Broccoli Bites Recipe (2024)

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February 27, 2012 by Kristen Michaelis CNC 59 Comments | Affiliate Disclosure

Broccoli bites double as a crowd-pleasing appetizer or a kid-friendly lunch. Really, they’re quite clever. Who doesn’t love broccoli surrounded by melted cheese? Broccoli bites serve up both broccoli and cheese, but packaged as a finger food! Paired with a maple-dijon dipping sauce, they quickly become a favorite.

Inspired by the popularity of a similar appetizer served at Bennigan’s restaurants, I wanted to adapt it to be 1)actually healthy, and 2)easy. The Bennigan’s version contains bacon and onions and is served up fried in nasty vegetable oil. While I’d normally be all over adding bacon and onions to just about anything, I also wanted to keep this simple so that I could throw it together quickly.

So, this recipe for Broccoli Bites was born.

Broccoli Bites Recipe

(adapted from Stacey Snacks)

Broccoli Bites: The Players

1 lb broccoli, chopped
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded (where to buy cheese from grass-fed cows)
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, shredded (where to buy cheese from grass-fed cows)
3 eggs (why from from pastured hens?)
1 cup almond flour (where to buy almond flour)
1 tsp. oregano
salt & pepper to taste (where to buy real sea salt)

Broccoli Bites: The How-To
Preheat oven to 375F. Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.

Use your hands to roll the mixture into 1 inch, bite-sized balls. Place balls on lightly greased parchment paper.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until brown. Serve with the Maple-Dijon Dipping Sauce.

Maple-Dijon Dipping Sauce

Maple-Dijon Dipping Sauce: The Players

6 tbsp sour cream
2 tbsp mayonnaise (where to buy soy-free mayonnaise)
2 tbsp maple syrup (where to find organic, grade-B maple syrup)
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 tbsp fresh lemon juice
salt to taste (where to buy real sea salt)

Maple-Dijon Dipping Sauce: The How-To
Simply stir all ingredients together and serve! YUMMILICIOUS!

For more delicious recipes similar to this one (low-carb, high-fat), I highly recommend the Wicked Good Ketogenic Diet Cookbook.

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At the moment, the printed version of this cookbook is 100% free to Food Renegade readers. You just cover shipping & handling.

(photo by staceysnacks)

About the Author

Kristen Michaelis CNC has been a Health and Nutrition Educator since 2008. Founder and CEO of Food Renegade, she's a passionate advocate for REAL FOOD -- food that's sustainable, organic, local, and traditionally-prepared according to the wisdom of our ancestors. She earned a Bachelor of Arts (summa cum laude) from Dallas Baptist University in Philosophy and Biblical Studies, then began her post-graduate journey as a researcher in the fields of health and nutrition. While she adores hats & happy skirts, nothing inspires her quite like geeking out over nutrition & sustainable agriculture. Nutrition educator & author of the go-to book on nutrition for fertility, she's also a rebel with a cause who enjoys playing in the rain, a good bottle of Caol Isla scotch, curling up with a page-turning book, sunbathing on her hammock, and parenting her three children as they grow into young adults.

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Comments

Katy Costa via Facebook says
Gonna try these tonight I think!
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Food Renegade via Facebook says
Katy Costa — Wondeful. Let me know if you enjoy them!
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Katy Costa via Facebook says
I will!!
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Jennifer McCuller Gray via Facebook says
Can’t wait to try these. My kids would LOVE this!!!
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Amaria George Parker via Facebook says
Looks great! I love the idea of finger-food-izing veggies!
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Beth says
Heavens….I am envisioning all KINDS of adaptations to this! Cauliflower! Well drained cooked spinach! I can hardly wait to race home and make some!
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- KristenM says
  I know! Bacon and onions do really well in it, and different kinds of cheese make for interesting takes on it as well. I’ve even stirred in some sun dried tomatoes!
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Foodsmiths General Store says
This looks great. Broccoli + fat is a great combination. We just posted (our first blog post) a recipe for poutine with fried broccoli! http://foodsmithsgeneralstore.com/blog/with-apologies-to-quebec
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Carolina says
Can I sub coconut flour???
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- KristenM says
  Yes, but not in the same quantities. Coconut flour absorbs a lot of liquid, so you’d want to use a lot less of it. I’d start experimenting with 1/4c. instead of a full cup and transition from there.
  Also, you’ll probably need to add more eggs if you use coconut flour.
  Reply
  - Carolina says
    Yes!! Success!! Thanks for tips on getting the flour and eggs right. I used 1/3 C. coconut flour and 6 eggs. Plus I think I had closer to a pound and a half of broccoli. These were the surprise hit at dinner time with my hubs and 4 and 2 year olds!! Thank you!
    Reply
    - KristenM says
      Good to know! Thanks for sharing.
      Reply
Ann Canlin via Facebook says
Wow, looks so tasty, looking forward to trying this!
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Katie says
I’m dying to make this. However, I’m allergic to almonds. What other type of flour would you recommend?
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- KristenM says
  You could use any kind of sprouted grain flour. They’d have a slightly different texture, but would be basically the same.
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Suzanne says
They sound wonderful. How are they at room temperature. Sounds like they would be a nice lunch box treat to take on my traveling job.
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- KristenM says
  I like them warm, but not hot. Room temperature is okay, just not as awesome. 🙂
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Robin Kelman via Facebook says
These look yummy, I’m going to try these later this week.
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Joe says
Well, after watching my 4 1/2 year old look like I served him Drano tonight when I put two pieces of broccoli on his plate, this looks like a good bridge for him as I try to work more veggies into his diet.
Thanks for sharing!
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- KristenM says
  You’re welcome. Hope he enjoys it!
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Gayle says
Sounds awesome! Stupid question: Do I cook the broccoli first or not? I’m guessing not, but I’d hate to ruin them! Gonna try this asap with sprouted wheat flour. My kids actually love broccoli, so they might love these too. Thanks!
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- Fran says
  Did you end up making these; and did you cook the broccoli first? I was questioning that as well.
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Mel says
So happy to have stumbled upon this website. thank you so much.
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Stephani says
Ok, so I thought what a wonderful way for me to get my fat % up and still get a vegie! LOL…I didn’t have almond flour so used coconut flour. Dry and odd and I don’t know…didn’t turn out well…they look so good in the picture!
Also, any chance someone knows the calories/fat/carb dietary info on them???
Thanks!
PS, my husband liked them oddly enough!!! LOL
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- KristenM says
  Did you do what I suggested to Carolina above for adapting the recipe to use coconut flour? Because coconut flour is so dry, you need to radically reduce the amount of flour used AND increase your eggs.
  Reply
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  - Stephani says
    nope! LOL…I didn’t see this til today rats!
    So I didn’t use as much flour..but still used 3/4 cup…and next time will use more eggs! I also noted that in the Stacy site, she used Mozzarella…so that is why the picts look different. Any particular reason you chose cheddar instead???
    I’m new to all this eat more fat idea…really good with the eat whole food, the way it was created and get away from all the grains and processed food! I’m so happy to have found this site!
    Reply
Becky @ Pure Vitality says
Going to try these broccoli bites tonight. Thanks for the recipe, it sounds great and I’ll let you know how the family likes it.
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City Share says
Wow, those sound great. We have been avoiding grain and needing some new inspiration. These are just what we were looking for. Thanks.
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Jennifer Gray says
Just made these and WOW! They are great! I really like the maple Dijon sauce. It would be excellent on chicken!
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Againstthegrain says
Mmmmm! Just made these tonight for my husband and I. I think even broccoli haters will like them; they also would be good to serve to lacto-ovo vegetarians, as they are rather “meaty” in texture. My husband said these were very much like falafel, but much, much better. The sauce pairing was perfect, too.
I probably didn’t chop the broccoli quite fine enough on this first attempt, so next time I’ll cut the stems and florets coarsely, then pulse them in the food processor. And for those wondering, no, the broccoli isn’t cooked first. Rolling the semi-crumbly/sticky mixture into balls didn’t work well for me, but gently squeezing them into ball shapes worked fine as long as I placed them very gently on the baking pan. Next time I might use a cookie dough scoop to make sure they are more uniformly sized. They can be spaced rather close together, too – almost touching. I baked them in a large convection toaster oven and they fit perfectly on a 12″ square baking pan.
I’m also thinking this mixture would be very good pressed into a buttered casserole or loaf pan.
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Jo-Lynne {Musings of a Housewife} says
These look divine! We are gluten free and also allergic to tree nuts. What would you recommend replacing the almond flour with? Can I use brown rice flour? Thanks!
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- Nicole says
  I left the flour completely. I used quinoa flour. It was tasty. Hopefully this helps.
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JennyBakes says
I made these tonight and they were very good! Thanks for sharing the recipe!
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Kelly says
Could these be made in advance, frozen, and then baked just prior to serving? If not, maybe made & baked and then frozen? Looking for crative and fun ways to have a healthy lunch, but don’t always feel like doing much work mid day. TIA!
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Patti says
Mine tasted great, but fell apart, suggestions?
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- Marlene says
  Mine fell apart also, even after another egg.
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-joshua! says
We’re drowning in Broccoli from our CSA…
Came here to see what I could find.
Looks like a winner!
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Claudia S. says
If you were here in front of me I would kiss you! Thank you for this recipe! Before they shut down, my husband and I loved the broccoli bites from Bennigans. I’ll surprise him with this recipe this week. He’ll be so happy.
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Joy says
We have a nut allergy in our family, is there a substitute for almond flour for this recipe?
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- Joy says
  Oh I see a comment above with the suggestion of coconut flour and more eggs. Thanks!
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Babette Cade via Facebook says
What is it about broccoli and cheese?
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Louise C. Swette via Facebook says
Heather Powers….it made me think of you!
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Mary Light via Facebook says
I simply must do this. this also sounds like it would be good as sort of a casserole instead of bites, layered in a pan.
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Maritza Nasseri Acosta via Facebook says
Karla Sofia Yon
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Faith Epp via Facebook says
I like it roasted with EVOO salt/pepper and garlic powder.
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Shana Miner Ladin via Facebook says
Just made this. It was great!
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Laura Harmasch via Facebook says
I love these. I add a little bacon too.
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Sandy Lethin via Facebook says
Diana, this looks yummy for Super Bowl. 🙂
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lexee says
making these tonight for a get together… how many does one batch make? thanks! 🙂
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lexee says
oh and can you use frozen (thawed) broccoli instead if fresh?
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Jill Ferrell says
Do these freeze well?
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Denise says
YUMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!! It only took me 2 days to eat all of these (okay, so I shared 2 with my daughter), they are so good and so addicting. Thank you for this and all your other great recipes. We have just eliminated a lot of foods in our house, and these recipes are making my life so much easier.
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Anonymous says
Parmesan cheese in this recipe is not sold on the website. Where can we find the raw Parmesan cheese?
Thanks
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Brittanie Terrell via Facebook says
Trish Dugas Courtney Terrell
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Miek Paulus via Facebook says
Stu Dowell great idea!
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Heather Burke Bradley via Facebook says
What can i substitute for almond flour? (Nut allergy)
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Laura Schneider via Facebook says
Look great, but with maple??
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Randy Boesche via Facebook says
Blackeyed peas with ham hocks and bacon is everyone’s favorite.
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Laura says
Thanks for posting, made them yesterday, trying them later today but they do look good.
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