Pepperoni Pizza Puffs

Fridays are pizza nights around here.  I was looking for a way to mix things up.  This recipe was perfect and the kids loved them!

Pepperoni Pizza Puffs (from Rachael Ray magazine)
Serves 4

3/4 cup flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
4 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 1 cup)
4 oz pepperoni, diced (about 3/4 cup)
1/2 cup pizza sauce (see below for homemade recipe)
2 tbsp finely chopped basil

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour and baking powder; whisk in the milk and egg.  Stir in the mozzarella and pepperoni.  Let stand for 10 minutes.
In the meantime, preheat the oven to 375 and grease a 24 cup mini-muffin pan.

Stir the batter and divide among the mini-muffin cups.  Bake until puffed and golden, 20-25 minutes.  Sprinkle the puffs with the basil (I left this out since I didn't have any fresh basil).

Homemade pizza sauce - (adapted from http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Easy-Pizza-Sauce-III/Detail.aspx )
1 10.75 oz can tomato sauce
1 tbsp flour
2 tsp dried oregano
2 tsp dried basil
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp garlic salt
pepper to taste

Heat the ingredients in a saucepan, let simmer for 5-7 minutes.  You can also substitute tomato paste for the flour.
Use the pizza sauce for dipping sauce.

You can freeze these.  To reheat, bake them on a baking sheet in a 350 degree oven for 8-10 minutes.

These were really good with buffalo chicken wings and carrots and ranch dressing on the side.