Quinoa Pizza Bites

I recently learned that I CAN have mozzerella cheese on my new diet, so that made me quite happy.  I decided we really needed some pizza.  We used to order pizza every monday night, and I LOVE pizza and I miss it.

So I found a recipe for pizza bites, and thought I’d try it.  They turned out tasting like pizza!  Imagine!

This is the pinterest picture… I used a larger muffin tin.

Here is the link to the recipe: http://www.fitsugar.com/Gluten-Free-Quinoa-Pizza-Bites-21988461

Next time I’d bake them a bit longer, jsut to see if they get a bit more crispy.  Make sure you don’t miss the step to pack them down in their tin a bit, as it helps them stick together better.

Ingredients

1 cup uncooked quinoa
2 large eggs
1 cup chopped onion
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped (or 2 tablespoons dried)
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes, diced
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon dried oregano
Pizza sauce for dipping

Directions

1. Place the quinoa and two cups of water in a covered pot. Bring to boil and then simmer for 20 minutes or until quinoa is tender.
2. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
3. Mix together all ingredients, except pizza sauce, in a medium mixing bowl.
4. Distribute mixture into a greased mini muffin tin, filling each cup to the top (one heaping tablespoon each), and press down gently to compact.
5. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Cool for 10 minutes before removing from the pan. Serve warm with sauce for dipping.

Makes 24 mini muffin bites.

I didn’t have any onion, but I used some onion flakes. Also, I added mushrooms and some beef.  I think it’d work with whatever ingredients you wanted.  Perhaps ham and pinapple (though pork is a no-no for me).  I wanted to add some spinach, but I had forgotten.  I would love to do a chicken bacon and mushroom pizza bite and dip it in ranch, but ranch is a dairy product and I can’t have that either.

Success, I think Ben and I will make these again!

Edit:

I made these again last night, and they were even better!  I did a double recipe again, and then added an extra egg on top of that.  They held together beautifully.  I also left them in for the full 20 minute count, and they came out a bit crispier, which I was quite pleased with.   This could replace our monday-night pizza night (we used to get from pizza hotline for cheap).