cheesy pizza puffs

There are so many cookies in my life right now.

Seriously — I’ve got pepperminty candy cane cookies, fudgy chocolate crinkles, peanut butter balls and snickerdoodles coming out of my ears. You’d think — and normally, I would think, too — that this is a Christmas miracle, but I’ve come to learn that my sweet tooth can handle only so many sweets. It’s a diva like that.

So after stuffing my face with cookies this weekend (OK, and a few days after that, too), I decided enough was enough. I needed something salty! Something savory! Something that didn’t have a Santa face on it or look like an old man cane with red and white stripes. Orthopedics. It’s science.

Enter these cheesy pizza puffs. I first made this with my dear friend Emily last weekend and thought I might die of happiness. They are salty, pizza-y, yummy and insanely easy to make. This version omits the pepperoni (hello, flexitarian), which makes them a little less salty, but an added pinch of salt restores the delicate balance. And after eating one (or two, or the whole batch), you just might want a cookie. You know. To even things out.

Cheesy Pizza Puffs
Adapted from Lick the Bowl Good

Yields: 12 muffins or “puffs”

Ingredients:
3/4 cup unbleached, all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 tablespoon dried oregano
1/2 tablespoon dried basil
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
3/4 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese
1/2 cup pizza sauce

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees (325 for a dark or non-stick muffin pan). Grease a 12-cup muffin pan and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, Italian seasoning and salt; add milk and egg and whisk to combine.
Stir in cheeses; let stand for 10 minutes.
Stir batter and divide evenly among the muffin cups. Bake until puffy and golden brown, about 20 to 25 minutes. Heat pizza sauce and serve with warm pizza puffs for dipping. Then eat a cookie.