Corn Dog Muffin Bites take this classic American food and make it even more fun! 

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One of the original meals-on-a-stick, corn dogs are something I associate with childhood, mall shopping, and summertime. I have a lot of nostalgia surrounding corn dogs, but they’re one of the foods I was hesitant to introduce to my own kids. 

Putting a big pot of sizzling oil on the stove to deep fry hot dogs in batter while I have little ones running around the kitchen was enough to make me dare not try a homemade version. I don’t exactly love deep-frying anything, but I do love sharing my childhood favorites with my kids. 

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Spooning the cornbread batter into mini muffin cups, adding a slice of hot dog, and baking them is a great way to share the nostalgia with your kid! Make your own cornbread batter as I do in the recipe below or use your favorite mix. 

Any hot dogs or sausage will work here, so choose your own adventure! You can easily find healthier hot dogs in any grocery these days, even vegetarian options. Serve with an array of dips to add to the fun of this childhood classic! 

Corn Dog Muffin Bites from Weelicious.comPin

Corn Dog Muffin Bites are a fun change of pace for school lunch or even a quick dinner! Tag me @weelicious on social media so I can see your kiddos enjoying this recipe. 

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Corn Dog Muffin Bites

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Author: Catherine McCord
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 14 minutes
Total Time 19 minutes

Ingredients  

  • 1 3/4 cups cornmeal
  • 3/4 cup all purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 1/4 cup honey
  • 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 3 veggie hot dogs, cut into 1/2-inch coins (you can also use turkey or beef)

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 425F degrees.
  • Mix the cornmeal, flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a bowl.
  • In a separate bowl, whisk together the honey, buttermilk, eggs and oil.
  • Pour the dry cornmeal mixture into the wet ingredients and thoroughly combine with a whisk.*
  • Grease muffin cups with cooking spray, softened butter or oil on a paper towel and then pour one tablespoon batter into greased mini muffin cups. I use two 24-cup mini muffins pans!
  • Lay hot dog slices cut-side down in the center of each batter-filled muffin cup.
  • Top with an additional tablespoon of batter.
  • Bake until starting to turn golden, about 14 minutes.
  • Add popsicle sticks after baked and serve. 
  • * Boxed cornbread mix also works great in this recipe. Follow the directions of the boxed mix, prepare enough batter to yield at least 40 mini muffins and skip to step 5 to continue making the bites.

Nutrition

Calories: 60kcal | Carbohydrates: 10g | Protein: 2g | Fat: 1g | Sodium: 150mg | Sugar: 2g
Did you make this recipe?Mention @Weelicious or tag #weelicious!

About the Author

Catherine is a mama of three. A Kentucky girl living in California. Here’s what I know: all kids can be great eaters and mealtime must be easy. I create simple, healthy recipes the whole family will love.

Comments

  1. Would have to say that this is a great recipe because I love muffins and hotdogs . Will be trying this one soon.

  2. […] idea. My little one enjoys banana and peanut butter sandwiches so I know she’d love this! Corn Dog Muffin Bites – They love corn muffins and they love hot dogs so this is perfect for us!  And I can make a […]

  3. Did I do something wrong? I only used maybe 1/4 of the batter in 24 muffins. Im guessing I was supposed to have used two pans but I still would have had more than half of the batter left.

  4. […] and I recently tried this recipe from Weelicious. These were so yummy! Sometimes I crave corn dogs but I’d rather not eat the […]

  5. I can’t wait to make these! My daughter will love them. Thank you for such great healthy recipe ideas.

  6. I used Bob’s Red Mill’s Cornbread and Cornmeal Muffin Mix. This was a bad idea since it seems to have coarse grind cornmeal. The larger pieces of Cornmeal were not a pleasant texture in this recipe. I only needed 1 Tablespoon total for my mini tart pan, so I should have adjusted the cooking time but I didn’t and my muffins were dry. I will make again with liners, the posted recipe and maybe a hot dog with a larger diameter. Thanks for posting a recipe with a good hot dog to cornmeal ratio!

  7. The Ultimate Tailgating Recipe Collection {Tailgating Tuesday} | Endlessly Inspired says:

    […] Soft Pretzel Tots from A Cozy Kitchen // 7. Corn Dog Muffin Bites from Weelicious // 8. Spicy-Sweet Deviled Eggs from Southern Living/MyRecipes.com // 9. […]

  8. My kids usually don’t eat much at dinner, but they inhaled these! Thank you!! Oh, and I was out of eggs when I went to make it, so I substituted 2 Tablespoons Flax Seed Meal and 6 Tablespoons of water and they still turned out great! (made mini muffin and regular muffin sizes).

  9. You can always add a touch of vinegar or lemon juice to regular milk to “sour” it, or make it like buttermilk.

  10. You can really use any oil you prefer! Just know that canola oil is a neutral flavor so other oils will impact the flavor!

  11. Hi Catherine! Can I use coconut oil or olive oil with this recipe? Don’t know if it will be good, but prefer those over canola! Thanks!

  12. Bob’s Red Mill makes a cornbread mix! My kids eat these at room temperature, dipped in organic ketchup, for lunch!

  13. Do these taste good at room temp? I plan to make these for my daughter’s birthday party but need to cook them in advance and I might not have access to a stove for reheating. Thoughts?? Also, do you recommend a brand for the cornbread mix? I’d like to buy one from Whole Foods.

  14. I usually freeze these after baking them. Then let them defrost in the fridge and reheat in the toaster oven for a few minutes!

  15. If you do freeze these, how do you cook them from frozen? Do you thaw them out first or cook them from frozen? How long do you cook it? I can’t wait to try it!!!

  16. I want to try this recipe but corn products kind of up my sugar 4 my diabetes what can I use instead.

  17. Made these yesterday and we all enjoyed them! I added a little cheese. For my mini muffin tin, 2 tablespoons was also a bit much. My almost 5 year old liked them so much that when he accidently dropped part of one on the floor and the dog got it, he CRIED! Then went and got three more off the pan which he guarded closely!

  18. I just made these for a play date today and they are Soooo dry. I think next time I will add cheese and maybe some more honey.

  19. made these with turkey dogs, chopped them up tiny and threw the pieces in the batter..my almost 3 year old loves them! My 1 year old is napping but I’m sure she’ll be happy to eat them when she wakes up 🙂

  20. My little boy and I made these and added chopped spinach and a few spoonfuls of brown spicy mustard. Even my husband likes them and he’s my hardest customer!

  21. Love these! I loved corn dogs at the amusement park as a kid.

    Also just wanted to add….brands that say “nitrate/nitrite free” actually do have these exact compounds but they are derived from celery powder instead of synthetic sources.

    The New York Times ran an article stating that they were basically the same substance.

    “For Hot Dogs, A Push for Truthful Labels”

    http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/02/business/02hotdog.html?_r=1

    However the Applegate Farms website claims there is a difference between natural and synthetic curing products:

    http://www.applegatefarms.com/resources/nitrates_and_nitrites.aspx

    It’s all so confusing, so I buy Hebrew National at Trader Joe’s because they just taste the best. And my kids eat hot dogs pretty rarely, so might as well have the real thing.

  22. Hi would polenta work for cornmeal? Not sure I can find cornmeal in Belgium. I love your website, your simple recipes have really increased my confidence in the kitchen x

  23. Yes, there’s a recipe on here for them! 350, 14 min. Add a bit of pancake batter place your sausage on top then cover with a little more batter! They’re yummy!

  24. Thinking of trying the same concept with pancake mix and cut up/ chopped sausage links. Any thoughts?

  25. We may have recently discovered a honey allergy for my son. So we are avoiding it until further testing can be done. Any alternatives to using honey?

  26. Yes, that would work. If it needs to be cooked make sure to do that before placing them in the muffins!

  27. Sometimes, I get a craving for those gross little corn dog bites of my youth. Disgusting, I know. As a grown up and parent, I tend to stay away from most hot dogs because now I know what’s in them but a good veggie dog made into corn dog bites sounds so delicious!!

  28. I make these as a treat for my kids. Like Shari, I cut the hot dogs into small pieces, the size of peas, so that every bite gets some hot dog.

    For the hot dogs, I use 100% organic grass-fed and nitrate free ones from Trader Joe’s. The brand is Applegate and it is called The Great Organic Uncured Beef Hot Dog.

  29. I’ve frozen these before, in mini- or regular-size versions. I also cut the hot dogs into smaller pieces for smaller kids to avoid the choking hazard, plus then every bite has hot dog in it!

  30. If you would like to use a regular (or beef) hot dog without the nitrates, Oscar Mayer makes a nitrate-free hotdog that you can find in almost any store. I think they are labeled “Premium Selects”. They taste just like a regular hot dog!

    Great recipe!

  31. Nope! Put them in as is. They will warm in the oven, and hot dogs are pre-cooked so that makes it even easier!

  32. Since it makes so many, do you think these would freeze well? I’ve had good luck freezing plain cornbread in the past.

  33. I buy Garrett Valley Natural Turkey Hotdogs. They are Nitrate free. I buy mine at my farmers market, but I am sure you can find Nitrate Free hotdogs at Whole foods (specialty grocers), or maybe the Natural Foods section of the grocery store?

  34. I am not a huge fan of hot dogs for kids because they contain nitrates. Do you recommend a brand of veggie hot dogs? I’ve never tried them before.

  35. These are a great idea. Can whole wheat flour or wheat pastry flou be substituted for the white flour? Or will that effect the consistency?

  36. Awesome! These are for dinner tonight!!! Kids are going to love eating these on their picnic table.

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