Mexican Quinoa Bites

by 58 Comments

These Mexican Quinoa Bites make a great appetizer and can also be eaten as a main meal. They're vegetarian, packed with protein and fiber and taste great with a variety of dipping sauces!

Hi Friends!

As promised, things are back on schedule today! I was going to write my FNCE recap but I ended up spending most of the day yesterday playing catchup- on sleep, on emails, on hubby time. This upcoming weekend will be the first weekend in a month that hubby and I have both been at home together. I can’t wait! Anyways, I whipped up the tasty little bites pictured above for dinner last night and just HAD to share them today!

These Mexican Quinoa Bites make a great appetizer and can also be eaten as a main meal. They're vegetarian, packed with protein and fiber and taste great with a variety of dipping sauces!

One of the things I miss most when I’m traveling is cooking my own food. I’m a sucker for being in control so I can only tolerate eating out so many times before I get a little stressed out. So, even though I hadn’t been grocery shopping, I headed straight to the kitchen last night to see what I could come up with. The end result was delicious and that’s good news for me because it means that all of the ingredients are things that I almost always have on hand, no matter whether I’ve just gone grocery shopping or haven’t gone for a few weeks.

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Mexican Quinoa Bites

mexicanquinoabite
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Throw your taste buds a miniature fiesta with these easy Mexican bites.

  • Author: Author: Lindsay
  • Prep Time: 20 minutes
  • Cook Time: 15 minutes
  • Total Time: 35 minutes
  • Yield: 24 1x

Ingredients

Scale
  • 1/2 c quinoa, uncooked
  • 1 c black beans, cooked
  • 1/4 c avocado, smashed
  • 1 egg
  • 1 red pepper, diced
  • 1/2 c corn kernals, cooked
  • 1/2 c onion, diced
  • 1 tsp cumin
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
  • 1/3 c ground pepitas (or breadcrumbs)
  • 1/2 c low-fat mexican shredded cheese

Instructions

  1. Rinse quinoa and cook according to package directions.
  2. Combine beans, avocado, peppers, corn and onion in a small bowl and mix well.
  3. Add spices and stir to combine.
  4. Add cooked quinoa (cooled slightly), egg and ground pepitas and mix well.
  5. Spray mini muffin tins with cooking spray and spoon in quinoa mixture.
  6. Bake at 375 degrees for 15 minutes.
  7. Remove from oven and let cool 5-10 min in pan.
  8. Gently remove from pan and serve with bbq sauce or salsa.

Aren’t they cute? I’m love bite-sized foods. These would make a great party appetizer, tailgate snack or dinner entree!

These Mexican Quinoa Bites make a great appetizer and can also be eaten as a main meal. They're vegetarian, packed with protein and fiber and taste great with a variety of dipping sauces!

I dipped mine in bbq sauce,
hubby topped his with sriracha.

These Mexican Quinoa Bites make a great appetizer and can also be eaten as a main meal. They're vegetarian, packed with protein and fiber and taste great with a variety of dipping sauces!

Next time I might try mixing the bbq sauce in before baking!

Let’s chat!

Bite-size or full-size?
What’s your favorite appetizer?

Enjoy!
–Lindsay–

 

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Reader Interactions

Comments

  3. I am obsessed with muffin tin recipes because #1 they are so easy and #2 they are the perfect size and #3 they are perfectly shaped which makes my life a heck of a lot easier to make appetizers that look appealing for guests! I will have to try this baby out! I just made turkey muffins check out my blog for the recipe I think you will really enjoy them. Love and Shine CourtStar

    Reply

  7. welcome home friend. glad you are getting some quality time with the hubs and doggies soon. These are just brilliant. I shall make and put an egg on top!

    Reply

  10. I love all your “bite” recipes!! They are perfect for appetizers! I’m more of a full size kind of person for dinner… but these bites are perfect to bring to someones house!

    Reply

  11. YUM!!! I am the same way – I can only stand eating out so much before I NEED to return home & cook. Nothing beats a home cooked meal!

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  16. I definitely love bite-sized for appetizers or any time there are a lot of different food options–then I can taste it all! But regular meals? I love to go gigantic, haha. Ridiculously large omelets, giant bowls of salad, oh yes!

    Reply

  20. Yum! I may try these out tonight! My husband won’t often eat vegetarian, so when he’s gone at work, that’s my pleasure. I’m really liking the look of your blog! It’s much cleaner and easier on my eyes! 🙂

    Reply

  32. Dan and I (from Perth) made these for lunch yesterday, they were a hit! Thanks for the great idea. Sending foodie love from down under!

    Reply

  35. These look amazing! Can these be baked a day in advance? I have a Mexican themed Potluck lunch at work and wont be able to make them “fresh” that same day. What do you think?

    Reply

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  3. […] Bite by Bite made apple peanut butter breakfast quinoa. Lindsay of The Lean Green Bean made Mexican quinoa cups. I decided to take two great ideas for using this super-grain and combine them into one. Thus, […]

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