These gluten free pizza bites are delicious little explosions of spicy goodness, a perfect snack, appetizer or side dish.
Recipe | What is Spanish Chorizo? | Making Polenta Cups
What is Spanish Chorizo?
I’ve used Spanish-style Chorizo in this recipe. It’s actually called Salvadorian Chorizo on my packaging. It’s the same sort of sausage, though.
Unlike Mexican chorizo which is a raw seasoned sausage, this comes in links. The brand I’m using is Mama Lycha which we were lucky to find in little store in Benton, Arkansas. Of course we had to try it.
If you’re unable to find this style of cooked chorizo, you can use slices of kielbasa or other dinner sausage. Those are fairly easy to find in almost any market.
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Making Polenta Cups
Gluten free pizza bites start with making a cheesy polenta base. You need some instant polenta, cheese and red pepper flakes for a little kick.
When the polenta cools, it will retain the shape you make it. For this recipe, I pressed about a tablespoon of polenta in the recesses of mini muffin pans.
This handy scoop from Mrs. Fields was perfect not only for measuring out the polenta but it was perfect for pressing the polenta into the little cup shape.
If you have extra polenta, just stand there and eat it with a spoon. Wait. Did I say that outloud?
Homemade Sauce
For most of my recipes here, mom is fairly insistent that I don’t use canned sauces. It’s important that I learn how to make sauces myself.
I’ve simmered tomatoes, chiles, onions and garlic. Then, I’ve blended it in the stand up blender.
You need to wait for the polenta to set up into shape anyway, so spending a little bit of time to make homemade sauce isn’t really a problem.
When you make a sauce like this, you don’t even need to do much chopping. Quarter the tomatoes, tear up the chiles a little. Since it goes into the blender, let the blender do the work for you.
Assembly
Okay, now for the fun part, right? Gluten Free Pizza Bites will come together quickly once you have all your prep work complete.
Carefully spoon out the little polenta cups to the baking sheet. They will hold their shape but they’re still fragile so don’t smash them or throw them around.
You just need a tiny bit of sauce. It’s about ½ to 1 teaspoon in each. Place the chorizo slice on top. Add more sauce and cheese. then, top them all off with a jalapeno.
Bake them in the oven until the cheese is melty and starting to brown a little.
Serve with the extra sauce for dipping. Sprinkle on more cheese and red pepper flakes, if you like.
The sauce will work for dipping other things as well, especially tortilla chips!
Looking for other appetizers?
Here are some of my favorites.
Recipe
Gluten Free Pizza Bites in Polenta Cups
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For more information, be sure to check the recipe details in the attached 24Bite® post.
Equipment
- (2) 24 mini muffin tins
- Baking Sheet
- Standing or immersion blender
Ingredients
Polenta Cup
- 3 ½ cups Water
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 cup Instant Polenta
- ½ cup Parmesan Cheese, shredded
- 1 teaspoon Onion Powder
- 1 ½ teaspoon Red Pepper Flakes
- Cooking Spray
Homemade Sauce
- 3 Roma Tomatoes
- ½ large Onion
- 4 Red Anaheim Peppers, dried
- 2 Arbol Peppers, dried
- 4 Garlic Cloves
- 2 tablespoons Apple Cider Vinegar
- 1 teaspoon Cumin Powder
- 1 teaspoon Salt
- 1 teaspoon Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 teaspoon Onion Powder
- 1 cup Water
- 2 tablespoons Corn Starch
Pizza Bites Assembly
- 8 ounces Spanish Chorizo, fully cooked sausage
- 1 cup Parmesan Cheese, shredded
- 48 Pickled Jalapeno Slices
Instructions
Polenta Cup
- Add water and salt to medium sauce pan and place on medium heat on stove top. Heat water to boiling.
- Begin stirring or whisking the water briskly then slowly pour in the polenta while stirring.
- Reduce heat to low and continue stirring throughout for five minutes. Remove from heat. Stir in ½ cup Parmesan, onion powder and red pepper flakes.
- Spray muffin tins with cooking spray. Distribute hot polenta, about 1 tablespoon at a time, in each muffin cavity. Press to form a shallow cup.
- Cover and refrigerate while preparing the remaining ingredients.
Homemade Sauce
- Quarter tomatoes and onion.
- Carefully split the peppers and remove the seeds and members. Wash under cool water. Cut or tear the peppers into 1-2 inch pieces. Arbol peppers are small so no need to cut them.
- Place tomatoes, onion, peppers and garlic in pan. Add enough water to cover. Heat on medium and bring to low boil, reduce to low and simmer for 30 minutes.
- Remove all ingredients to blender with slotted spoon. Add about ½ cup of liquid from pan. Blend until smooth. Discard remaining liquid. Return to pan. Stir in vinegar, cumin, salt, Worcestershire and onion powder.
- In a separate small bowl, mix together 1 cup water and corn starch until well blended and corn starch is dissolved. Stir into the tomato mixture. On medium heat, bring to boil and simmer for 5 minutes until thickened slightly. Set aside.
Pizza Bites Assembly
- Preheat oven to 400℉.
- Spray baking sheet with cooking spray. With a spoon, carefully remove each polenta cup and place on baking sheet.
- Place about ½ to 1 teaspoon homemade sauce in each polenta cup.
- Slice chorizo sausage into ⅛" pieces. Place one on each polenta cup.
- Place another ½ teaspoon homemade sauce on top of chorizo slices.
- Place a pinch of Parmesan cheese on top then a jalapeno slice.
- Bake for 15-20 minutes.
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Notes
Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet. All amounts are estimates and 24Bite® takes no responsibility for actual figures since calculations vary by packaging and supplier. Please calculate the amounts yourself based on package labeling if you have specific dietary requirements. 24Bite®, Kim Guzman or Christian Guzman shall not be liable for adverse reactions or any other outcome resulting from the use of recipes or recommendations on this website or actions you take as a result.
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