Party Panache, Baby Ham & CheeZee Bites

the Painted Apron

9 years ago

Guess what? These little magic muffins are full of zucchini!

Plus cheese, onion, and ham with eggs and a little Panko to bind everything together

Light and tasty, perfect for parties, tailgates, picnics, brunch~

And you can make them ahead of time and keep them in your freezer

Grate zucchini and let it drain on paper towels

While zucchini is draining sauté onion on medium low until it starts to caramelize and turn golden

Pat and squeeze zucchini dry and place in a mixing bowl and add onion. Place ham in skillet and increase heat to medium high and cook slices 1-2 minutes to get some color on them

Chop ham, and add it to the mixing bowl along with Panko, cheese and eggs

Season with salt, pepper and garlic powder

Mix well

Spoon or scoop into well greased mini muffin pans

Use your fingers to gently press strays back into the muffins, and place your pan on a baking sheet because as these cook they expand a little and juices can ooze out

NOTE: Do not use paper liners as muffins will stick to the paper. Silicone pans make baking so easy, muffins and cupcakes will pop right out. After cooling you can place the muffins in decorative papers if desired

Baby Ham & CheeZee Bites

Course Appetizer, Brunch

Cuisine American

Keyword baby ham & cheese bites, lo carb muffins, mini muffins, zucchini muffins

Prep Time 30

Cook Time 20

Servings 30

Ingredients

2 medium zucchini
1/2 large sweet onion diced
4 slices ham
4 oz. Manchego cheese grated
3 eggs
1/2 cup Panko plain breadcrumbs
dash of garlic powder
salt and pepper
1 T butter with a dash of olive oil OR 1-2 T bacon grease

Instructions

Saute onion in bacon grease or butter and olive oil, low and slow about 20 minutes. Meanwhile grate zucchini and let drain on paper towels for 10 minutes. Grate cheese.
Pat zucchini as dry as possible. Place in a large mixing bowl. Remove onion with a slotted spoon and add to zucchini in bowl. Turn burner up to medium high and quickly saute ham slices to get a little color and caramelization on them. Remove and chop into small pieces. Add to bowl along with grated cheese. Beat eggs and add to bowl along with bread crumbs and a dash of garlic powder. Season with a little salt and pepper. Mix well.
Spray mini muffin pans well with olive oil spray. Spoon in zucchini mixture, filling tins to the top and gently pushing ingredients down. Bake at 350 for 18-22 minutes, until golden. Let sit for several minutes to set and then carefully remove from pan and cool. Makes about 30 mini muffins