Have you noticed all the new muffin recipes everyone is making lately? Cupcakes were all the rage and now everyone is making savory items in muffin tins. I’ve seen lasagna, tacos, crab cakes, even mac & cheese. So when I was looking for something to take to my brother and sister-in-law’s house on New Year’s Eve I decided to try to come up with my own version of a savory muffin treat. For some reason, I was thinking about the yummy baked spinach and artichoke dip I’ve made many times. Maybe because the polar vortex was once again making a visit to our area. At least it wasn’t snowing. Anyway, I wanted it to be crunchy but I didn’t want to fry anything. I wanted to use my mini muffin tin. Then I thought, Panko breadcrumbs. They always have a nice crunch to them.

So that’s what I did. I used Panko, parmesan and butter to make a shell in the bottom and spooned in the filling. Then I add a sprinkle of the breadcrumb mix on top for extra crunch. They were a big hit, and gone in no time. The only problem I had was that they were a little on the crumbly side. Maybe next time I’ll add an egg.

Yield: 4 dozen

Spinach & Artichoke Mini Muffin Bites

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Ingredients

• 1- 10 oz . package frozen chopped spinach - thawed & drained
• 1 - 15 oz . can of artichoke hearts - chopped
• 1 lg clove of garlic - minced
• 1 - 8 oz package of cream cheese @ room temperature
• 1/2 c . shredded mozzarella cheese
• 3 c . flavored panko bread crumbs
• 1 1/2 c . grated parmesan cheese
• 1 stick of butter melted

Instructions

1. Combine the first 5 ingredients together in a bowl.
2. In a separate bowl combine bread crumbs, parmesan cheese and butter.
3. Spoon breadcrumb mixture into the mini muffin tin and make dent with your thumb.
4. Fill in with some of the spinach & artichoke mixture.
5. Top with a bit more bread crumbs
6. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until golden brown
7. Makes approx. 48 pieces