Cheesy Spinach Dip Puff Bites is a classic Appetizer that you can make in no time. Loaded with cheese this is one of the best bite-sized appetizer recipes ever.
These Cheesy Spinach Dip Puff Bites are the easiest and cutest Christmas Appetizer one can ever think of! You get a crusty, flaky puff pastry base with a cheesy spinach filling on the inside.
I am so excited to be sharing this easy Christmas Appetizer recipe with you guys today. It is seriously something that you can't have enough of.
For starters, I am a huge fan of bite-sized appetizers. Talking about Appetizers have you tried my Crispy Honey Lemon Popcorn (Oven-Fried), Spiced Nut Sweet Potato Cheesecake Dip, Jalapeno Cheddar Cauliflower Fritters, Easy Homemade Cheese Bombs and etc.
These appetizers are the prime attraction of any party. They set the ball rolling! And, in this case, we're talking about the Christmas party. So, to make it look more appropriate and festive, I arranged them in the form of a Christmas tree! Ain't that great?
How to Make Cheesy Spinach Dip Puff Bites?
- First, make the puff bites. For this, I used my mini tart mold. If you don't have a mini tart mold, just use your regular muffin tin to make the puff bites.
- But, before you do that, you'll need to make a puff pastry dough. So, I will tell you how to make the best Puff Pastry dough.
How to Make the Best Puff Pastry Dough?
- Start with kneading flour, cold butter, shortening, and ice-cold water. Use a pastry blender to make things easier for you. I generally love making Pie Dough or Puff Pastry Dough with my hands. Working with your hands, you are in better control of the dough. But, you can also use a food processor to make the dough. Just be careful to not overwork on the dough.
- Once your dough is done, wrap it with plastic wrap or a cling wrap or saran wrap and place it in the refrigerator.
- Refrigerating the dough makes the butter firm up and become cold. When making a puff pastry dough it is super-important that we refrigerate the dough and keep the butter cold.
- When the cold butter hits the hot air of the oven, it puffs up immediately and therefore you get that flaky, crusty, puff pastry! Isn't that interesting! Well, baking is truly a science. And, in this case, a delicious science...
Now, let's Make Mini Puff Pastry Bites!
- For the Bites, all you have to do is just roll the dough on a floured surface. (Don't forget to flour your surface)
- Now use your mini tart mold and place them upside down on the rolled dough. Turn it slightly so that it detaches from the rolled dough and now make your tart mold sit straight. It will already have that puff pastry wrapped in it. Now use your thumb and forefinger to press it into the tart mold.
- Now use a fork to prick it a little and then prebake these puff pastries in at 350F for 5-7 minutes until it looks crispy.
- Now let it cool down at room temperature and then take it off the mold.
How to Make Cheesy Spinach Dip?
Cheesy Spinach dip is a classic Appetizer in itself. But, I tried to improvise a little. And, hence, I used this spinach dip in my puff pastries.
- First, steam and saute spinach until completely cooked. Now cool them down.
- Into the spinach, add in cream cheese, garlic powder, onion powder, kosher salt, freshly cracked black pepper, cheddar cheese, and grated parmesan cheese.
- Give all of that a good mix. And place it in a preheated oven at 350F for 10-minutes.
- Cool it down and once it has come down to room temperature, use a spoon to fill this Cheesy Spinach dip into your puff pastry tart shells.
And voila! Your easy, cheesy, and cute Christmas Appetizer, is ready!!!
How to Make the Puff Pastries in a Muffin Pan?
To do the same thing in a muffin pan, you need to do this:
- First, grease your Muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray and add some flour to it. (Not much just a little sprinkle of flour)
- Use 1 tablespoon size of balls from the dough and press into the bottom and work up to the sides of each cavity of a mini muffin pan.
- IMPORTANT - Prick the base of each puff pastry with a fork (or else they would puff up in the oven). See images or video for a better understanding.
- Place them in a preheated oven at 350F and prebake for 5-7 minutes until crispy.
- Once it is done, all it to cool down completely and then use a sedated knife to take it out of the cavity. My trick is to grease my knife with oil or butter and then slowly run through my knife around the puff pastry! It should come out easily!
Other Substitutions/Replacements for Cheesy Spinach Dip Bites
- Bacon: Adding a little bacon into your cheesy spinach dip will bring a crunchy element to your dip. It would make it taste so good.
- Ground Chicken: Instead of Bacon you can use cooked Ground chicken or Ground Beef if you like.
- Broccoli: You can replace broccoli if you don't like spinach.
- Artichoke: Artichoke hearts would be an incredible addition to your spinach bites. I would've definitely used it if I had it in my home today.
Things that Might Go Wrong while Making Cheesy Spinach Dip Puff Bites
There are plenty of things that might go wrong while making this Cheesy Spinach Dip Puff Bites. But, these essential tips will make sure that you get the recipe absolutely right.
- Salty Dip: While testing the recipe, I figured that it turned out too salty. So, what I did, was reduce the amount of salt while making the dip. Actually, cheese already has salt in it. Therefore, use just a pinch of salt while making the dip.
- Greasing the Pan: It might happen that your puff pastry might stick to your muffin tin or tart mold. Therefore, make sure that you grease the muffin tin or tart mold generously with Non-Stick cooking spray or vegetable oil.
- Pricking the Puff Pastry: You simply cannot forget about pricking the puff bites with a fork. Pricking them will make sure that they do not puff up in the oven.
Other Appetizers you can try:
- Keto Cheesy Pizza Sticks
- Tasty Pretzel Bites
- Spider Pizza Bites
- Mummy Pizza Bites
- Grilled Tofu Kabobs
- Crispy Potato Cheese Balls
If you are making this recipe, then please leave a rating below. Also, share your Cheesy Spinach Dip puff bites image on Instagram with #recipemagik and tag me @recipemagik
Cheesy Spinach Dip Puff Bites
Cheesy Spinach Dip Puff Bites is a classic Appetizer that you can make in no time. Loaded with cheese this is one of the best bite-sized appetizer recipes ever.
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Servings: 12 servings
Calories: 108kcal
INGREDIENTS
Puff Pastry Dough
- ½ Cup All-Purpose Flour
- 2 Sticks Unsalted Butter
- 1 Tablespoon Shortening
- ⅛ Teaspoon Kosher Salt
- Ice Cold Water as per requirement
Cheesy Spinach Dip
- 10 Ounces Fresh Spinach Leaves washed and rinsed
- 8 Ounces Cream Cheese
- 1 Teaspoon Garlic Powder
- 1 Teaspoon Onion Powder
- ⅛ Teaspoon Salt
- ¼ Teaspoon Freshly Cracked Black Pepper
- ½ Cup Grated Parmesan Cheese
- ½ Cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese
- Cooking Spray
INSTRUCTIONS
- In a large mixing bowl combine flour, cold butter, a pinch of salt, and shortening. Use a pastry blender and work the dough. You can also make the dough using a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Make sure you do not overwork on the dough. Add tablespoons of ice-cold water as per your requirement and bring it all together to make a dough. Cover the dough with plastic wrap. Refrigerate the dough for 30-minutes.
- After 30-minutes, Preheat your oven to 350F OR 180C. Grease tart molds with nonstick cooking spray or brush with oil.Take it out of the refrigerator and place it on a floured surface. Roll the dough to about 1/2 inch thickness. Use a small tart mold with flute edgest to cut out the dough and press it evenly on a greases tart mold. Watch the video for a visual. (See instructions for doing it in a muffin pan in the blog post). Prebake the puff bites in a preheated oven at 350F for 5-10 minutes or until crispy. Once done allow them to cool down completely before de-molding. For de-molding brush a sedated knife with oil and then slowly run it through the edges. It should come out easily.
- First, place your spinach in a pan over medium-low heat. Saute your chopped spinach in a pan until it wilts and gets cooked completely. Cool it down and wring out the excess water. Now chop spinach coarsely. Preheat your oven to 350F or 180C. Place chopped spinach in a large mixing bowl. Add cream cheese, onion powder, garlic powder, salt, freshly cracked black pepper, grated parmesan, and shredded cheddar cheese into the bowl. Mix well until combines. Bake this dip in a preheated oven at 350F for 10-minutes. After 10-minutes take it out of the oven and cool it down completely at room temperature.
- Now spoon this spinach dip into your puff pastry bites. Fill all the way.
- Lastly, if you are serving this for Christmas, arrange them in the form of a Christmas tree on your table. Enjoy!
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition Facts
Cheesy Spinach Dip Puff Bites
Amount Per Serving
Calories 108
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
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