Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bites #SundaySupper

Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bites are healthy, spicy little mini muffins made with quinoa, cheese, vegetables, and shredded chicken soaked in a lighter, seasoned buffalo sauce. {gluten free}

Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bites | alidaskitchen.com #recipes #SundaySupper #tailgating #glutenfree

With tailgating season upon us, bring on the tasty munchies!  While I am not necessarily a game watching fan, I am definitely a fun food fan! I especially love coming up with bite-sized finger foods that are a bit healthier yet super tasty (like these Jalapeno Popper Quinoa Bites)  With this in mind, I wanted to come up with a fun recipe combining another tailgating favorite, buffalo chicken.  As always, it was a natural transition to come up with Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bites.

For this Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bites recipe, I combined elements from two favorite recipes – Broccoli Cheddar Quinoa Bites and Buffalo Chicken Lasagna Cups.  I followed the general base recipe for the Broccoli Cheddar Quinoa Bites and kicked it up a notch with a buffalo chicken twist from the lasagna cups. The shredded chicken with the lighter, seasoned buffalo sauce is spicy good.  When combined with some cheese, vegetables and quinoa, these Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bites become a perfect tasty little bite!

Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bites | alidaskitchen.com #recipes #SundaySupper #tailgating #glutenfree

As with the original recipes, there is a lot of flexibility to customize the vegetables or cheeses to your liking, so have fun mixing it up! Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bites would be delicious served with a blue cheese dipping sauce.  They also pair beautifully with the Pinot Grigio wine from Gallo Family Vineyards.  Because the bites are so flavorful with a spicy kick, I like the balance with delicate yet bright citrus notes from the Pinot Grigio.  For a red wine pairing, I recommend the Gallo’s Merlot.  Their Merlot is a universal pleaser that goes well with almost everything.

Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bites | alidaskitchen.com #recipes #SundaySupper #tailgating #glutenfree

Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bites
 
Yields: 36 bites
Ingredients
Chicken:
  • ½ pound boneless, skinless chicken breast
Sauce:
  • ½ cup buffalo sauce
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • ½ teaspoon paprika
  • ½ teaspoon garlic powder
  • ¼ teaspoon onion powder
Quinoa:
  • ¾ cup quinoa, rinsed
  • 1½ cups water (or vegetable broth or chicken broth)
Remaining ingredients:
  • 2 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1 cup broccoli florets, finely diced
  • 4 green onions, finely diced
  • 1 garlic clove, finely minced
  • 1½ cups shredded cheddar cheese
  • Crushed red pepper (optional) to taste
Instructions
  1. Poach chicken: Place chicken in sauce pan and add enough water to cover chicken. Bring to a boil, cover and reduce to a simmer; cook for 5 minutes. Remove pan from heat and let chicken stand, covered until cooked through (about 12 to 14 minutes). Remove chicken from liquid and shred with 2 forks. [Note: You may want to move shredded chicken to a cutting board to give a rough chop for smaller pieces in the bites.
  2. Cook the quinoa: Meanwhile, combine quinoa and water and cook according to package instructions.
  3. Make sauce: Whisk hot sauce, lemon juice, paprika, garlic powder and onion powder. Pour over warm, shredded chicken, stirring to combine.
  4. Combine: In a large bowl, combine chicken, cooked quinoa, eggs, broccoli, onion, garlic and cheese.
  5. Preheat oven to 350° F. Spray mini-muffin tins with cooking spray.
  6. Put a heaping tablespoonful of quinoa mixture into prepared muffin cups. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes, or until edges turn golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes and then gently remove from pan to cool completely.

Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bites | alidaskitchen.com #recipes #SundaySupper #tailgating #glutenfree

The theme for Sunday Supper this week is tailgating.  We are partnering with Gallo Family Vineyards, sharing recipes featuring one of nine varietals of their mini wine bottles (187ml size).  These little bottles are perfect for tailgating!   And so are all of these wonderful recipes from the Sunday Supper group, listed below. Enjoy!

Also be sure to visit the Gallo Family Vineyards blog for even more tasty Wine BBQ pairings!
Sunday Supper MovementJoin the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter on Sunday! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm ET. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. To get more great Sunday Supper Recipes, visit our website or check out our Pinterest board.

Would you like to join the Sunday Supper Movement? It’s easy. You can sign up by clicking here: Sunday Supper Movement.

Use this Where To Buy Tool to find where to buy Gallo Family Vineyards near you.  Gallo is offering a $1 off coupon {available in select states}.  Enjoy!

Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bites | alidaskitchen.com #recipes #SundaySupper #tailgating #glutenfree

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Comments

  1. Your Buffalo Chicken Quinoa Bites are creative, original, healthy, and even gluten-free. Wow! I want some of these.

  2. No guilt in eating a boatload of these bites. None at all. And no missing out on flavor either. Totally great recipe.

  3. These are so creative!! I love that you combined buffalo chicken (my favorite) with quinoa (another favorite!). These look amazing!

  4. These are so cute and look delicious. Healthy game day treats sign me up.

  5. These are so cute! You had me at buffalo chicken, but how wonderful they are healthy too! Thanks for sharing!

  6. Alida, this is quite possibly my perfect party snack!

  7. I could easily make your quinoa bites into my dinner…they look incredible!

  8. I can’t wait to try these! I love that you incorporated Quinoa in there….genius!

  9. What a great idea! I love quinoa and with Buffalo Chicken, this is a win, win recipe!

  10. Yum! I love anything bite size when it comes to appetizers. These are great for tailgating!

  11. Gotta admit that these would be very popular and I think people would miss that they’re healthier if you didn’t tell them first.

  12. Such perfect flavors for a tailgate, and I love that they involve quinoa – my favorite!

  13. Oh yes!! Perfect little football nibbles 🙂