Zucchini and Parmesan Quinoa Bites are a delicious way to turn a handful of simple ingredients into a tasty snack, side dish or light meal. Made with wholesome quinoa, grated zucchini and savoury parmesan, they bake up lightly golden on the outside while staying tender in the middle.
They are a great way to add extra vegetables to your meals and are perfect for meal prep, lunchboxes or serving alongside your favourite protein. Easy to make and packed with flavour, these little bites are sure to become a family favourite.
Calories in Zucchini Parmesan Quinoa Bites
This recipe makes 12 bites and 62 calories per bite.
If you're looking for more recipes by calories, you'll find plenty of options grouped by calorie range here: Slimming Eats Low Calorie Recipes
If you're following a calorie-controlled diet or a healthy eating plan, it's important to calculate your daily calorie needs using a reliable calorie calculator. The calorie counts provided are estimates and can vary depending on the exact ingredients and portion sizes you use. Using your own calculations helps ensure you're meeting your individual needs. A calorie calculator can help you make informed choices and stay on track with your goals.
See the recipe card for full nutritional estimation.
Ingredients Notes
To make this recipe you will need the following ingredients:
- Quinoa: Quinoa adds protein, texture and helps hold the bites together. Cooking it in stock instead of water gives it much more flavour. Once cooked, allow it to cool slightly before mixing with the other ingredients.
- Zucchini/Courgette: Grated zucchini adds moisture and extra vegetables to the bites. Be sure to squeeze out as much excess moisture as possible before adding it to the mixture to help the bites hold together properly.
- Parmesan: Parmesan adds a delicious savoury flavour and helps create a golden finish as the bites bake. Freshly grated parmesan works best.
- Black Pepper: Adds a little seasoning and complements the parmesan and zucchini perfectly. You can adjust the amount to suit your taste.
- Eggs: The eggs help bind everything together and give the bites structure as they bake.
- Chicken or Vegetable Stock: Used to cook the quinoa and add extra flavour. Vegetable stock is a great option if you want to keep the recipe vegetarian.
- Olive Oil Spray: Helps the bites turn lightly golden on the outside without needing lots of added oil.
Once you've gathered all the ingredients and prepared them accordingly, you're all set to create this easy and delightful recipe.
See the recipe card for specific quantities and instructions.
Variations and Substitutes
There are plenty of ways to adapt these Zucchini and Parmesan Quinoa Bites depending on what you have on hand, whether you want to add extra vegetables, change the cheese or boost the flavour.
- Veggie Swaps: Grated carrot works really well in place of some or all of the zucchini and adds a touch of natural sweetness. Finely chopped spinach, kale or spring onions can also be added for extra vegetables and flavour.
- Cheese Swap: Parmesan adds a lovely savoury flavour, but mature cheddar, mozzarella, Pecorino Romano or a combination of cheeses can be used instead.
- Quinoa: White quinoa works perfectly, but red or tri-colour quinoa can also be used. Just be aware that they may have a slightly firmer texture.
- Add Extra Flavour: Stir in some garlic powder, onion powder, paprika, dried Italian herbs or chilli flakes to change the flavour profile. Some green or red pesto is also a great addition for flavour.
- Fresh Herbs: Chopped parsley, basil, chives or dill are all great additions and add extra freshness to the bites.
- Make Them Cheesier: Add a little extra parmesan or mix in some grated cheddar for a richer, cheesier bite.
Serving Suggestions
These Zucchini and Parmesan Quinoa Bites are great just as they are, which makes them perfect for lunchboxes, light lunches and packing up for picnics. They are easy to enjoy warm or cold, so they are a really handy make-ahead option too.
If you want to serve them as more of a snack plate or light meal, they pair really well with a dip. I especially love them with a dip or sauce and there are several to choose from on Slimming Eats. Check out Sauces and Dips
To round things out, add some crunchy veggie crudités on the side like carrot sticks, sliced peppers, cucumber and radishes. They also pair well with a simple side salad, making everything feel a little more colourful and fresh while keeping it nice and simple.
Storing and Reheating
These Zucchini and Parmesan Quinoa Bites store really well, which makes them perfect for meal prep or having ready for easy snacks and lunches throughout the week. Once cooled, keep them in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 4 days.
You can enjoy them cold straight from the fridge, or warm them up before serving. To reheat, pop them in the microwave for a quick option, warm them in the oven until heated through, or use the air fryer for a few minutes if you want to bring back a little of that lightly crisp exterior.
More Quinoa Recipes
Need some more ideas for that bag of quinoa in your pantry or cupboard? Check out these:
See more Quinoa Recipes →
or if you would like more recipe ideas - head on over to the FULL RECIPE INDEX where you will find over 900 delicious recipes with calories and you can search by meal type, ingredients, course, diet and more.
All recipes on Slimming Eats have estimated nutritional information for your convenience.
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Recipe Card
Zucchini Parmesan Quinoa Bites
These Zucchini and Parmesan Quinoa Bites are golden, flavour-packed little bites made with wholesome quinoa, grated zucchini and savoury parmesan, making them perfect for snacks, lunchboxes or an easy side dish.
Ingredients
- 85g (½ cup) of uncooked quinoa, rinsed
- 1 zucchini (courgette), grated
- 60g (2oz) of parmesan
- salt and black pepper
- 2 large eggs
- 240ml (1 cup) of vegetable stock
- olive or coconut oil spray
Instructions
- Add the quinoa and stock to a saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer and cook until the stock has just been absorbed. Turn off the heat, cover with a lid and leave for 15 minutes. The trapped steam will continue to cook the quinoa and leave it soft and fluffy. Set aside to cool.
- Preheat the oven to 180°C (fan), 200°C (conventional), 350°F or gas mark 4.
- Lightly grease a mini muffin tin with olive oil spray.
- Squeeze as much excess moisture as possible from the grated zucchini/courgette, then add it to the cooled quinoa along with the parmesan. Season with salt black pepper and mix well.
- Add the eggs and stir until everything is evenly combined.
- Spoon the mixture into the holes of the muffin tin, pressing down gently with the back of a spoon.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until lightly golden.
- Allow the quinoa bites to cool slightly in the tin, then carefully remove them using a small spoon.
- Alternative Method: If you prefer, spoon the mixture onto a lined baking tray and shape into thin patties. Flatten slightly with a fork, then bake until crisp and golden, carefully flipping halfway through cooking.
- These are great served with salads or as a side dish alongside your favourite main meal.
Notes
Please see below for full nutritional info and additional details about recipe:
- Calories - scroll down to nutritional info box
- WW Points and other Slimming or Weight Loss programs - due to plans regularly changing and updating, we recommend calculating with the official tools you get as a member to those plans to ensure accuracy of values.
- Gluten Free Friendly - use gluten free stock
- Vegetarian Friendly - use a vegetarian hard cheese
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Nutrition Information
Yield
12Serving Size
1 BITESAmount Per Serving Calories 62Total Fat 3gSaturated Fat 1gUnsaturated Fat 1gCholesterol 36mgSodium 159mgCarbohydrates 5gFiber 1gSugar 1gProtein 4g
Nutritional information and values etc are an estimate and is to be used for informational purposes only. Ingredients can vary greatly from brand to brand and therefore it would be impossible to give accurate information. It is always advised that you calculate by the ingredients you use.
Guest says
I made these yesterday and cannot believe that you can eat six of these little beauties for 1HEa per serving, or am I reading something wrong? I am going to eat the rest before somebody tells me I am ......thank you slimming eats. yum yum!
Guest says
I made
Kathy says
I wanted to be able to print this off from my tablet but this recipe doesn't have the print symbol like the others. It looks lovely.
Shevy (Slimming Eats) says
Hi Kathy, some of my older recipes haven't yet been converted into the recipe box, but if you go to file and then print in your browser, you should be able to print it that way. I will get this updated very soon.