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Mini Quinoa Pizza Bites

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Think bagel bites but totally healthy and filled with protein. These little pizza snacks are made with quinoa; they’re not only tasty but also packed with nutrients. Your kids will gobble them up!

Mini Quinoa Pizza Bites with pepperoni and cheese -- a simple (and healthy) snack/meal for your kiddos!

Who doesn’t love pizza? I’d venture a guess that it’s pretty much the favorite meal of almost everyone, kids and adults alike.

There’s just something so satisfying about picking up a big slice of pizza with gooey cheese and sizzling, greasy pepperonis on top. It’s practically heaven with every bite.

Here’s the truth though: (sadly) pizza isn’t a health food. But I’m thinking you already kind of knew that, didn’t you?

Mini Quinoa Pizza Bites with pepperoni and cheese -- a simple (and healthy) snack/meal for your kiddos!

As good as pizza tastes, it’s not something we should be eating on an everyday basis. Or really even a multiple times a week basis. It’s filled with refined starches and sugars, additives and preservatives, dairy and processed meats. It’s a recipe for inflammation, indigestion and tummy aches. Not something we really want our kids to be eating all the time.

But does that mean that it’s not possible to recreate pizza to make it nutritious and delicious at the same time? Of course not!

Enter: quinoa pizza.

Mini Quinoa Pizza Bites with pepperoni and cheese -- a simple (and healthy) snack/meal for your kiddos!

Quinoa

pizza crust made from quinoa

It almost sounds too good to be true, but it’s not. It’s the real thing and it’s absolutely amazing.

Mini Quinoa Pizza Bites with pepperoni and cheese -- a simple (and healthy) snack/meal for your kiddos!

I came up with my own version for quinoa pizza years ago – it was one of the first recipes I ever shared on my blog – but I have since revisited that recipe, gave it a little facelift in the photo department, and it’s taken off. People have loved having a pizza recipe that is healthy and tasty at the same time! (just check out the #simplyquinoa hashtag on Instagram, there’s a lot of pizza mixed in there!)

As I was brainstorming what recipe to create for you this month, my mind kept coming back to pizza. Probably because I know how much your kids like pizza, so I wanted to give you this healthy alternative.

But rather than showing you how to make the traditional pizza crust, I thought it would be fun to turn them into something super kid friendly!

Enter: mini quinoa pizza bites!

Mini Quinoa Pizza Bites with pepperoni and cheese -- a simple (and healthy) snack/meal for your kiddos!

These mini quinoa pizza bites use all the same ingredients as my traditional pizza crust, they’ve just been transformed into smaller pieces, perfect for the kiddos! Whether you need an after school snack, an easy dinner for the babysitter to reheat or want to send something fun in their lunchbox, these pizza bites are sure to be a hit.

And the best part is, they couldn’t be easier to make. Here’s how:

Mini Quinoa Pizza Bites. How to make healthy quinoa pizza crust using just 5 simple ingredients (and it's gluten-free + vegan too!)

First, we start by soaking the quinoa. Since we’ll be blending it, it’s important that the quinoa is soft so that the batter gets extra smooth. I recommend soaking it for 6 – 8 hours, but if you’re in a pinch, you can do it for 2 hours in really hot water.

Mini Quinoa Pizza Bites. How to make healthy quinoa pizza crust using just 5 simple ingredients (and it's gluten-free + vegan too!)

Once soaked, you’ll want to rinse the quinoa in a fine mesh sieve and then transfer it to your blender (or in this case I’m using the Twister Jar from BlendTec). Along with the quinoa, you’ll add the water, oil, baking powder and salt. Then just blend it until smooth.

How to make healthy quinoa pizza crust using just 5 simple ingredients (and it's gluten-free + vegan too!)

For baking, I like to first grease my muffin tin with cooking spray and then I line it with thin strips of parchment paper. This not only ensures the crusts won’t stick, but it also helps you remove them when it’s time to flip.

Then you just fill the tins with about a tablespoon of batter and bake away.

Once your timer goes off (at around the 10 – 12 minute mark), turn the mini crusts out onto a baking pan and pop them back into the oven for 5 – 10 minutes.

Mini Quinoa Pizza Bites. How to make healthy quinoa pizza crust using just 5 simple ingredients (and it's gluten-free + vegan too!)

Then…it’s time to top them!

I used just tomato sauce, shredded mozzarella and pepperoni (nitrate-free from Applegate Farms!), but you can do whatever you’d like. They would be delicious with pesto!

Now that you’ve got them topped, pop them back into the oven for about 10 minutes until the cheese is melted and starting to brown.

Mini Quinoa Pizza Bites with pepperoni and cheese -- a simple (and healthy) snack/meal for your kiddos!

The cheese oozes over the sides, gets kind of crispy along the edges and the crust soaks up the juice from the tomato sauce. It’s everything that you love about pizza, but it’s actually good for you!

And the final step? Take a bite and enjoy!

Yep, you’ll pretty much be the hero if you serve this for dinner!

Mini Quinoa Pizza Bites with pepperoni and cheese -- a simple (and healthy) snack/meal for your kiddos!
Mini Quinoa Pizza Bites
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3.7 from 43 votes

Mini Quinoa Pizza Bites

Think bagel bites but totally healthy and filled with protein. These little pizza snacks are made with quinoa; they’re not only tasty but also packed with nutrients. Your kids will gobble them up!
Prep Time7 hours
Cook Time20 minutes
Total Time7 hours 20 minutes
Course: Lunch
Cuisine: American
Servings: 4
Calories: 266kcal

Ingredients

Crust

Toppings

Instructions

  • Soak uncooked quinoa for 6-8 hours.
  • Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with strips of parchment paper and drizzle 1/4 teaspoon of oil in the center. Spread around with your finger until evenly coated and set pan aside.
  • Thoroughly rinse quinoa, then add to a blender. Add remaining crust ingredients (1 tablespoon of oil should remain) and blend on high until smooth and creamy. It should resemble a thick pancake batter.
  • Pour 1 tablespoon of batter into prepared each muffin tin and bake for 10 minutes. Remove pan, flip crusts onto a baking sheet and return to oven baking for another 5 – 10 minutes until browned and edges are crispy.
  • Remove baking sheet from oven and top each pizza round with 1 teaspoon of sauce. Add a layer of cheese and then a slice of pepperoni, and bake for 8 – 10 minutes until the cheese has melted and started to brown.
  • Remove, let cool for a few minutes on the pan.
  • Garnish with herbs, pepper flakes, grated cheese, etc., (totally optional) and serve immediately!

Nutrition

Calories: 266kcal | Carbohydrates: 25g | Protein: 10g | Fat: 15g | Saturated Fat: 4g | Cholesterol: 16mg | Sodium: 629mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 2g
Keyword : Mini Quinoa Pizza Bites

www.superhealthykids.com

Alyssa is the blogger and cook behind Simply Quinoa.  Gluten-free website dedicated to healthy food, always with a little quinoa twist.

Natalie Monson

I'm a registered dietitian, mom of 4, avid lover of food and strong promoter of healthy habits. Here you will find lots of delicious recipes full of fruits and veggies, tips for getting your kids to eat better and become intuitive eaters and lots of resources for feeding your family.

Learn More about Natalie
3.66 from 43 votes (41 ratings without comment)

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18 Comments

I tried making this recipe but the quinoa to water ratio didn’t seem right and my batter came out so thick my blender was struggling. Suggestions?

Hi Carly – the proportions are definitely correct; I’ve made this recipe hundreds of times at this point 🙂 There are a few things that could be at play here for you. First would be the power of your blender — what type of blender do you use? It helps to have a high powered one like a BlendTec or Vitamix. Second would be the amount of time you soaked the quinoa. The longer it soaks, the softer it becomes and the easier it will be to blend. The dough does turn out to be quite thick, but if your blender is really struggling, you could try adding a teaspoon or two more water in just to get things moving along. Hope that helps! xo Alyssa

I purchased a bag of organic quinoa flour to save time from making it myself. How much would I use in the recipe? I wasn’t sure if 3/4 cup uncooked quinoa would equal 3/4 cup quinoa flour. Thanks!

I added a little bit of grated romano cheese and garlic powder to the quinoa crust mixture to give it a little more taste!

I made two attempts at this recipe this for my kids and both times, the crust stuck to the bottom of the pan so I wasn’t able to flip it. I used the olive oil as directed the first time and then next time I tried cooking spray. Not sure what I did wrong.

2 stars
Meh. It could use a lot more seasoning and the quinoa cakes are very dense. They’re quite filling and just okay. Not sure if I’d make them again.

5 stars
I’ve made these a couple times and they’ve turned out great! My son loves them 🙂 I do add some seasoning to the batter and I have a vitamix blender! It’s a fun alternative to mini pita pizzas or regular dough!

The picture that you have above, shows 1/4 cup quinoa and 3/4 cup water but the instructions say 3/4 quinoa and 1/4 water. Which would you say is the right ratio?

Hi Molly, the picture is just to show the soaking method. You should use 3/4 cup of uncooked quinoa. After the soaking period, blend it with the 1/4 cup water mentioned in the ingredients list. I hope this clears up any confusion!

Can the quinoa crust be prepped ahead and frozen to cut down on that day’s prep time? If so, at which step?

Yes, you could! After baking the crusts you could freeze them- then top and bake as directed (adding a couple minutes bake time if using frozen crusts. You can also thaw before using!) Good luck!

This is SO cool, my picky eater even tasted it, which is like a step forward. I tried your other recipies too and they are simple and SO good. Thank yo SO much!
Ps. I love your routine serie! And I love you share recipies from other blogs