By Christie Vanover | Published April 22, 2014 | Last Updated December 28, 2022
Even though I grew up in the South, I’m not ashamed to use canned biscuits, especially when it turns into a cheesy, garlicky, crunchy coated magical morsel like these Cheesy Garlic Bites.
The concept is simple: flatten each pre-cooked biscuit and wrap it around a fresh mozzarella cheese ball. Pop it in a mini muffin pan and bake.
Each of these cheesy garlic bites is covered in crunchy baked on cheese. The dough is soft and fluffy, and inside is a volcano of melted mozzarella. I used fresh mozzarella ciliegine (which just means cherry size balls). If you can’t find them, just buy a block of mozz and cut it into cherry size cubes.
As for the biscuits, you want to use the in expensive non-flaky kind. They usually come in a 4-pack. The final touch that makes these so scrumdiddlyumptious is the garlic butter white wine sauce that bakes into each bite.
How to prepare Cheesy Garlic Bites
To start, flatten each biscuit and place a ball of mozzarella on top. Then, just pinch the dough around the cheese so it’s surrounded.
Next, saute the garlic and add in butter and wine. I like adding a touch of red pepper flakes, too, for a pop of heat. Roll each biscuit ball into the garlic butter to coat. Save the garlic butter. You’re going to need it at the end.
Place the garlic smothered biscuits in a mini muffin pan with the opening facing up.
Cover with shredded parmesan and mozzarella cheeses. Be generous.
You can do everything up to this point and store the biscuits in the fridge, until you’re ready to serve them. Then, heat the oven to 450F and bake for 8-10 minutes, until the cheese is brown and bubbly.
When you remove the cheesy garlic bites from the oven, brush with that remaining garlic butter and sprinkle with a pinch of salt and dried basil. Enjoy!
Cheesy Garlic Bites
Ingredients
- 2 cans buttermilk biscuits not the flaky kind
- 20 balls mozzarella fresca ciliegine cherry size or mozzarella cut into cubes
- 3 tablespoon olive oil
- 6 cloves garlic minced
- pinch crushed red pepper flakes
- 2 tablespoon butter
- ¼ cup white wine
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese shredded
- ½ cup parmesan cheese shredded
- salt and basil to taste
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
- Open the can of biscuits. Flatten each biscuit. Drain the liquid from the container of fresh mozzarella. Place a mozzarella ball in the center and wrap the dough around it to form a ball.
- Heat olive oil over medium low heat in a skillet. Add the garlic and red pepper flakes. Sauté for 1-2 minutes. Add in the butter and stir until melted. Slowly pour in the wine and salt (it may splatter) and continue cooking for 1-2 minutes.
- Roll the dough balls into the butter.
- Place the balls in a mini muffin pan (open side up).
- Combine the shredded cheeses and pile on each dough ball.
- Bake in a 450-degree oven for 8-10 minutes.
- Remove from oven. Brush with remaining garlic butter. Sprinkle with salt and basil to taste. Serve warm.
Nutrition
The nutrition information is an estimate created using an online nutrition calculator
Dawn says
Very good but I smoked out my oven. Grease dripped over onto the bottom of my oven. Will definitely make again
Christie Vanover says
Sorry to hear that. You may want to get an oven thermometer to see if your oven is running hot. Or perhaps turn your oven down to 425F degrees.
Ruth Anne says
What type of white wine?
Christie Vanover says
I recommend a dry crisp white wine. If you like chardonnay, that works well too because it’s buttery.
Miska Knezevic says
EXCELLENT!
Mary Thurner says
Amazing recipe! Wasn’t sure the butter sauce was going to be worth it, but it was quick to put together. Don’t worry about carbs on this treat!
Eva says
What kind of wine is best?
Christie Vanover says
I recommend a dry crisp white wine. If you like chardonnay, that works well too because it’s buttery.
Dawn says
I user piño gregio
Anonymous says
Hi can’t wait to try these…what kinda biscuits do we use in Canada…seems like all we have is pillsbury
Jessica says
Made these tonight with miniature mozzarella balls, I fried mine….. OMG!! Made up my own marinara sauce and again OMG I just about hurt myself!!!!
Kristina says
Delicious. Have made several times. Cut up the grands if you can’t find the smaller biscuits.
My husband has finally suggested that we try them in the muffin tins upside down. They’ve lightly burned a few different times and we’re now thinking it’s because the dough is so thin on the bottom because of wrapping the cheese in it. We’ll definitely give it another shot. The flavor is absolutely delish. It’s a go to recipe with guests.
Polly says
Do you send emails about your different recipes? I would enjoy trying them along with the garlic bites.
Shanita says
OMGOODNESS! These were delicious! I used cheddar Jack on the top bc that’s what I had, but followed all other directions. I never knew these cheap little biscuits could be jazzed up to taste gourmet. The salt and basil on top add a nice touch. I made them as a side to my dinner, but family ate them as the main dish. Recipe was relatively quick and simple. Definitely keeping in rotation.
linda gorrell-henson says
Such a great snack with a glass of wine! Looked very classy when I served it with lamb chops /garlic and rosemary , hasselback potatoes and fresh asperagas from the garden. i got so full on the cheesy bites I had little room for my dinner. Stumbled on your site yesterday and love it. Sitting down to share site with others. Thank you:)
Angelina says
From SA. We don’t have that biscuit dough a substitute please
Marnie says
4 pack buttermilk biscuits available at HEB in Dairy aisle.
Anonymous says
Open side up ?
Still trying to figure that out?
Katie says
Hi! May I feature these on my blog? I’m doing an Easter meal post and would love to include this and link it back to your blog.
zestuous says
You bet. As long as you don’t share the full recipe, you’re welcome to use a photo and provide a link back.
Dalton Webb says
That looks really awesome. Can’t wait to try it out. Maybe I can get my mom to make it tonight.
Anonymous says
They look so good, I can’t wait to try the
Linda says
These look amazing! LOVE the super stretchy cheesiness… can’t wait to try them!
Eleanor Hahn says
can they be frozen once they are cooked?
zestuous says
Eleanor,
I haven’t tried freezing them. It should work. They would probably be best reheated in the oven vs. the microwave. Please let me know how it turns out, if you try it.
Christie
Ellice says
Hi Christi
What size can of The biscuits do you use….I’m not sure how you get 20 balls since the can has 8 biscuits in it and you said 2 cans….I saw that someone only had 4 in the can….Are you using the Grands Large buttermilk biscuits and cutting them or something else.
zestuous says
Hi Ellice,
I buy the cans that come in a 4-pack that have 10 biscuits per can. You can see them here: http://www.target.com/p/pillsbury-buttermilk-biscuits-value-pack-7-5-oz-4-ct/-/A-13016438
Sandy says
Is there a substitute for the wine?
zestuous says
Sandy, you could use chicken or vegetable broth instead of wine.
NanaJan says
I can’t get the cans of 4 biscuits, could I cut the Grands in half to make it fit in a mini pan.
zestuous says
Nanajan,
That should work great. Just flatten them out a bit so you can wrap them around the cheese.
Terry Ross says
Made these for the football game yesterday and they were quite a hit – no leftovers.
I think that next time I will increase the amount of Parmesan and decrease the amount of mozzarella.
zestuous says
Awesome. Thanks Terry.
Erin Corbin says
When you put the ball of cheese in the biscuit, do you completely close the biscuit around the cheese or do you leave the top open? These look delicious – thank you for sharing the recipe! I can’t wait to try them!
zestuous says
Erin, I usually pinch them closed, but it’s okay if they’re not fully sealed.
Janice says
Should I grease the muffin tin???
zestuous says
No need to Janice. The biscuits will be rolled in the butter sauce, so they shouldn’t stick. If you’d like, you can grease the top of the pan just in case the cheese melts over the edges.
Barbara says
Canned biscuits are not available in South Africa – in fact, I have no idea what they are! Is there an alternative (even if it means making the dough myself)? These just sound too good not to be made! Thanks so much!
Debbie says
As I was sitting in line at In-n-out to get a much needed iced tea I was pursuing Pinterest. I moved up in line and accidentally “turned” the page so to speak and these beautiful morsels popped up! I had errands I had to run for about two hours and these yummy things haunted me all the way home. I am home and have printed it out!.
I am now gluten free and will be working on a copy recipe giving you full credit for the idea! And I’ve signed up for your emails. : )
zestuous says
I love the idea of a gluten-free version. I can’t wait to see it. Thanks for sharing!
Jocelyn says
Can I use mozzarella cheese sticks.
zestuous says
Hi Jocelyn,
That’s a great idea. They might not melt quite as well, but they would make a decent substitute if you can’t find the small mozzarella balls.
Jocelyn says
can I use mozzarella cheese sticks cut up. ??
Marie Perry says
I just made the garlic bites,so good, However, mine wern’t pretty and brown, next time I’ll make more garlic butter and bake a bit longer. Thank you .
Debbie says
Thank you,I just found the right size yesterday and tried again, they are awesome! I making them again tonight.
Thank you again
Debbie says
I used the whole biscuit and they were huge, they didn’t make the bite size ones that you show. Did you buy small biscuits?, or regular size?
zestuous says
Debbie,
Don’t use the Grands biscuits. I use the buttermilk biscuits that come in a pack of 4 cans. http://www.pillsbury.com/products/biscuits/pillsbury-biscuits/buttermilk
Tara says
I would like to make these for a potluck but work early in the A.M. Have you ever tried preparing and baking later?
zestuous says
Hi Tara,
I haven’t made them in advance, but it should work just fine. Prepare them up to the point where everything is in the pan, and then refrigerate them. Take them out of the fridge while you preheat the oven. You may need to add 5 minutes to the baking time if they’re still cold to make sure all the cheese melts. Have fun at the potluck.
Jenne says
These look so yummy but over here in England we don’t appear to have cans of buttermilk biscuits. I would love to know what the equivalent would be so I could make them.
zestuous says
You could try using any fresh, refrigerated or frozen bread dough. Just pinch the dough into balls, and flatten the balls, so they’re about 6 cm wide and 1 cm thick. Then, follow the recipe accordingly. Good luck.
Anonymous says
Thank you so much. I will definitely be trying these 🙂
susan says
try making a scone recipe (using buttermilk instead of milk)
GG says
These were amazing, quick & simple! Thank you for the concise instructions.
Served mine as an appetizer to Italian food…perfect with wine or beer.
zestuous says
Thanks for taking the time to share GG. So glad you enjoyed it.
Heather says
Do you use the biscuit whole or cut it up into pieces? These look delicious!
zestuous says
I used the whole biscuit.
Heather says
Do you use the biscuits whole or cut them up? These sound delicious!
Miss Donna says
This recipe looks absolutely scrumptious!! But I’m partial to homemade biscuits. Is there any reason why it wouldn’t work with homemade? Thanks.
zestuous says
Oh Miss Donna you found a way to make these even better. I’m sure they would be fabulous with homemade biscuits.
amy says
What can I substitute the white wine with instead?
zestuous says
You could try using chicken or vegetable stock.
Phil...in Ohio says
We tried it for a side to our game time side and was great Thanks
zestuous says
So glad you liked it.
Sandi says
These were wonderful!! Thank you for sharing.
zestuous says
Thanks Sandi!
Linda says
These look yummy. Can’t wait to try them. If you have an email site where you share your recipes, I would love to join.
dawanna says
Can’t wait to makes cheese bites!
ami@naivecookcooks says
I love love garlic bites and these cheesy garlic bites look too good!
Caroline Garratt says
Wow your recipe is amazing! I love it any Asian recipes? what is Buttermilk biscuits? I do not think we have it in UK! Many Thanks
zestuous says
Thanks so much. If you have any type of refrigerated bread dough (or even frozen bread dough that you thaw) that should work. Or you can make your own biscuits. Here is a recipe: http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Buttermilk-Biscuits-104070
I do have a few Asian dishes on my site. Most of them are Filipino dishes. Is there something specific you’re looking for? There is a search bar at the very top of the page. If you type the recipe name in there, it should pop up if it’s on my site.
Merry says
Oh my gosh, your Cheesy Garlic Bites look amazing!
zestuous says
Thanks so much Merry!