Recipe Overview
Why you’ll love it: Spinach balls are delicious hot or cold, making them an easy, healthy appetizer for all seasons. You can make them ahead and freeze them, too.
How long it takes: 20 minutes to prep; 30 minutes to bake (10 minutes to air fry)
Equipment you’ll need: skillet, baking sheet, mesh strainer, mixing bowl
Servings: makes 32
A Bite-Sized Favorite
Spinach balls might not sound flashy… but trust me, they disappear fast. I brought these to a Memorial Day BBQ along with my whipped feta dip and they were both gone before I could even grab seconds.
They’re bite-sized, easy to make, freezer-friendly, and you can bake them in the oven or air fryer. And the best part? They taste just as good at room temperature as they do warm, which makes them perfect for parties.
What makes them special:
- Versatile. Any time of the year, these spinach balls are terrific fresh out of the oven, and just as delicious as they cool to room temperature. The last one tastes as good as the first!
- Good for you. Nutrition isn’t usually a high priority when it comes to party appetizers but these delicious spinach balls are packed with protein and vitamin-rich greens. I’ll eat these with a salad or a bowl of tomato soup for lunch as easily as I gobble them down at the appetizer table.
- Easy to make. This spinach balls recipe is a cinch to make. Bake them on parchment paper for quick and easy cleanup. Or, make them in half the time using your air fryer!
“The spinach balls are delicious! Easy to form into balls and such a nice texture after baking…So good! Thank you.”
Ingredient Notes
I’ll give you a short overview of the ingredients you’ll need to make easy spinach balls but keep reading for the full recipe.
- Fresh Spinach: I love using fresh spinach leaves. You can also use a 10 ounce bag of frozen spinach for convenience, if you like. It should be thawed completely before you begin the recipe.
- Eggs, Panko, Parmesan, Minced Onion: You’ll need 4 eggs for this recipe, along with panko or homemade breadcrumbs. I find that regular finely ground breadcrumbs make the spinach balls too dense. The texture of panko is coarser and more airy.
- Butter: Melted butter sticks everything together and adds rich flavor.
- Seasoning: This recipe calls for a combination of garlic powder, Italian seasoning, freshly ground nutmeg, and black pepper. You can use pre-ground nutmeg if that’s what you have on hand, or even skip it entirely.
How to Make Spinach Balls (2 Ways)
In the Oven
Prepare a baking sheet. Begin by lining a baking sheet with parchment paper while your oven preheats to 350ºF.
Prepare the spinach. Lightly steam the spinach in a covered pan with a bit of water, stirring every so often until wilted. It will only take a few minutes. Afterward, drain the excess liquid by gently pressing the wilted spinach against a fine mesh strainer before finely chopping the leaves.
Combine. Next, you’ll whisk together the eggs and add panko, parmesan, and the remaining ingredients, including the seasonings. Then, stir in the spinach.
Roll into balls. Once the mixture is well-combined, portion and roll it into 32 bite-sized balls. Place the prepared spinach balls onto your lined baking sheet. Make sure to leave enough space between the balls so that they crisp up nicely, and bake in batches as needed.
Rolling Tip
To speed up the rolling process, I use a cookie scoop to portion out the balls. A cookie scoop is wonderful for cookies, of course, but it’s also perfectly suited for meatballs, spinach balls, and energy bites. For these spinach balls, I use a 1.5 tablespoon scoop, or a #40.Bake. Bake the spinach parmesan balls in the oven for 30 minutes, until the outsides are golden. The internal temperature should be around 165ºF when you check it with an instant-read thermometer.
In the Air Fryer
The air fryer is the fastest way to make perfectly golden and crispy spinach balls, and it’s my preferred method.
Prepare and roll the spinach balls as directed. Place them into the air fryer, leaving space between each ball. Cook at 380ºF for about 10 minutes, or until the spinach balls are crisp and golden.
Air Fryers
These spinach balls came out perfectly golden in the air fryer and cooked in a fraction of the time. Air frying is a quick and easy way to make all sorts of delicious meal ideas. If you’re in the market for your own air fryer, I can’t recommend it enough.
Recipe Variations
- Try different herbs and spices. Change up the flavors with finely-minced fresh herbs like basil, parsley, thyme, or your favorite spice blend. Add a sprinkle of Cajun seasoning or crushed red pepper flakes for a spicy kick.
- More veggies. Dice up red bell peppers, mushrooms, or zucchini into tiny pieces and sauté them with the spinach. Try to not go overboard with add-ins, however, as the balls won’t hold their shape as nicely.
- Seasoned bread crumbs. You can make this recipe with seasoned panko crumbs, just omit the added Italian seasoning.
- Not a fan of spinach? Try my vegetable fritters which are made with grated zucchini, carrots, and red bell peppers.
Serving Ideas
With a dip or sauce. Spinach balls are great on their own but take it up a notch and serve them with creamy whipped feta or this healthy ranch dressing for dipping. We like them with homemade pizza sauce, too, or French fry sauce.
As a light meal. Serve spinach balls on a fresh arugula salad or in a vegetarian wrap, falafel-style, topped with homemade tzatziki (cucumber yogurt sauce). They’re also perfect as a side with roasted tomato soup!
With other appetizers. Serve spinach balls at Christmas or New Year’s parties alongside other party snacks like fried goat cheese and baked Brie (be sure to check out my list of 32 easy holiday appetizers for more holiday apps). Spinach balls are just as great for Easter, paired with spring favorites like my asparagus Gruyère tart and deviled eggs.
Make ahead
Refrigerate: You can roll the spinach balls up to one day ahead so that they’re ready to pop into the oven or air fryer whenever you’re ready to cook them.
Freeze: You can also freeze uncooked spinach balls, and they bake up perfectly right from frozen (see the following section for more details). Freeze the spinach balls in a single layer until firm, 1 to 2 hours. Transfer to freezer safe container or bag. Spinach balls can be frozen for at least 2 months. There’s no need to thaw them before cooking. Bake or air fry as directed, adding a few minutes to the cooking time if they are frozen.
Refrigerate: Store the cooked and cooled spinach balls in an airtight container and refrigerate them for up to 3 days. Serve the balls cold from the fridge or reheat them in the oven or in the air fryer for a few minutes, until warmed through.
Freeze: Store cooked spinach balls in an airtight container or resealable bag and freeze them for up to 1 month. Reheat the balls (no need to thaw them) in your air fryer, oven, or microwave.
More Easy Appetizer Ideas
Spinach Balls
Ingredients
- 16 ounces fresh spinach (or frozen, see note)
- 4 large eggs
- 2 cups panko bread crumbs
- 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
- ½ cup finely minced onion
- 4 tablespoons butter (melted)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
- ½ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- ⅛ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg (or ground nutmeg)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large pan with cover, heat 1 tablespoon of water and spinach over medium heat, covered, until wilted. Stir occasionally as needed to wilt all the leaves. Put spinach in a fine mesh strainer and press out excess liquid using the back of a spoon. Place on a cutting board and chop finely. Cool slightly. You should have about 1 ½ cups of cooked spinach.16 ounces fresh spinach
- In a large bowl, lightly beat eggs. Add panko, Parmesan cheese, onion, melted butter, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, black pepper, and nutmeg. Stir in spinach until well combined.4 large eggs, 2 cups panko bread crumbs, 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, ½ cup finely minced onion, 4 tablespoons butter, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning, ½ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper, ⅛ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- Roll into 32 small, evenly-sized balls (I use a 1 ½ tablespoon scoop) and place on prepared baking pan.
- Bake for 30 minutes or until lightly golden brown. If spinach balls are frozen, add 2 minutes to baking time.
- Serve immediately or cool completely before storing in an airtight container in refrigerator or freezer.
Notes
- Using frozen spinach: One 10 ounce package frozen chopped spinach, thawed, can be substituted for the fresh spinach. Press out excess liquid as directed.
- Panko: Panko is a coarse, airy bread crumb. If you prefer, whole wheat panko can be substituted or you can make homemade bread crumbs. Finely ground bread crumbs tend to make the spinach balls too dense.
- Air fryer instructions: Arrange spinach balls on rack of air fryer, sides not touching. Air fry at 380°F for 10 minutes or until golden brown. Air fry an additional 2 minutes if spinach balls are frozen.
- Freezing instructions: Freeze uncooked spinach balls in a single layer until firm, 1 to 2 hours. Transfer to freezer safe container or bag. They’ll keep for at least 2 months. It’s not necessary to thaw them before baking or air frying, but add a couple of minutes to the cooking time.
- Reheating instructions: To reheat cooked spinach balls, air fry for 3 to 5 minutes until heated through. They can also be microwaved until heated.
Video
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Did You Make This?Share a comment and rating below! I love hearing what you think!
Followed the recipe exactly. Looked and smelled great but desperately needed salt! Quite a time investment but very blah.
Thank you for the feedback. I feel like the Parmesan adds enough salt, but I’m sorry you didn’t have the same experience.
They were delicious, did not have parmesan so used asago not as fine bit worked, a drop of cinnamon and they came out delicious. A bit more garlic powder next time to pop the flavor.
I’m glad you liked them! Thank you for leaving a rview!
Recipe looks yumm
Can you add feta cheese to these??
I think that would work!
Can you use Italian breadcrumbs instead of panko and Italian seasoning?
That should work!
I made it and taste yummy and delicious. I have no nutmeg but still ok. What is the substitute for nutmeg? I gave you 5 stars for this recipe, simple but healthy and easy. Keep up the good work.
If you don’t have nutmeg, I’d just leave it out. :) Glad you liked them!
I squirted fresh lemon on them when they came out of the oven,They weren’t too lemony, but it punched up the flavor.
Lemon juice is always such a flavor enhancer! Thanks for leaving a review!
Rachel,
The spinach balls are delicious! Easy to form into balls and such a nice texture after baking.
I followed the recipe exactly and sat them in a homemade Marinara sauce.
So good. Thank you
I’m so happy you liked them! Thank you for leaving a review, it means so much.
Hi! Thank you for sharing this recipe! I’m excited to try it! I was wondering if regular Italian breadcrumbs would work instead of Panko? Thank you!!
Sorry for the delayed response – I think that will work fine!
Hello! Love these. They are always a big hit. Is it ok to roll them and have them on a cookie sheet overnight in fridege before baking?
Or maybe just have the mixture in the fridge overnight and roll and bake in the morning?
Thanks!
I think it would be okay to roll them in advance, although I haven’t tested that yet. Let me know if you give it a try!
These were very nice buy my mixture was very gloopy so had to add a lot more breadcrumbs. Followed all the instructions other than panco breadcrumbs which we don’t have here (EU Spain). I made my own from local bread. Are “panco” breadcrumbs not actually breadcrumbs?
They’re slightly different – more crunchy and airy, so that could have made a difference.
I split the Spinach in half and used Artichoke hearts for the other half added 1/4 tsp cayenne powder ,1/4 tsp garlic powder, They were a Big hit. Trick add a couple tblspns of AP flour to dry up the ‘Batter’ mixture some! You can Make croutons then grind them up semi-fine to replace Panko Bread Crumbs!!! I Rachel!!! I’m going to add some crabmeat next time! Maybe some cream cheese!!! YUM!!!
So glad you liked them! Thanks for leaving a review, it means a lot!