These low carb keto appetizers feature chicken, cheese, sun-dried tomato, and basil wrapped in crispy pepperoni. YUM!
Pepperoni Chicken Bites (Chick-a-Roni)
I don't know about you, but I've sort of got a thing for the pepperoni and cheese that gets a little extra crispy on a pizza. It is hard to resist picking those delectable morsels off, when a pizza sort of drools off the edge of it's crust Frankly, I don't even try to resist. It would be futile. Now crust and sauce are nice too, but when you are trying to drop a few pounds I have this theory that paring it down to what you're REALLY craving and going straight for it with precision targeted accuracy will get you over it, so you can move on.
Nope this isn't low fat, nor low in calories. It is low in carbs and high in protein though, so you'll feel satisfied and if you figure that most of grease will end out in the pan instead of soaking into your pizza you may start to see this as bordering on diet food yourself.
Anyway enough of the diet or not diet self debate, these wee pepperoni purses each lovingly cradle a bite sized chuck of chicken, a sliver of sun-dried tomato, a couple basil leaves and a matchstick of sharp cheddar. Bite sized heaven on a stick. Nosh on them as is, slosh em' around in warm marinara, plop on top of a salad or over some pasta... whateva'. Yum!
Wha'?? Don't even tell me she is trying to pass this pepperoni wrapped chicken off as some sort of diet food. The chick has finally gone completely off her rocker.
Keto Appetizer
If you are on a ketogenic diet these pepperoni wrapped chicken bites are perfect Keto Appetizers! I created the recipe before the keto diet took off. Since then it has become very popular with those following the diet.
Eat them just as they are right off the stick or serve with a low carb marinara sauce or try them with my Keto Yum Yum sauce! Dunking them on some queso dip would also be quite yummy!
More Easy Keto Recipes
- Keto Chicken Salad Recipe
- BBQ Bacon Wrapped Keto Chicken Wings
- Lemon Baked Cod, Keto recipe
- Keto Churros
Chick-a-Roni Skewers - Keto Appetizer Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 pound of chicken breasts or tenders trimmed
- 4 oz. block sharp cheddar
- ¼ cup sun-dried tomatoes
- ½ pound pepperoni sandwich size
- large bunch of basil
- **optional** Marinara sauce for dunking
Instructions
- Cut chicken into bite size chunks.
- Cut off ¼ inch slices of the cheddar, then cut each slice into 4-5 narrow sticks.
- Slice the sun-dried tomatoes into thin strips.
- Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
- Place a sliver of sun-dried tomato on each large slice of pepperoni, then put chunk of chicken over it.
- Tuck piece of cheese against chicken on one side, then lay a basil leaf or two on top.
- Roll the chicken up in the pepperoni. Poke skewer through starting at the lose end of pepperoni, and right through.
- Skewer as you roll them*, and lay out on baking sheet.
- Bake for 7-8 minutes. Then remove and drain from oil.
- Serve warm, with marinara if you like.
Notes
Nutrition
Gina says
These were so good. Definately adding to rotation.
Linda Warren says
What an absolutely fantastic idea! I too love when the cheese or pepperoni on a pizza or even the cheese on a grilled cheese gets all crunchy. And I love the fact that they are bite-sized and perfect for the little ones too. Thanks for sharing on Recipe Sharing Monday. (I pinned it for later :-))
Lori Hart says
My grandkids would just love this!! Found your recipe at Melt in your Mouth Mondays. I am one of the hostesses of Tasty Tuesdays and would love you to stop by and link up this recipe if you have not yet already. Here is the link http://bit.ly/1g5mVQa
Lori
Stephanie says
The cheese melted out of these! I added some Mozza and melted in the microwave, but there was none left inside!
Jill says
Is there any nutritional information?
cara says
One question, is the chicken raw or cooked? Looks like a great recipe, what a great idea. Cant wait to try.
Robin Gagnon says
The chicken is raw.
Cristina says
Silly question, but the chicken is raw that u are wrapping?
Pennie says
how many does this typically make?
Robin Gagnon says
I believe it was about 25.
Barbara says
These look delish. I think I will make some with mozzarella, chicken, basil and cilantro which is really good on pizza.
Deb Testa says
I will be making these luscious looking treats this weekend. Did someone say "whoop-whoop".
Heather says
looks good. Could they be wrapped with ham as well?
Robin Gagnon says
The only problem I would see with that is if the ham is not fatty enough. They would become tough, rather than crisped.
Deborah says
Took a fair amount of time to get everything cut up into tiny pieces. Yes, the chicken cooks right inside! Rolling up was a bit of a challenge; I used 2 skewers for sets of 3 which actually looked really nice. Most of the sharp cheddar melted out of the sides. If making for a family, that's okay but for company, I had to tease the melted cheese away from the roll-ups so they would look like the picture. Everyone loved them. They were a part of the 4th of July buffet and they held very well at room temperature which I was worried about. Did not need sauce. I wonder if there would be a cheese that would NOT melt out?
Robin Gagnon says
To avoid melting try a low fat string cheese. It is what I use when stuffing chicken for the grill.
CeeCee says
I have not tried these yet, but what about wrapping as the recipe says but tuck in the ends like you would an egg roll, then wrapping in another slice of pepperoni before securing on the skewer?
Robin Gagnon says
Give it a whirl. Wrapping that way sounds time consuming, but you might have great results.
You can always fall back to just rolling them if it becomes a pain.
Laura says
There’s something called bread cheese? U can actually grill it and it will just heat up and keep its form. And yes, it’s actually cheese I think.
Robin Gagnon says
Yeah, I've tried it. Good for some stuff, but I personally wouldn't use it in this.
Gillybean says
Its probably a stupid question but is the chicken cooked or raw when you wrap it?🤔
Robin Gagnon says
The chicken is raw.
Karen’s kuisine says
I don’t eat pork so used Turkey pepperoni. I used small cups pan layered pepperoni in the cup the chicken basil cheese on to. If the cheese comes out it cools in the form of cup. Delicious! Less work and no cheese going out