Cheesy Spinach Puffs

By ebdonahue

Ingredients

• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 1 large onion, peeled and finely chopped or grated on a cheese grater
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled and minced or pressed
• 3 eggs
• 1 cup ricotta cheese
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 cup grated Parmesan, Romano or Asiago cheese
• 1/2 cup Italian style breadcrumbs
• 1 pound frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed hard repeatedly to remove as much liquid as possible (*See Note Below Instructions)
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• Optional: warm marinara or pizza sauce or Ranch dressing for dipping

Details

Servings 1
Adapted from foodiewithfamily.com

Preparation

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Generously - and I DO MEAN GENEROUSLY - spray 48 mini-muffin wells with non-stick cooking spray. Eggs are culinary glue. If you don't grease the tar out of those mini-muffin wells, they will stick!

Melt the butter over low heat in a small saucepan or frying pan. Stir in the grated or finely chopped onion and cook on low, stirring frequently, until the onions are very tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook for an additional minute. Remove the pan from the burner and set aside.

Put the squeezed-dry spinach on a cutting board and chop a few times with a knife to separate the spinach and make the pieces smaller.

In a mixing bowl, beat the eggs with a whisk. Whisk in the ricotta cheese until smooth. Switch to a wooden spoon, add the remaining ingredients –including the cooked onion mixture and the chopped spinach- and mix until evenly combined.

Divide the mixture between the mini-muffin cups. Bake the puffs until set in the center and lightly browned around the outside edge (begin checking at 20 minutes.)

Make extras! These freeze well, reheat beautifully and are great to have on hand for last minute snacks.