiddo would eat!
There’s quinoa waiting in the pantry for me to try it for the first time… This might be the recipe that kicks me into gear.
looks delish! thanks, quinoa is a staple in our house.
Ooooooooh! Those look fabulous. I’m a bit ham averse, so I’m going to try bacon. I can’t imagine that would be anything but divine. Can’t wait to try ’em!
Those sound like they’d work for a cocktail party. Thanks.
Mel, do you think these would freeze well? Also, for anyone who loves whole grains, have you tried farro? I like it even better than wheatberries (which I love). I just made the best recipe: Farro with Pistachios and Herbs (www.delish.com). You could add craisins if you want to sweeten it up. Farro can be hard to find……I bought mine at Central Market in Texas, but have found them in bulk health-food stores, or on-line. If you like a really chewy whole-grain full of nutrients (one step after wheatberries), give it a try.
Perfect! I was needed a good recipe for the ginormous bag of quinoa I bought….and for all the ham leftovers in our fridge. Once again, you saved the day. Love your blog!!
This is so up my alley the alley should be named for me.
I love quinoa, and this is such a creative way to use it! They look and sound absolutely amazing. And I’m going to go ahead and agree that you should look into publishing a cookbook!
Oh yum! We love quinoa and am excited to try this recipe. I am always looking for new lunch items for the kiddos. Thanks Mel!
I agree with Dessert for Two Mel… You need to publish a cookbook!
Can’t wait to try these! Sounds like a winner to me 🙂
Mel, you seriously need a cookbook. As soon as you publish a cookbook, I’ll just go ahead and throw away all of my other cookbooks. You make the most creative and delicious recipes! These quinoa bites will be made this weekend!
I think I have only had quinoa once. I keep seeing all these recipes online though that make me want to give it another try. These look pretty tasty!! Thanks Mel.
I have recently fallen in love with quinoa, too! I have been searching for different recipes using it, and these little bites look perfectly delicious! I have everything I need on hand to make this recipe, so I am going to make it tonight!