121 33

Spinach Ricotta Bites

July 29, 2010

Lucky me that I have a cousin with two growing boys who loves to cook and feed her kids healthy foods. She makes a version of this recipe in a pie dish and has been trying to convince me that her boys absolutely devour it whenever she makes it for them. Although I sometimes find statements like that hard to believe when we're talking about green foods and highly independent little boys, I’m always game for recipes that defy the odds.

I decided to take my cousin’s original recipe, make a few tweaks to the ingredients and then cook them in mini muffin cups instead of a pie dish, because it cooks faster (and after all, what kid doesn't like something mini?). As for my my initial doubts about the kid appeal of this recipe, after watching Kenya repeatedly walk by the cooling rack to grab three of them within 15 minutes and Chloe scarfing down four at dinner, I realized these could be one of the all time greatest kid and parent friendly recipes I've ever made. Delicious, healthy and SO easy to make. My cousin gets total props for this kiddy culinary hit!

Like this post Comment on this post

Spinach Ricotta Bites  (Makes 20 Bites)

  • Prep Time:5 minutes,
  • Cook Time: 25 minutes,
  • Total Time: 30 minutes,

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 1 small yellow onion, chopped
  • 1 garlic clove, minced
  • 2 large eggs, beaten
  • 1 cup ricotta cheese (low or full fat ricotta will work)
  • 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
  • 1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
  • 1 10 oz pkg frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and drained well (i use my hands to squeeze as much liquid out of the spinach as possible)
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt

Preparation

  1. 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
  2. 2. Melt the butter in a sauté pan over medium heat and cook the onions for 4 minutes until tender.
  3. 3. Add the garlic and cook an additional minute then set aside to cool.
  4. 4. Whisk eggs in a bowl and stir in ricotta, mozzarella and parmesan cheeses.
  5. 5. Once combined, stir in spinach, salt and cooled onion and garlic mixture.
  6. 6. Pour the mixture into lightly greased mini muffin cups.
  7. 7. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the filling is set and golden on top.
  8. 8. Serve.
+ Recipe Box + Print 121

Related Recipes

Comments






1 2 3 4

  1. aesteves81

    June 4, 2013 at 8:36 pm

    Reply

    Could I make this in a regular pie pan? If so, would everything remain the same and how long would I cook it for? Thanks so much.

    • catherine

      June 5, 2013 at 2:33 pm

      Reply

      Hmm I haven’t tested this in a full size pan, but I’m not sure it would cook all the way through… If you try it let me know how it comes out!

  2. Linda

    June 3, 2013 at 5:02 pm

    Reply

    Just saw this recipe in Parenting magazine, complete with the same picture. Can’t wait to try!

  3. Melissa

    April 10, 2013 at 8:47 pm

    Reply

    Do these freeze and reheat well?

    • Hedi

      June 4, 2013 at 12:36 pm

      Reply

      Yes. I always freeze them. To reheat, let it thaw in the fridge overnight and microwave or pop in the toaster oven. Tastes great!

  4. Hsiaolei Parks

    March 21, 2013 at 4:31 pm

    Reply

    Since my last comment, I have made these 4 times! My 3 1/2 year old loves them (we call them Buzz Lightyear muffins) and so does my 9 month old little girl. She’ll eat almost 3 in one sitting!
    I have to have these on hand at all times.

  5. Barbara Lee

    March 20, 2013 at 5:58 pm

    Reply

    a neighbor sent me this info- I am really trying to change my diet.

  6. Erin

    March 15, 2013 at 1:56 pm

    Reply

    So. Incredibly. Delish! I actually throw the chopped onion, garlic, and butter into a bowl and “saute” it in the microwave and then just let it sit in there to cool down while I do some other stuff around the house. I find if I “one and a half times” the recipe, it perfectly fills my mini-muffins. My husband and I both love these as well, as does my son.

  7. fbtena

    March 6, 2013 at 4:42 pm

    Reply

    Just made these delicious bites these a.m. for my 20-month old daughter who now does not like certain textures. She ate two of these with plain yogurt as a dipping sauce. I did not add the salt as the recipe stated but they still came out flavorful and moist. Love these!

  8. Hsiaolei Parks

    March 4, 2013 at 5:22 pm

    Reply

    OMG, these are so delicious. I went to your cooking demo in Los Gatos, CA, and you made these. I had forgotten about them and decided to make them today. They are just as good as I remember. I hope that there are some left for my kiddos! :)
    Thank you for all the delicious and easy recipes.

  9. Phoebe

    March 1, 2013 at 5:05 pm

    Reply

    My 4.5 year old who has always shied away from spinach helped me make these this afternoon. They came out of the oven as he was heading out for a playdate. When he got back he ate one and deemed it delicious. He asked that they go in his lunch box next week! So, yes, involving them in the prep work really helps! Thanks for this great idea.

  10. Irene

    March 1, 2013 at 3:04 pm

    Reply

    My 3 yo son who doesn’t like eggs or veggies just ate 3 muffins– ha ha

  11. Lady J

    February 22, 2013 at 9:16 pm

    Reply

    These were delicious. I omitted the garlic and used fresh spinach. I just cut my fresh spinach up and stirred it in the batter. Overall, a little salty ……next time I will only use a pinch of salt.

  12. Pingback: Soul Food Sunday | Grocery Grooves

  13. Darcy

    February 6, 2013 at 3:43 pm

    Reply

    Love this recipe and for fun I substituted finely chopped steamed broccoli for the spinach and a cheddar/gruyere blend for the mozzarella. They turned out great and I just wanted to share. Such a fun way to get the kiddos to eat their veggies!

  14. FAYE SUED

    January 30, 2013 at 1:19 pm

    Reply

    I live in B’klyn ny. This is an old Kosher Syrian dish. We make it with ricotta or low fat cottage cheese with some Munster cheese. Yes the kids really love it. Usually served with a dish call Mujedrah.
    You can find these recipes in the cookbook “Aromas of Aleppo.
    Written by Poopa Dweck

  15. George Robb

    December 7, 2012 at 6:42 am

    Reply

    parece rico

  16. Dina

    December 2, 2012 at 5:35 pm

    Reply

    This was my son’s (15months) first introduction to spinach. He loves them!

  17. Pingback: Perry's Plate: Dishing up real-food recipes and really good desserts » Weelicious Cookbook Review & Giveaway!

  18. rebecca

    July 16, 2012 at 9:14 pm

    Reply

    Very tasty. The whole family loves them.

  19. Ruth Pinnell

    July 11, 2012 at 12:58 pm

    Reply

    These were so yummy using my fresh goat-milk ricotta! Next time, I’ll try other readers suggestions and add mushrooms to the mix!

  20. Lisa

    May 14, 2012 at 10:48 am

    Reply

    Thank you! Made a double batch for a party. Used olive oil instead of butter and added some black pepper and basil. Had to keep my family (and myself) from eating everything before the party. They were much appreciated by some low-carbers and a gluten-intolerant guest. Recipe was easy enough to rattle off to anyone (everyone) who asked.

  21. catherine

    May 11, 2012 at 5:23 pm

    Reply

    Yes, lightly saute the garlic just to get it soft and aromatic! Raw garlic will be very potent. You can reduce the butter to 1 tsp!

  22. Morgan

    May 11, 2012 at 11:43 am

    Reply

    We are not onion fans at my house. If I left the onions out, do you think I would still need to cook the garlic in melted butter before mixing everything together?

  23. Miss Donna

    April 28, 2012 at 7:07 pm

    Reply

    these little. Uggets are the bomb. My toddler students loved them and so do the teachers. We enjoyed the spinach delights all week long. Love the mom who prep the snack for our class at Montessori.

  24. lish875

    March 7, 2012 at 9:08 pm

    Reply

    Easy recipe and super yummy!! Thanks for sharing. :)

  25. Jen

    February 4, 2012 at 12:14 am

    Reply

    Thanks for this recipe – easy & super YUM!!!!!! :)

1 2 3 4


Manage your shopping list and search for recipes from across the web at ZipList.com

Sign Up for Free Daily Recipes