Monday, August 23, 2010

Pepperoni Pizza Puffs

 
School is already back in full swing for us and pre-season football has made it's way into our home as well. What does that mean in terms of food you are wondering? It means, that I need to come up with lots of snack foods. Snack foods for "starving" children after school, and snacks for football watching. I prefer food that I can quickly make on a whim, but also recipes that taste like I spent a considerable effort preparing.

I found the recipe for these great little puffs on Noble Pig. The pictures drew me in like so often, and after reading how easy and fast this could be made, I was hooked. I did make a few small alterations to the original recipe to fit our taste, and they turned out great. Flour, baking powder and milk (I used 1%) are whisked together along with an egg. I added a bit of salt and some Italian seasoning to the batter since I thought it needed a little more "oomph". Shredded mozzarella cheese and diced pepperoni (I used turkey pepperoni) are folded into the flour/milk mixture before dividing the batter into a greased 24-cup mini muffin pan. They are then baked until light, "puffed", and golden, for about 22 minutes.

These little snacks are a definite "make again" recipe. It was amazing how much flavor each bite held. I served them per Noble Pig's suggestion with warmed pizza sauce (I made my own) but they were just as good dipped in a bit of ranch dressing (my youngest came up with that concoction). This is a great, crowd-pleasing recipe, no matter if for football watching, after school, or any other event that could benefit from finger foods. I can see these little puffs going in many different directions just by changing up the cheese, using cooked Italian sausage, or leaving all the meat out and making a vegetarian "puff" by adding peppers and mushrooms. There are a lot of options and I'm sure this is not the last you have seen of these little snacks!



Pepperoni Pizza Puffs
(adapted from "Noble Pig")

Ingredients:

3/4 cup flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3/4 cup milk (I used 1 %)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
4 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
4 ounces pepperoni (I used Turkey pepperoni), cut into small cubes
1/2 - 1 cup of your favorite pizza or marinara sauce
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Grease a 24-cup mini muffin pan.
In a large owl, whisk together the flour and baking powder; whisk in the milk, egg, salt and Italian seasoning. Stir in the mozzarella and pepperoni; let stand for 10 minutes.

Stir the batter and divide among the mini-muffin cups. Bake until puffed and golden, 20 to 25 minutes.

Warm your pizza or marinara sauce, then stir in 1 tablespoon basil. Sprinkle the puffs with the remaining 1 tablespoon basil. Serve the puffs with the pizza sauce for dipping.

32 comments:

  1. These sound perfect for one of our Movie Nights!

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  2. Sounds and looks yummy. Thanks for sharing.

    Lets have some fun. Take the test Your snacks Personality and find out which of these snacks do you prefer? I have taken the test and enjoyed a lot. Hope you too will enjoy it. Have Fun!!

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  3. looks really good...
    thanks for your friend request on Foodbuzz. You have an interesting blog. I'm your new follower.

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  4. Great snack idea. They seem like the perfect size to pop the whole thing in your mouth. Bein from Utah, I'd have to dunk mine in fry sauce ;) Yumm, great recipe!

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  5. Those look awesome and I love how easy they are. I'm saving the recipe for our next get-together

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  6. Yes, I can see my husband munching on a dozen or so of these cuties while watching a game.

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  7. Tolle Idee. Bei uns faengt der Soccerstress auch diese Woche an. Die Puffs werden meinen Kids auch schmecken.

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  8. What agreat idea for apps, they looks darling and i bet, taste even better

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  9. These sound like crowd pleasers to me! I still have one hungry boy home, and these sound right up his alley. Thanks!

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  10. I saw the picture in my reader and didn't want to click thinking they were fried. (I'm a teeny bit scared of frying). They look so good and I'm so happy to see they are baked. I can do that :)

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  11. Clearly I should not blog-surf when I'm hungry. These look awesome and fun. Make me wanna go make some right this minute.

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  12. These look so cute! I just made pizza puffs as well, but in a completely different way. I definitely want to try these now!

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  13. Susi-Everything you make tempts me so! I remember these pizza puffs over @ Noble Pig and they certainly did catch my eye. Yours looks absolutely delicious and I love all the ideas for different variations.

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  14. Wow, that definitely looks inviting. We're football fans so pre-season is a big deal for us too. Snack foods are always welcome. Thanks for sharing this.

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  15. What a clever idea! This is such a nice treat for my girls. Thanks so much for your post.

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  16. These look fabulous! I love turkey pepperoni and mozzarella for a snack, way to step it up! Thanks and congrats on Top 9!

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  17. These are so darn cute, and you make them sound delicious so I will definitely have to try them. Congrats on Top 9!

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  18. I'm sooo trying this recipe!! YUM YUM YUM!! Congrats on the top 9!

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  19. These look so good and way better than those frozen pizza bites I eat on occasion :) I've totally bookmarked them to try soon!

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  20. Congratulations on top 9, these little puffs look great!

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  21. Boy do these look good. Making me hungry. I know my son would love a few of these even for lunch. I just may try these today. I have the turkey pepperoni in the refrigerator. Thanks for passing these on.

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  22. These look great! So glad they made it to Top 9 so I could save ("steal") the recipe for my guy. Congrats!

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  23. I'm making these today! They're perfect for hungry little mouths!

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  24. This look so good! Gotta make it!!!! thanks for sharing

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  25. Fabulous recipe, thanks for sharing!

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  26. Amazing! I loved your modifications to the original - I definitely don't want to take any credit away from Noble Pig, however the added Italian seasoning seems like it would be the perfect addition! Keep up the great work!

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  27. Want! I don't have mini muffin tins, but I'm thinking I need to go looking for some at the Paderno outlet or Homesense!

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  28. I've finally decided that I will make this for our baby shower this coming saturday. Do you have any recommendation on Pizza or Marinara sauce ?

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  29. I made this yesterday and they turned out great and people loved them too! Thanks for the recipe

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  30. Hi Susi,

    I made these for a Halloween party last night & they were a huge hit. They were devoured as soon as I set them on the table. Note to self, make double next time, haha.

    Thanks, again!

    --Kim

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